New York Fashion week: Quirksome

Quirky is probably the best way to be in current times. It’s a state of mind, way of life or a way of dressing that according to me, allows you to be experimental and cute at the same time. It’s the perfect combination where you are not going to be stared down that much for being a little out there. Try it. It’s fun. How? Get some fun ideas from the designers that did it best at NYFW 2012.

1] Libertine:

Libertine was the highlight of fun at NYFW. Big tweed jackets, skirts and dresses all covered in large sized disc shaped sequin and embroidery. A lot of badass skulls made of sequins on pretty plaid jackets. The finale included all the models dancing away on the runway and having fun, which was such a pleasure to watch. The front row quirks included designer Thom Browne [Below Right] wearing his signature-shrunken suit from his own collection and Michelle Reneau [below left] wearing shorts and a hat covered in smiley faces. [Below images by Prutha Raithatha]

2] Anna Sui

Anna Sui knows how to do fun and flirty in the best possible way. The quirky knit accessories where a cool way to fun up the girly pretty outfits. That blue eyeliner is pure genius. Nothing new but definitely something under used and needs to be more out there. Fall, we know, is a season of grays for most people but for those who want to break away and be the sun of their own lives, colors are the best way to brighten up our days and of the people around you.

Happiness is a state of mind, which can very well be achieved by just dressing up in happy clothes. How can you be blue when you have kitten mittens on that you can use as hand puppets to talk to? It’s as simple as that. Animate your wardrobe and you will have fun just laughing at yourself.

All images by Anna Morgowicz for Vogue.in and Don't Shoe Me blog [unless otherwise noted]

Braidy Bunch: Street Fashion

Images by Prutha Raithatha

Two very cool colored braid looks. First one spotted at the Helmut Lang show and the other at the tents during NYFW. I love the idea and want to try it out. What do you guys think? Maybe for my next shoot?

Holi Crap

Holi is my favorite Indian festival ever. I really cannot not celebrate it like a hooligan every year. This is from today.

Chemical Processing: Personal Fashion

Images by Jackie Russo

Dress: Complex Geometry; Leather Leggings: BCBG; Hat: Bloomingdales; Cat Skull Necklace: Custom made by OS accessories; Creepers: Underground UK; Jacket: All Saints

That guy in the military long jacket on his skate board is my favorite part of this shoot. His look was such a contradiction to his activity, it worked perfectly with the DSM philosophy.

I saw this kind of chemical processing of images done by a photog friend Wayne [who shot this for DSM earlier] and wanted to try it one time on DSM. Jackie pulled this rabbit out of her hat and I am beyond excited with the result. Art, I say, is so fulfilling.

Am in love with my custom cat and bird skull necklace from OS accessories. It's heavy but totally worth it. Don't worry they are not real skulls, they are made out of some high quality polyurethane. But yeah this necklace did have all eyes rolling at me during fashion week and I loved it. It's fun for me to know in my head that people think I am a "Bad-ass" by looking at my attire when in fact I am quite the opposite. So much so that I can't even watch a trailer of Paranormal activity in passing or else will have to sleep with my lights on the entire night..lol..

Shhh.... No one needs to know.

Ringers: Street Fashion

Images by Prutha Raithatha

Who said Givenchy Couture styling is for women only? The nose rings are a pretty unisex thing in NYC.

Shipwrecked Monkey Zoo and the Faceless Beast: Personal Fashion

Images by Ben Taylor

Jeggings: TopShop; Hoodie Sweater: H&M; Jacket: Zara; Shoes: Irregular Choices; Hat: Custom Made by Priya CP

Found this barge floating in the Hudson river with this wrecked monkey zoo sculpture on it. Of course Ben and I had to use it when we spotted it, irrespective of weather it would float away with us on it or would just sink with my weight. Don't even ask how we got on and off it.

Gave the faceless monkeys a human factor by giving them my furry hats to keep them warm in the blistering cold and took away my face to dehumanize me a little so that I feel a little less and react a lot less. I guess as humans we do this all the time. We treat our book with respect, love our clothes and money to no end and strive our entire lives to become stronger emotionally which really is just forcing ourselves to feel less.

But underneath all of the above, I have to let you in on a tiny life secret: When you wear hand puppet mittens, life automatically becomes funny as hell for no reason at all!

Missed you guys!!! xo

New York Fashion Week - The Architectural Lot :Vogue.in

Whenever you cover an entire fashion week there are always shows that feel like they belong to a kind of look. Edgy, Rock-star chic, Hamptons Luxury, Quirky, Disco, etc.  Fall 2012 NYFW had many such categories playing in my mind. Some shows over lapped in categories and fell into more than one type, but if they were slightly more of one kind over the others; they got put into that first category. Stay tuned for the other Categories to come but to begin with, here is my list of Architectural collections from the season. Yes, Yes, since I am an architect by profession, I recognized this category first and love it the most too. 

1] Rad Hourani:

Rad Hourani’s collection consisted of very strong lines and panels in jackets cut horizontally by a simple belt. Each jacket looked like multiple layers of jackets worn on top of each other creating very interesting forms resonating with the architectural “box within a box” effect. Perfect way to totally winter proof your next December in style. One of these jackets will suffice without any additional layers to keep you warm through any sub-zero temperatures in style. Rad’s show had the best creative crowd attendance in my opinion. A lot of goth, dark, Rad and Rick Ownes wearing people. The show felt more like a large group of friends gathering who probably hang out at the same places in real life too.

Architectural Reference: Richard Meier’s Jubilee Church, Rome, Italy.

2] Calvin Klein

Images to the Left by Me

Images to the Right by Anna Morgowicz

Concrete/ ash colored knits, metal strips for belts and window looking mesh panels. Slightly deviating from Calvin Klein’s minimalist parameters, Francisco Costa opted for more feminine silhouettes with cinched waists, strong shoulders and voluminous skirts, keeping it very modern, fresh and clean as always. I am sure Rooney Mara and Emma Stone [who sat in the front rows] already have their eyes on a few. Tons of Occupy Fashion Week protestors outside the show made me feel conflicted about the role of fashion in creating a social divide. A more detailed thought on this topic for another day.

Architectural Reference: Tadao Ando’s Church of Light in Japan

3] Onhe Titel

The sporty collection by Onhe Titel was cool in its details. The form of each jacket, even though fluid in look is quite rigid in its structure and hence fitted. Contemporary architecture to a very great extend has evolved to this stage of rigid fluidity where a room or structure is no longer required to be a square. Technology provides architecture with the fluidity it requires to experiment and be fashionable.

Architectural Reference: Future Systems’ Selfridges Mall in Birmingham, UK.

So in conclusion when you don’t have the money to spend on your dream house designed by your dream architect, I suggest investing in one of the above collections and just live in it. I am sure you’ll feel right at home.

All images by Anna Morgowicz for Vogue.in + Don't Shoe Me [unless otherwise noted]

http://www.vogue.in/content/new-york-fashion-week-architectural-lot