New York Fashion Week

Each season, the action on the catwalk is only part of the New York Fashion Week drama, and the fashion flock's descent on Manhattan last week for the group hug formally known as the spring-summer 2010 collections was no exception. Below are some of the most memorable and talked about "off runway" moments and musings. Fashion's Night Out Juan Carlos Obando gave salsa lessons, Third Eye Blind performed at Nine West, Rosie O'Donnell ragged on pricey purses (and the price of the shirt she was wearing)

Proenza Schouler designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez are jacked up as they talk about the handmade fabrics in their fall-winter 2012 runway collection, with its urban-warrior-trekking-the-Himalayas vibe. And why not? It's pretty unusual stuff. Embroidery that is a takeoff on ancient Buddhist symbols is "sick. " Colorful leather biker jackets woven using a technique inspired by baskets they discovered on vacation in Bhutan are "killer. " And the tiny plastic beads, which they had to develop their own molds to make, strung together to create a chain-mail effect on tunics?

The cold winds of recession were blowing through Manhattan on the opening day of New York Fashion Week. At the Bryant Park tents, instead of Starbucks or Lavazza, it was McDonald's pouring the free coffee. Designer Yigal Azrouel's show was sponsored by EBay, which will host a charity sale of his looks at below-retail prices. QVC was preparing for a live runway show on Saturday, with budget-priced clothes available for immediate purchase on TV.

Celebrity sightings and New York Fashion Week go together like a navy blue blazer and gold buttons, and the fall-winter 2012 shows, which officially wrapped up here on Thursday, were no exception. It's to a designer's advantage to invite high-profile potential customers - and sometimes even pay them for coming - since they attract publicity and help build buzz for the brand. So stargazers had plenty to watch, starting as soon as New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz - three days off a Super Bowl win against the New England Patriots - cut the ribbon at Lincoln Center to kick off a series of Mercedes-Benz fashion week events.

THE first weekend of Fashion Week is traditionally relaxed. It's a chance for lesser-known designers to get their feet wet, and many of the shows are small affairs, held in downtown galleries and loft spaces, instead of under the tents at Bryant Park. Top editors don't always turn out and neither do the crowds. But even damp weather couldn't stop the frenzy from building as soon as the fall season started here on Friday. Kenneth Cole had everyone up at the ungodly hour of 9 a.m.

It's a rainy day in Los Angeles and Juan Carlos Obando is padding around his apartment in a hooded sweat shirt, plaid shorts and shearling slippers, putting the final touches on a spectacular clear-sequin cocktail dress sprouting chiffon "feather" wings on the back. The dress alone took a month and a half to finish, and there's also an electric blue chiffon coat painstakingly tucked and sewn to look like fur, and a spidery black mini dress constructed from three layers of cashmere lace singed under a high heat to give it shine.

Like the women's collections, the menswear offerings for fall/winter 2010 were retro-nouveau, a plumbing (and updating) of the past to outfit the fellow of the not-too-distant future. Among the overarching trends to come out of the Bryant Park tents for the last time (next season, after 18 years, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week New York is relocating to Damrosch Park in Lincoln Center) were the following: Leather jackets Like the fall/winter 2010 collections shown on the runways of Milan and Paris in January, much of the menswear shown on the runways during New York Fashion Week focused on statement outerwear pieces.

The clothes that designers showed for fall during New York Fashion Week, which ended Thursday, invoked the classics, but with interesting, modern ideas mixed in. Among the trends we think we'll see women wearing come September are these five. Menswear mash-up Alexander Wang is the young New York designer everyone is watching right now, and his collection of sexy, deconstructed pinstripe suits set the tone for a season of creative menswear dressing for women. Among Wang's most memorable offerings: pinstripe pants with the waistband lopped off to expose a bare navel, and a morning jacket with the front removed and a bandeau left in its place.

  In New York, Los Angeles fashion has come of age. New York Fashion Week, which kicked off Wednesday with more than 300 fashion shows and presentations scheduled to take place in the coming days, is not just a platform for New York designers to gain media attention and retail orders. It's a showcase for designers from all over the world - and, notably this year, Los Angeles, which now has a breadth of talent to rival any major fashion city. Twenty years ago, Los Angeles had a reputation for producing clothing that was casual, comfortable and wearable, but not necessarily innovative or runway-worthy.

