Making the Scene at Fashion Week

For one week a year, each of the world’s fashion capitals are filled with fancy parties, beautiful people and full runways, both at the airport and in multiple venues around the city. Welcome to Fashion Week, where top designers unveil their new product lines and give people a sneak peak at what everyone will be wearing in six months. This is where industry decides what’s “in” and what’s “out” for the season. Fashion Week takes place twice a year, and 2011’s second Fashion Week is in the Fall, from September to October, which is just around the corner. We’ll be covering the four fashion capitals of the world: New York City, London, Milan, and Paris, and we’ll throw in Los Angeles for good measure.

New York
September 8-15

New York has been leading the charge ever since they held the first Fashion Week back in 1943, at the height of World War II. In fact, it was the war which was responsible for Fashion Week’s creation, as it was meant to distract consumers from the fact that those working in the fashion trade were unable to travel to France, making New York the de facto fashion capital for the US. New York’s Fashion Week is also known by the name of its major sponsor, which alternates between Olympus and Mercedes-Benz, with the car company taking its turn in 2011. High-powered media moguls and Hollywood movie stars are in abundance, along with the other 100,000 attendees. Local fashion fans who can’t make the festivities can watch over 150 hours of coverage on local TV channel 25, and of course for out of town visitors, there are hundreds of great New York hotels from which to choose.

London
September 15-22

The day New York’s Fashion week ends, London’s begins, so you’ll have to catch a quick flight to make both. Organised by the British Fashion Council for the London Development Agency with help from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, London Fashion Week has many organisers, and Mercedes-Benz is also quite present here. London launched its first Fashion Week in 1984, and it presents itself to funders as a trade event attended by over 5,000 press and buyers, with an estimated £40m to £100m trading hands. Foremost among the many Fashion Week venues is Somerset House in central London, where a large marquee in the central courtyard hosts a series of catwalk shows by top designers and fashion houses. Many other venues are also used, so chances are your London Hotel will be close to some events. Spring 2010 also saw London hosting the first Fashion Week to be broadcast live on the Internet.

Milan
September 21-27

Established in 1958, Milan’s Fashion Week is put on by the non-profit Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (National Chamber for Italian Fashion), which promotes the development of Italian Fashion. Here you’ll find Gucci, Armani, D&G, Prada and many other top international designers offering a peek into the future. The major fashion shows for women include Milan SS Women Ready to Wear and Milano Moda Donna. Though you need an invitation to see the catwalk shows, the rest of the city is booming with fashion tourists and there are glamorous parties everywhere throughout the week. One great place to admire the theatrical shop windows, and watch fashionistas and beautiful locals posing as you enjoy cappuccino and biscotti is on the pedestrianised Via Della Spiga. Be sure to book your Milan hotel early, as they can fill up fast.

Paris
September 29-October 6

It’s no surprise that Paris, the fashion capital of the world hosts one of the four most important Fashion Weeks in the world. This is the granddaddy of fashion, the city to which everyone looks. Fashion has been a prime cultural export of France since the seventeenth century, and the city of Paris was the inventor of modern haute couture in the 1860s.The city is now headquarters to premier fashion houses Balenciaga, Céline, Chanel, Chloe, Dior, Givenchy, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Hermès, Lanvin,Rochas, Vuitton and Yves Saint Laurent. And Paris’s Fashion Week never fails to impress. Even the venue, the Carrousel du Louvre is beautiful. The dates of Paris’s Fashion Week are always determined by the French Fashion Federation, and Paris is always sure to be the anchor of Fashion Month, always coming at the end. There are many excellent Paris hotels available as well.

Los Angeles
October 14-21

But wait! There’s more! Though not one of the Big Four, Los Angeles, home to the world’s largest film and television industry, is also a player in the fashion world, making its Fashion Week more than just an epilogue to Fashion Month. More low-key than its more famous namesakes, this Fall’s Fashion Week has been timed to coincide with LA Market Week, which takes place in apparel showrooms and trade shows at the intersection of 9th Street and Los Angeles Street in downtown LA’s Garment District. One of the more interesting venues is the Sunset Gower Studios, site of the very first movie studio in Hollywood. Some highlights: Simply Stylist, an event for celebrity and editorial stylists; Concept Fashion Week, a downtown indie production, The Green Initiative Humanitarian Fashion Show and The Nightclubbers, an independent fashion/music/art experience at the Avalon dance club. Again, no matter what part of town your hotel is located, you’re sure to be near a Fashion Week event.