Second City Style Fashion Blog - Style, Luxury, Beauty & Shopping

Male Box. The Best of New York Designers for Spring/Summer 2010

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

Whew – after an eight day marathon of runway shows and presentations, it took all the king’s horses and all the king’s men to put this fashion editor back together again – with a little help from my manicurist of 10 years, a very talented Swedish masseur, a very aggressive Eastern European aesthetician, and a slew of home hair repair treatments! No matter what the Beauty Editors may say, looking camera ready from 9 am to 9 pm for an entire week takes its toll on even the most seasoned editor. At any rate, I’m glad that I’m almost back to normal and ready to report on the best of what I saw this past New York Fashion Week for Spring/Summer 2010!

Last season, many of us agreed that presentations were a gift from the heavens in an already overpacked Fashion Week. With a good pair of shoes and expert subway route planning, an editor could easily hit 3 presentations in an hour between runway shows. This season, some excellent designers came to my attention thanks to the hard work of my expert Fashion Week Scheduler, James Collins. My Fashion Week actually began the day before the tents opened when I attended a delightful presentation of Mackage’s Spring/Summer 2010 Collection. This Canadian outerwear brand has long been a favorite of New York editors for winter coats, and they recently introduced a line of “packables”, lightweight nylon jackets and coats in a signature array of colors. Leave it to designers from a Northern climate to truly understand that outerwear can be warm for winter or waterproof for spring – and still be lightweight and extremely stylish. Your classic Burberry trench will have some competition for wear time next spring.

Luxury knows no season and fur designer Helen Yarmak, best known for supplying discerning ladies with only the most supple of sables, didn’t hold back for Spring/Summer 2010. On the terrace level of New York’s landmark Crown Building, she presented an utterly sophisticated collection of furs for women bound for exotic destinations who might catch a chill in a private jet or poolside at sunset. The emerald green broadtail biker jacket – shown over a nude maillot with matching Louboutins – was the stuff that fashion editor’s dreams are made of.

Read more "The Best of New York Designers for Spring/Summer 2010" here.

Male Box. The First Layer Of Fall

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

Labor Day marks the official end of summer and the long holiday weekend is for fashion folk the perfect time to do their wardrobe chores. It’s time to put away those summer whites. Tennis whites are of course the exception and, personally, I’ll be sporting my optic white RLX tennis shorts until the end of the US Open. That’s after the beginning of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week here in New York for the fashion calendar obsessed among you. My previous thigh baring homage to the US Open on the first day of fashion week was simultaneously praised by the style watchers on numerous fashion websites and panned by a certain “second in a two-horse race” New York daily newspaper who shall remain nameless. Who knows what acclaim – or infamy – my slightly longer shorts will bring?

The official start of fall is the Autumnal Equinox on September 22, but who can possibly wait that long to start wearing all the delicious clothes that were offered in the Fall/Winter 2009 shows? An Indian summer may foil your plans to appear at Fashion Week in that ultraluxe Prada mink and cable knit cashmere number, but that doesn’t mean you can’t participate in the return of the cardigan. The cardigan sweater was named for the 7th Earl of Cardigan, a British military commander of the early 19th century. Since then, the cardigan has become a staple of every fashion maven’s wardrobe and the perfect transitional piece for those awkward months at the beginning of both fall and spring. Yarn weight, colors and patterns dictate which of these easy-to-wear sweaters are seasonally appropriate.

Read more "The First Layer Of Fall" here.

Male Box. Mad For Plaid

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

As summer draws to a close and Labor Day looms, fashion folk prepare for our version of “Back to School” season, New York Fashion Week. While other New Yorkers are enjoying lazy late summer days by the pool at their Hamptons beach houses, we’re fretting over whether our schedules are too full or not full enough. Add to that the super high pressure of needing to appear “on trend” to our peers in the industry and the stress of it all triples. With no guarantee that September will bring fall weather, planning your outfits – and the requisite changes of outfit between shows – around the hottest trends for the season can be daunting because of the heavier weights of the fabrics.

