Katie Gallagher’s Funeral Flowers Prevail

Upon arrival at The Raven on that hot, September day of New York Fashion Week—guests spiraled up the staircase into a packed room full of press and fans alike. Each lined up to get the best photos possible of the new spring summer 2014 Katie Gallagher collection, while others bee-lined to the bar to cool off with a vodka lemonade—both excellent choices.

Models stood against the backdrop of a blank white wall—staggered positioning based on height alone. The minimalist, yet edgy line was inspired by the song “Blume” [lyric: For you I am a Chrysanthemum/Supervova, Urgent Star/  For you, I’ll be a dandelion, a thousand flowerettes in the sky, or just a drop in the ocean} and funeral flowers. The line titled ‘Bloom’ for spring/summer examines our tendency to conceal unpleasant ordeals with beautiful objects.  I had to wonder if they had to draw sticks or not, as some models got the short end of the deal and had to bite onto a rose for the entire presentation.

Take a look at the happy models [note: sarcasm] and let me know what you think of the presentation. I found her inspirations to be interesting and unique, and her line clearly stayed true to the theme.

Check out www.katiegallagher.com – I recommend watching the videos of her previous lines, too– entertaining!

Ricardo Seco Brings Asian Influence with a Brooklyn Twist

Self-taught designer, Ricardo Seco, has been keeping me on my toes each season. Last season he designed a line inspired by Hasidic Jewish culture in Brooklyn. This Spring/Summer 2014 he’ll be airing a collection of street-savvy looks with pops of Eastern Asian influence. The show certainly was not a snooze-fest, as most are at this time of the week. Instead the audience was captivated by the vastly different looks on each male model (and one female, by the way)—but Seco was able to keep the collection nicely cohesive. Sporty jackets and unique pant silhouettes kept the show fresh and new. Models walked the runway, but surprised the audience at the end by walking back out and stepping up onto stools grouped together right in front of the guest benches that spectators were seated on. It was a runway show transformed into a presentation—how fun!