SS12 was presentation heavy, with designers from L.A.M.B to Mara Hoffman all opting for that style of show. The only runway I attended (and didn’t miss) was Shamask, which is a designer I knew nothing of prior to this season. Tis the beauty of fashion. Every season we are introduced to a new designer, brand, trend.

Rachel Zoe presented her second collection during New York Fashion Week on Monday to a crowd packed with celebrities and fashion elite like Kim Kardashian and Linda Fargo. Filled with cropped jump suits, leather blazers, bold jewel-toned hues —and of course the color that is every designer’s obsession this season —yellow, the Rachel Zoe Spring 2012 collection was bananas. Also featured were sequins, evening wear and tailored tuxedo short-suits, a must-have for every working woman in a sweltering city summer.

This is only a small fraction of the amazing and impeccably dressed people we encountered during fashion week. 

Expect a bigger batch of photos next February!

Camilla of Glamgerous.com

Garance Doré at work

THE Sartorialist, Scott Schuman

Miroslava Duma

Nina Garcia, laughing as a bystanders asks her who wins this season of Project Runway

Anna Dello Russo and Giovanna Battaglia

Yours Truly in the middle, with Kareena From Gilded Glam Society and Adeline from Nylon Magazine

Kim Kardashian

Kate Lanphear

Grace Coddington

Robert Verdi

Peaches Geldof

Olivia Palermo

Madison, Ayoka Lucas, and Alisen from Charleston Magazine

Another one of my favorites shows to attend this season was the IMPROVD presentation on Tuesday at The Box in Lincoln Center. After being captivated by the craftsmanship of Valentino Vettori’s designs from last season, I knew we were going to be blown away this spring season. FFB contributor and friend, Nikki Osei and I were lucky enough to chat with Valentino backstage and as always he is a joy to talk to. Nikki asked him a few questions in a small interview while I documented the backstage experience from behind the lens. Vettori stated that his inspiration for his spring collection was from the parrot — the movement, the colors and the texture of the exotic bird were brought to life throughout the pieces in the collection. One thing that I must say is that Valentino knows how to bring the innovation out in each show that he puts forth. As the presentation began, we were treated to the sounds of an eclectic musical mix (that he put together himself) as well as images of parrots flying gracefully across the digital screens in front of us. Loved it! It really created an ambiance in the room and strengthened the theme of the collection. While every piece was admirable in its own right, the standout pieces that we left lusting over were the shiny black lambskin jacket and the hand woven jungle green dress.

Perhaps this may be a coincidence, but I had the pleasure attending two of the most feminine shows this Spring 2012 season.  Like Lela Rose, Jenny Packham is inspired by femininity and knows how to make a woman look red carpet ready.  Evening gowns are Packham’s specialty and she has acquired a slew of A-list fans over the years, most recently Kate Middleton.

Also like Lela Rose, Packham takes a risk with a bolder-than-usual color scheme.  The palette is inspired by the summer skies, from sunrise to sunset, including rich reds and oranges as well as stunning shades of chartreuse and turquoise.  These colors are further accentuated by glittering Swarovski crystals that adorned most of the looks in this collection.  In addition to her signature gowns, Packham presents us with flirty mini dresses, rompers, and tiny lace shorts, also accentuated by crystals and sequins.  Nearly every piece is made of French or chantilly lace and Italian silk chiffon (or a combination of both), sometimes with touches of tulle, organza trim, pleats, or beaded flowers.

Season after season, Packham reminds us why she has such a loyal and growing fanbase.  Packham knows what she likes and knows what her audience likes, but continues to surprise in subtle, yet demure ways.  Spring 2012 will appeal to both celebrities and royals alike.

first three photos via style.com

Lela Rose has a knack for all things feminine, so I knew this season wouldn’t disappoint. However, the aesthetic was a little different and more daring this time around. Rose plays with the idea of combining sporty and sophisticated silhouettes, and the results are gorgeous yet cohesive, as to be expected. She also continues the color blocking trend, with a palette of bold colors inspired by the decaying signs of the Neon Museum in Las Vegas.  Rose mixes this vibrant palette of orange, salmon, yellow, purple, and blue with neutral spring tones, girly embellishments (like crystals, rosettes, and feathers) and mosaic or watercolor-like prints.

