L.A. fashion is back with a vengeance
The clothes were fine. The crowds were A list. A supermodel came out of retirement. The parking was insane.
It was, in other words, a successful debut for the first ultra-organized fashion week this town has seen in years. The L.A. fall collections kicked off Tuesday night at the Standard Hotel downtown. There were a few logistical hurdles -- valet parking at the Standard was jacked up to $25 from the usual $15 (and that’s no small matter in a place where a parking spot can be a deal breaker).
Still, the Mercedes-Benz Shows L.A. event, which mostly took place in a tent erected over the hotel’s parking lot, put a sorely needed professional spin on the fashion shows here.
David Cardona stole the evening with a collection so full of sexy swagger, the models seemed to rattle the tent flaps as they walked the runway. The designer continued his leather theme, perhaps channeling Jane Fonda’s femme fatale call girl in the 1971 film “Klute.”
A sweetheart neckline was deliciously ironic on a burgundy leather cap-sleeve top with bondage-style buckles across the back. Mussed-up sequins gave a cocktail dress the patina of an oxidized penny. And a dramatic sweep of a black leather gown, slit to the thigh, with lacing across the back, brought many in the audience of more than 300 buyers, journalists and various other fashion world types, to their feet.
Those who might dismiss Magda Berliner’s work as one-of-a-kind frippery need only to look at her 15-piece collection to realize how thoughtful this designer can be. A collector of rare fabrics, which she buys even if she can only get a few yards, Berliner used them to fashion multiple tiers of scarf hems on a “fairy dress.” (She only has enough fabric to make four of those and already has sold her collection to Barneys New York.)
Another intriguing piece was a boxy ponyskin jacket, laser cut to create a tooled effect on the surface.
Berliner has a slightly different take on the fashion business; she does not put labels in her clothes. “I want people to like my clothing because they like it, not because they are trying to wear a certain label,” she said.
Peter Cohen is a designer who knows who his fans are (older ladies mostly) and what they want (easy-fitting Ultrasuede coats in olives and browns, ivory-colored jersey dresses and crushed velvet tank tops).
The crowd at his show was eclectic to say the least, with Nichelle Nichols (Uhura from the original “Star Trek” TV series), Lily Tomlin and Santa Monica art dealer Patricia Faure all in the front row. “He’s a minimalist, and it’s interesting today that someone is doing that as a fashion designer when there’s so much funny stuff,” Faure said before the show.
Even if the collection wasn’t quite in sync with high-fashion tastes, it was fun to see Janice Dickinson return to the runway. The 1980s supermodel, who recently published her juicy memoirs, “No Lifeguard on Duty,” still walks like a pro. “Not bad at 48 to be asked to do a show with 15-year-olds,” she said backstage.
Of course, not everyone was at the Standard. Imitation of Christ’s show at the Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills had so much star power, Women’s Wear Daily editor Rose Apodaca Jones joked about needing sunglasses.
Designer Tara Subkoff’s Hollywood connections must rival Kevin Bacon’s. Reese Witherspoon came out to support the designer who was once her roommate. And Wes Anderson, Subkoff’s current beau, was able to reel in pals Anjelica Huston, Jason Schwartzman, Sheryl Crow and Owen Wilson.
The collection was more polished than ever, with new pieces as well as reworked vintage items. But with IOC, which debuted with a show at Hollywood subway stop in May 2000, it’s as much about the story as the clothes. Held poolside, this season’s show touched on many familiar Hollywood themes, from the slick-haired gents in Ray-Bans wearing fake earpieces, carrying mock “black lists,” to the synchronized swimmers in Esther Williams-style suits who performed for the finale. Even the cozy gray sweatshirt dresses with scoop necks and pleated dance skirts alluded to Southern California’s flair for sportswear.
But what was the deal with the male models who walked the pool’s perimeter with glass fishbowls on their heads? Subkoff said afterward, “It’s this whole idea that everyone out here has their head in a bubble.”
She has a point.