Proenza Schouler designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez are jacked up as they talk about the handmade fabrics in their fall-winter 2012 runway collection, with its urban-warrior-trekking-the-Himalayas vibe. And why not? It's pretty unusual stuff. Embroidery that is a takeoff on ancient Buddhist symbols is "sick. " Colorful leather biker jackets woven using a technique inspired by baskets they discovered on vacation in Bhutan are "killer. " And the tiny plastic beads, which they had to develop their own molds to make, strung together to create a chain-mail effect on tunics?

With mid-priced collections as upscale-looking and lavishly detailed as those on the New York runways for fall, who needs to pay top dollar for fashion? So much of the excitement during the New York Fashion Week shows that wrapped up on Thursday was about the so-called advanced contemporary category of labels that cost less than high-end designer collections without sacrificing style. Among those creating a buzz: Rag & Bone, Tory Burch, Alexander Wang, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Helmut Lang, Theyskens Theory and even the  J. Crew Collection.

  In New York, Los Angeles fashion has come of age. New York Fashion Week, which kicked off Wednesday with more than 300 fashion shows and presentations scheduled to take place in the coming days, is not just a platform for New York designers to gain media attention and retail orders. It's a showcase for designers from all over the world - and, notably this year, Los Angeles, which now has a breadth of talent to rival any major fashion city. Twenty years ago, Los Angeles had a reputation for producing clothing that was casual, comfortable and wearable, but not necessarily innovative or runway-worthy.

It looks like New York Fashion Week has come down with a serious case of the blues. Blue jeans that is. While the twice-yearly showcase of designer clothing has never exactly been devoid of denim, the presentation of fashion collections for fall-winter 2012, which got underway Wednesday, is serving up a noticeably robust roster. West Coast brands including Levi Strauss, Hudson Jeans, 7 for All Mankind and a relaunched Rock & Republic have joined the ranks of the luxury labels.

For all the Beyoncè, Taylor Swift and Justin Timberlake sightings, and all the peppy clothes in acid-bright colors and arty prints, what really blew my mind at New York Fashion Week was watching Rico the Zombie in a virtual fashion show. The digitized version of the tout-tattooed model-muse strutting the catwalk was just one of the visual delights at Nicola's, a temporary concept store curated by Nicola Formichetti, the magazine stylist-editor, Mugler designer and frequent Lady Gaga collaborator.

Reporting from New York The women's fall/winter 2011 runway season started in New York a little more than a week ago with more than 100 shows. Several themes emerged, including a dressed-up mademoiselle chic and Western romance. Bright color clashing and monochromatic dressing were important, as were mixed plaids. And when it came to outerwear, it was all about the parka and the poncho. Here are the 10 takeaways from New York's Fashion Week. MICHAEL KORS AT 30 On the show invitation, there was a funny photo of Michael Kors, back when his hair was long and lustrous.

Tom Ford knows how to work the spotlight. During last year's awards season, the designer-director was riding the success of his first film, "A Single Man. " This time around, he's introducing his long-awaited women's collection and new boutique on Rodeo Drive with a star-studded opening party Thursday. The campaign to whet the public's appetite for the clothes began in September during New York Fashion Week, in a private showing where they were modeled by some of the most stylish women in the world (Beyoncé, Julianne Moore, Lauren Hutton and Daphne Guinness among them)

THE STYLES at New York Fashion Week may change from season to season, but backstage, things never seem to waver; the run-up to every show is a Tilt-A-Whirl spin of hair-poufing pandemonium, lightning-speed lip lining and last-second alterations. And whether it's Trovata's peripatetic prepsters or Koi Suwannagate's romantic artistes, the feel is always a mix of pre-prom jitters among the stylists and steamer-wielding assistants, and daily-grind ennui of the swan-necked nymphs and the occasional Adonis, who bide their time texting and sneaking out for cigarettes.

On the subways of Milan, Paris and New York, a telltale sign that you're in the company of an honest-to-goodness male model -- besides his impossibly good looks -- is the ubiquitous backpack. Never a briefcase or a rolling bag, it's usually a soft-sided athletic number a little larger than a car battery, with two straps, one of which is slung ever so casually over a shoulder.

For men, next spring's wardrobe choices will look a lot like the current ones — a sea of khaki, more camouflage accents (camo print flip-flops and neckties, anyone?) and the continued presence of work wear. But there were some bright spots — literally and figuratively — in the collections for spring and summer 2011 that designers showed during New York Fashion Week, which wrapped up at the end of last week. Citrus punch Bright hues are nothing new to the spring color palette, but the abundance of vibrant yellows and oranges throughout the collections (for men and women)