While others can still sport their summer-weight seersucker suits and Lilly Pulitzer prints after Labor Day, the fashion folk think it our civic duty to put all that away and start wearing the fall clothes we carefully and thoughtfully ordered at trunk shows in late spring as soon as possible. Socialites and celebrities have it easy. They attend one or two shows a day, wear clothes that the designers send them, and are chauffeured from show to show in perfectly air conditioned luxury. For the working fashion press, we have it much less easy. We run all over town, often crammed into sweaty subway cars that are hotter than the wet sauna at your local Equinox, but still need to look great at all times.

One way that I intend to incorporate the fall trends into my Fashion Week wardrobe is to pay homage to the pattern trends of the season and this season I and several of my favorite designers are completely “mad for plaid”. I can still be perfectly comfortable in lighter weight clothes – in a fall color palette, of course – and be completely on trend by peppering a little plaid.

Read more "Mad For Plaid" here.

Male Box. Miami Swim Week 2010: An Editor’s View

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

For any of you who took umbrage at my previous ode to the one-piece for summer 2009, I bring good news for 2010. Diversity is the watch word in swim next year. From “itsy bitsy teeny weeny” bikinis to graphic print one–pieces, designers are offering a full array of choices in swimwear. The one prevailing trend seems to be suits that are sure to turn heads. Once a year – in July of all months – the world’s fashion journalists brave the sweltering heat of South Beach to attend the SwimShow trade show and the Mercedes Benz Swim Week fashion shows. Here is a brief report on what I saw – and loved – and hope that you’ll be wearing next season.

The week kicked off with the Tibi show in the Cabana Grande, the largest of the tents erected for this annual event on the street next to the Raleigh Hotel. The Raleigh’s gorgeous pool stood in for the familiar Bryant Park Fountain. As the week progressed, the fancifully shaped pool stood as a challenging obstacle course between the free flowing bar at check-in and the entrance to the venues to many a thirsty editor in double platforms. The poolside buzz about the Tibi show was very high and the show definitely did not disappoint.

Tibi kicked off what would emerge as a trend for metallic fabrics with their Oscar gold hybrid suit. From my perch mid-runway in the front row, the suit appeared to be a two-piece going one way past me and a one-piece going the other. Either way, the suit is a knockout that will stop traffic wherever you wear it. Prints were also super strong this season. Not since Stella McCartney sent strategically placed pineapples down her runway in 2000 have prints been so strongly engineered to draw the eye to a woman’s “assets”. One suit at Tibi featured a graphic print that gave new meaning to “the land of the rising sun”. Color blocking gave way to what I called “print blocking”, using prints in the way you normally would use color to create optically enhanced silhouettes.

Read more "Miami Swim Week 2010: An Editor’s View" here.

How Do I Love The One-Piece? Let Me Count The Ways…

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

The record rainfall seems a distant memory now that the summer sun has finally decided to shine upon us all. Unfortunately for many of us, the gloomy start to the summer season means that we may have put off that final sprint toward a perfectly beach-ready body. If you haven’t spent the past few months in hardcore bikini boot camp, the one-piece is here to save your summer!

Granted, a one-piece will only help help hide minor figure flaws, but it will buy you some valuable workout catch-up time. While the one-piece provides added support and coverage – for the more modest among you – creative color-blocking can further enhance your figure. Pucci, best known for the psychedelic 60’s-inspired prints that can cover up a multitude of wintertime sins, offers a great multi-colored option that uses black bands to trick the beach watcher’s eye. The black outline reads as a much smaller one-piece than the overall silhouette and the color blocking enhances the bust. Oscar de la Renta showed a great grayscale option that uses color blocking along the princess lines to reinforce the hourglass silhouette and black panels to erase potential problem areas.

If you still adhere to that old fashion maxims that black is “slimming” and “sexy”, you’re absolutely right and then there is no shortage of options for you this summer. However, if you think that “black = boring”, then you’re completely wrong! Stella McCartney slashed an otherwise modest tube top one-piece at the waist, making it undeniably sexy. The bandeau she added that hits just below the shoulder brings the focus to the collar bone and shoulders – a very flattering look for many women with the added bonus that the waist looks thinner by comparison.

Read more "How Do I Love The One-Piece? Let Me Count The Ways…" here.

