Last week I received this (below) lookbook in the mail with images of the new Ben Sherman Fall 2011 Collection. I just love the creativity in this…

Earlier this week the Ben Sherman Store in Soho hosted the launch party of the new Fall 2011 Englishman in New York Collection and Ad campaign. The ex-pats featured in the Englishman in New York campaign were on-hand to pose with their respective campaign shots and model the new collection. Ben Sherman tracked down an assortment of young, successful Englishmen who have made New York their home. Selected for their individual style and creative merit, each of these Englishmen were given the freedom to pick from the season’s collection, to be worn in their own way and shot in their own neighborhoods.

The Plectrum Collection, showcases the brands more directional and contemporary lines and targets the sartorially savvy new wave of ‘modernist’ consumer. With premium product utilizing carefully sourced fabrics and materials, the collection will feature the understated Plectrum logo, inspired by the guitar pick and symbolizing originality, creativity, innovation and style. The collection will be sold within the brands own retail stores and selected upper-tier distribution.

The Script Collection offers a mix of classic pieces and fashion staples, providing an easy to wear offering for those who still consider looking good to be of utmost importance. The Script Collection will service commercial accounts, maintaining smart and trend aware silhouettes throughout the range.

The Heritage Collection, replacing the brands Signature line, consists of core items such as classic Oxford and gingham shirting, tipped polos, Harrington jackets and clean and considered knitwear.

We are confident this new way of presenting the Ben Sherman offering will satisfy the appetite of the modern market.

Edgy and youthful, designer Custo Dalmau presented the Fall Custo Barcelona collection the featured wild colors and in an array of fabrics that in a way, redefined eclectic. With thumping tunes from artists like the Cure, the models wearing the bizarre yet intriguing looks marched down the runway, which looked like an army of every texture, embellishment, color and fabric known to mankind.

The idea of a clean slate – or as the show notes said, “Clean, but not really” – was kept in mind as the starting point. Pure lines and neutral colors emphasized this idea, and with progress, colors, prints and graphics eventually are splashed on the canvas, bringing the electric, funky look that Custo Barcelona is all about.

A mixture of all kinds of textures were represented – felted wool, fringes, wool-based graphic jacquards and distressed weaves that were “used to create and effect of light organza.” Knit dresses and thick, woolen sweaters were paired with graphic leggings.

Dalmau was not afraid of using neutral colors to balance the boldness, but other details like ruffles, fringes, feathers and metallic tights drove home his image of explosive designs and unconventionality.

While Dalmau walked out to a standing ovation, it’s safe to say most, if not all, of these looks will be heavily modified for production as view this collection as great on the runway, but not on their own backs. Luckily, since there are so many unique qualities about each piece, the chaotic and bold designs will most likely still be evident.

Images courtesy of  Stevyn Llewellyn

Inspired by the 600-year old Kun Opera, Tam emphasized the Asian’s importance of recognizing their cultural and traditional backgrounds, especially those that are ancient. The show notes mention, “In China, we are deeply aware of our contradictions: in awe of our ancient cultural traditions, yet striving to be modern.”

Tam was able to mix the importance with tradition with the desire of modernity in her collection, which was influenced by the Kun Opera, as well as the Guangzhou Opera House, created by Zaha Hadid. The historic opera allowed Tam to connect a time of ancient traditions with contemporary designs – a tactic that is impressive to master.

Tam’s starting points for her look were the elaborate costumes of the Kun and taking these fantastical costumes and transforming them into everyday wear. A combination of tweed, wool and silk mimicked the costumes in an East-meets-West manner, mixing contemporary with ancient. Opera sleeves on a champagne colored blouse echoed the Chinese opera, topped with a black suede vest with fur trims.

The collection opened with a neutral palette of charcoal and navy, but eventually transitioned into sequin dresses and eventually went to the other side of the color spectrum with a bold, red sequined dress. The recognizable dragon motifs that are commonly found on Chinese print fabrics were also worked into the collection – a cream dragon crotchet tunic with crystals wowed the audience.

Trompe l’oeil was used in emphasizing the intricate details that are found on the costumes: traditional patters that featured appliqués, lace, embroideries and crochet handicraft – all constructed with modern materials. While the looks were overall conservative, the details such as tassels, fringe and Swarovski crystal embellishments made the looks bold and attractive.

Images courtesy of Andy Wisniewski for Keenography

The sibling duo of Nicholas Kunz and her brother, Christopher, went a bit woodsy mixed with bohemian gypsy for their men’s and women’s Fall/Winter 2011 Fashion Show at Lincoln Center this season. They took their inspiration for their looks from the outdoors while still remaining true to their downtown feel.