The gowns that made their appearance toward the end of the show were floaty, breezy and perfect for springtime.  Evening gowns are a strong point for Lela Rose.  In fact, Rose is concocting a wedding creation for Eva Amurri (daughter of Susan Sarandon).  Both lovely ladies were seated in the front row this season beside Mariska Hagrity and Brad Goreski.

first three photos via style.com

I’ve only attended a handful of shows this season (with more to come today and tomorrow), but my favorite to date would have to be that of Custo Barcelona. As with a majority of fashion week shows, it was a madhouse to get in and the line to get into the venue was a millions line long. But honestly I must say it was truly worth the wait.

Barecelona’s SS12 collection was entitled, “Tripolar” in which his garments were separated into three categories, each wit their own theme and identity. The first set of looks was called “Dual” which played with androgynous looks that both men and women could wear. To further this idea, he sent a male model and female model down the runway together in which they sported casual looks of blazers, knitwear, trousers, shorts – all in color palettes of  beige, gray, blue and black.

The second installment was entitled, “Kaleidoscopio” which is funny because that’s exactly what came to mind as the next set of clothing sashayed down the runway. It was just like looking through a kaleidoscopic which had come to life. To achieve this illuminous effect, Barcelona took micropieces of many different fabrics and materials and meshed them all together to create this psychedelic kaleidoscope-like parallel world, which surely left you mesmerized.

His last set of looks for the collection was entitled, “Mirame” which was comprised of an array of evening and occasion wear that were all created with a special 3D technique. The garments in this installment were mostly long and short dresses, shorts, tops and swimwear, all made of silk and linen combined with nylon, acetate rayon and manual applications to achieve the 3-D effects. Out of all three installments that were shown, this was my absolute favorite. There was a lot of shine in many of the pieces with colors of copper, silver and gold as well as bright splashes of purple, turquoise, pink, orange and gray. Well done Custo! You truly succeeded in transporting us to a futuristic fashion world that we perfectly landed into. Magical!

StyleLikeU Party @ Webster Hall Celebrating the Opening of the Hanky Panky Lounge

Fashion Week is never complete without the crazy, fashionable parties! The first one that I attended was the StyleLikeU party at Webster Hall which was celebrating the launch of the new lounge inside called Hanky Panky. We arrived around midnight and the party was jumping full force! I met up with some of my blogger buddies (old and new) – Samantha from O.M.O. Writes, Fajr from Stylish Thought & Kareena from Gilded Glam Society. We even danced with Yvan from FaceHunter who has some serious moves, btw. Cocktails were flowing and we danced the night away to the sounds of everyone from Jay-Z, to Madonna to TLC. I had so much fun cutting a rug with my girls! Especially my girlie Samantha, who I was dying to see and haven’t seen since my birthday party at Sky Room Lounge NYC back in March. At any rate, this was definitely a night for the record books. I would definitely visit Hanky Panky Lounge again! We captured some of the stylish crowd but we were honestly too busy getting our party on. Here are a few shots from the night.

Aside from my insatiable obsession with all things Kelly Cutrone (a.k.a. Mama Wolf) affiliated, I genuinely loved Mara Hoffman’s SS12 presentation. I’m no stranger to Mara, having interned in a showroom that oversees its sales, yet their collections still manage to titillate. Resort, Hamptons, Bora Bora and uber chic ladies vacationing on expensive yachts all come to mind as the collection featured kaftans, rompers, harems, shorts and maxi dresses in exuberantly hued tribal prints.

Fresh-faced models adorned in mounds of “Masai” inspired neckwear, sported fabric and feather ornamented up-dos and wedges identical to their ensembles, while keyholes and shreds peered from romper backs.

One of my favorite looks!

…All the while the mariachi band played in background.

Disney Star and actress, Ashley Tisdale is also a fan of Mara Hoffman! Spotted her at the presentation as well.

Another amazing People’s Revolution PRoduction.

Yesterday I had my first on-site show at Lincoln Center which was Farah Angsana. Angsana decided to go the presentation style route (which more and more designers seem to be doing now) which was honestly the perfect setting to showcase her beautiful collection entitled, Oriental Enchantment. Angsana equally brought to life both parts of her collection in her 15 piece display at The Box.

The oriental influence was seen all over in the collection in several of her dresses, including one of my favorites– a fuchsia cocktail dress with floral beading at the bodice and stunning origami detailing at the bottom. There was also a pale pink floor length dress that I adored which had kimono sleeves and flowed perfectly in the wind. The enchantment element of the collection was effortlessly shown through dresses that were full of luxurious layers of ruffles, flirty feathers and jewel toned and metallic sequin embellishments that shined on forever.