Male Box. The Best of Summer Shorts

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

The world’s fashion press has been obsessed lately with men’s shorts. Not that long ago, the world seemed shocked that jeans had broken the $600 mark and now Tom Ford has rocked the racks with his $650 tennis shorts. Giorgio Armani upped the bar with his $720 cotton madras below the knee drawstring shorts. I thought I’d redirect our focus to the best in women’s shorts for this summer season. From the European to the American runways, designers presented shorts that work no matter what your signature style is.

If your personal style is somewhere between Sporty and Posh Spice, then Stella McCartney has the look for you. Her satin short shorts with a flirty mini overskirt are the perfect option to show off the results of your spring yoga-lates and spin training. If you need – or simply want – a little more coverage, then opt for a classic below the knee pair from the king of American sportswear, Michael Kors. His classic wide cuffed chinos are perfect for everything from running errands around town to sunset cocktails at your favorite beach resort.

Although I’m generally not a fan of shorts worn with stockings in the summer, I must admit I love the contrast of shorts and tights in the winter. If you’re a fan of bold graphics or perhaps have some imaginary figure flaw that none of your friends can see but you nonetheless want to hide, opt for Viktor and Rolf’s black-and-white op art look. I absolutely adore the optical illusion of the pattern that makes your legs look long and shapely – or is that longer and shapelier? Regardless, you’ll be sure to turn heads – in a good way – in this traffic stopping ensemble.

Read more "The Best of Summer Shorts" here.

Male Box. Spring Is In Full Bloom

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

April showers may bring May flowers to our city parks, but nothing sets off spring floral prints on our streets like the annual Run for the Roses at the Kentucky Derby. As we head toward the home stretch of the third leg of the Triple Crown at Belmont Park, floral prints are suddenly everywhere.Think you can’t work floral into your personal style? Think again! This season in particular, designers are putting this most feminine touch on a surprisingly full array of silhouettes and styles.

Rebecca Taylor is well known for her easy feminine designs. If your personal style is more boho than chic urban sophisticate, Taylor’s floral print tunics and peasant blouses are the perfect choice for you. The flowy chiffons are the perfect complement to your new boyfriend jeans and strappy sandals. Let your inner flower child loose.

Are you a little bit rock-n-roll? Matthew Williamson’s designs for Spring 2009 are your “must-haves” this season. From his acid neon oversize graphic floral print to his delicately embroidered Chinese flowers, he really nailed a totally modern and current take on the 80s-inspired looks you’re undoubtedly sporting already. Whether you choose a sassy short skirt or a sleek asymmetrical zip knit dress, you’ll be giving flower power with an edge wherever you go. Perhaps you’re a little bit more street savvy with your personal style? Tuleh’s bright floral print tunics get a tougher street edge with the help of camouflage Capri pants.

Read more "Spring Is In Full Bloom' here.

Male Box. First Lady Fashion Summit

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

While the developed world’s heads of state convened on England and France for the G-20 and NATO Summits, respectively, the worlds of finance and politics held their breath. For those of us in the fashion world, we knew all along that the really important news would be who won in the fashion sweepstakes among the wives. As the first 100 days of First Lady Fashion draws to a close, the stakes are high for Michelle Obama and the world is watching. Here’s my take on her recent European tour.

As she stepped off of Air Force One at Stansted – the last Bush arrival at Heathrow in June 2008 wrought havoc – Mrs. Obama looked like a bright ray of American sunshine piercing the bleak English skies. The sunny silk dress was by Jason Wu and the sweater coat was by Azzedine Alaia. Her now signature Alaia studded belt pulled the whole look together. Things seemed – at the time – off to a good start.

The next day, Mrs. Obama arrived looking fresh and rested at 10 Downing Street for breakfast with the Browns. I couldn’t possibly tell you what the President and the Prime Minister said or even what they wore, but I do know that Mrs. Obama’s ensemble of an embellished sweater and a J.Crew mint green jacquard skirt was perfectly springtime, in sharp contrast to Mrs. Brown’s drab dark outfit, complete with monochrome hose – in the daytime no less. Everyone in fashion seems to either love or hate that our First Lady wears so much J. Crew. I’ll go with an uncharacteristic “no comment” at this time, but I will say that I think it’s rather genius to wear a mass market brand when having breakfast with the wife of a Labour Party Prime Minister. I’d like to believe that Mrs. Obama would have dressed differently were the current British Prime Minister a Tory.