We saw soft velvets in black and hunter green with tiered ruffles paired with leather bombers. Flannel plaid shirts with slouchy pants, patchwork-jodhpur motifs, army jackets, black and olive parkas, layered dresses and tiered skirts in Navajo inspired prints. A new way to wear skirts tied in front to transform them into shirts, way cool. The cable knits were beautiful with their asymmetrical draping and oversized hoods. Slouchy cardigans zipped at rakish angles. All these beautiful pieces were in the color palette of hunter greens, moss green, orange rusts, gray-blues, birch and snowy-white to reflect the colors of the forest.

For the first time, Nicholas K collaborated with the Vintage Shoe Company to create limited edition boots for men and women which were worn by the models.

The pieces in this collection can be interchanged with the others to fill anyone’s closet with some comfortable but edgy styles that is always Nicholas K while still keeping your downtown feel.

Images courtesy of Stevyn Llewellyn

The No Doubt front woman and platinum solo artist once again showed that she had the style, taste and brains of a successful designer, once again ending the New York Fashion Week festivities to a beyond-capacity crowd at Lincoln Center for her line, L.A.M.B.

Like past shows, many of the looks in L.A.M.B. were reggae, Harajuku and menswear inspired, but this season, Stefani took it to another level and gave the audience more than what they expected as she attempted to stray away from her usual girlish, glam rock-star looks into more chic, sophisticated styles – and succeeded.

Opening with the song, “Soldier Girls,” the models, or creatively dubbed by some showgo-ers as “Gwenbots” marched out in groups to the beginning of the runway, with each model progressing down the runway one by one in camouflage. The groups, which were divided into six themes, were influenced by military, Rastafarian, and Navajo tribal styles.

One of the creative tactics that Stefani had for this collection was the breakup between the groups to depict a timeline of fashion in the past 40 years.  While the entire collection was not necessarily a timeline, two groups – “London Girls” and “Buffalo Girls” echoed styles of the 60s and 70s featuring schoolgirl plaids and mod headbands.

The looks featured Gwen’s signature punches of color with bright oranges, electric yellow and deep reds with attires ranging from pantsuits to tunics to miniskirts. But the final group strayed away from the bold colors and surprisingly, were all black. Yet, the looks were sexy and sophisticated with a sense of glamour. The models’ hair were volumized, the eyes were coated in black eyeliner, and the black jumpsuits, dresses and gowns showed a different side of Stefani’s style – a branching out of her usual looks depicting her girlish music into a mature wardrobe.

Once again, the unexpected show-stealer was none other than Gwen’s precious little son, Kingston, who walked down the runway with his proud mommy (who was stylishly wearing a one-shoulder wide leg jumpsuit).

Images courtesy of our friend Andy Wisniewski of Keenography

Winner of Season 6 of Project Runway, Irina Shabayeva made her solo debut in the Fashion Week tents on the first official day of shows, and she did not disappoint.

On the heels of her recent collaboration of a capsule collection for Macy’s INC International Concepts, Shabayeva presented a Spanish-inspired collection of bold and vibrant colors with fun “snowflake cut-out” styles and dramatic silhouettes. Knits were mixed creatively with fragile and delicate cocktail dresses that offered versatility and femininity at its best.

Reminiscent of the Barcelona fashion scene, most of Shabayeva’s skirts and dresses were flared around the waist and below, mixed with jackets and wearable knits. Bright reds and blues popped out on the runway, while grays and blacks were also a popular color. Some looks featured the aforementioned snowflake cutouts in the top layer of the fabric, with a contrasting peekaboo underlay fabric creating a fantastically simple yet intriguing look.

But Shabayeva even took the snowflake cutouts a step further in other looks. She created a 3D feel on what would be minimal cocktail dresses and gowns without that distinctive detail. The snowflakes were attached to the bottom of the dresses, which almost looked like butterflies fluttering as models walked down the runway. Case in point: a classic strapless black gown got a unique and dramatic twist with the cutouts that ran from the thighs down to the train of the dress.

The collection also featured everyday, ready-to-wear styles that could be perfect for the chic office worker during the fall. Structured jackets and wool skirts were a popular combo. The knits were also a popular feature, which Shabayeva juxtaposed perfectly with many of her dressier pieces.

Several looks were accessorized with black hats, which brought a retro feel to what seems to be a rather modern collection. Black leather gloves were also featured in some of the looks, all of which were attention grabbing to a collection that any modern woman would love.

Images courtesy of Stevyn Llewellyn of Modern Glossy