The most anticipated event of the Obama’s European tour was their invitation to tea at Buckingham Palace with Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Mrs. Obama arrived perfectly dressed – for a night at the opera! Her all black silk satin ensemble – Jason Wu opera coat, Jimmy Choo kitten heels, and baton clutch – was undeniably chic, but not at all appropriate for a day time event, let along high tea with the Queen. Things went steadily downhill from there fashion-wise. Later it was revealed that, under the coat, Mrs. Obama was wearing an Isabel Toledo dress that was white on top and black below, paired with yet another Alaia cardigan. The embroidered skirt of the dress, its shape enhanced by tulle petticoats, was appropriately tea length, but the overall effect was more “Carrie Bradshaw on the side of an M2 bus” than “First Lady of the United States meets the Queen of England”.

Read more "First Lady Fashion Summit" here.

Male Box. Gaga for the Go-Go 80s!

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

The craze for 80s style is reaching epic proportions nationwide. With the recent launch of the Stephen Sprouse book by the Padilha brothers of MAO public relations in Los Angeles, the frenzy has officially gone coast to coast. For those of us who were old enough to live through that particular decade in fashion properly, everything old is new again. Witness Nicole Ritchie’s BlackBook cover homage to Teri Toye, the world first openly transgendered model, who is also rumored to be the inspiration for Lady Gaga’s “signature” look. If straight blond hair with blunt bangs doesn’t work for you and you still want to unleash your inner 80’s goddess, opt for space goggle sunglasses, the new oversize Jimmy Choo’s are perfect to add a dash of 80s over-the-top to any hairstyle or color.

If the Louis Vuitton Stephen Sprouse leggings are too 80’s pop art for you, go the acid wash route with companies like Cheap Monday, ACNE, and Nolita. If you’re more a dress girl, Jordi Scott’s Spring 09 collection had some great options for rocker-inspired fashions with a dash of 80’s pop color.

Read more "Gaga for the Go-Go 80s!" here.

Male Box. The Best of Show(s): New York Fashion Week

Joseph Ungoco for Second City Style Magazine

Perhaps it’s the fact that I attended the Westminster Kennel Club just prior to the beginning of New York’s Fall/Winter 2009 Fashion Week, but I can’t help but draw the comparison. The difference is that to win Best in Show, Stump, the 10 year old Sussex Spaniel, had to first beat out the best of his kind – as the most beautiful, the best trained, and the best behaved. If only fashion week were similar. Instead, anyone with the resources seems to be able to produce a show, hire a PR firm, and send out invites. The problem is that they don’t necessarily have to design clothes worth seeing in a runway show – or, in some cases, at all. For yet another season, my fellow editors bemoaned the fact that the shows are not juried, despite the consensus that some so-called “designers” should not be allowed to show.

In seven days, I attended over 60 fashion shows and presentations. To be truthful, only about half of what I saw was interesting to me as “fashion”. The rest were just “clothes”. We all expected most designers to play it safe again this retail season, designing clothes that were sure to sell, but even the buyers seated around me seemed disappointed. Perhaps it was the new year or the new political administration, but I think we were all looking for that proverbial ray of hope to shine through American fashion.

The week officially kicked off with the Heart Truth Red Dress fashion show, where film actresses and television personalities vamped the runway and hammed it up for the enthusiastically cheering audience. The clothes were good, particularly the Carolina Herrera that Lynda Carter wore, but I couldn’t help but think it was all like a dog show – without the appropriate restraint or the obedience training. By the end, I was really looking forward to settling into the serious business of fashion with a more disciplined runway show. Thankfully, Yigal Azrouel delivered. The goth/rocker chick vibe on real models was exactly what I wanted to see right then and, hopefully, will see six months from now on real people in the streets.

Read more "The Best of Show(s): New York Fashion Week" here.