Everyone knows that Skylight Clarkson and Mercedes Benz is where the magic of fashion week happens, but last Friday at the Mercedes House there was also a little magic happening.
The Journey Fashion Festival is a celebration of emerging international designers created by model Malena Belafonte. While the festival is not set to premier until February 2017, fashion fans were given a little preview of what to expect on Friday. The show opened with some spicy latin dance before introducing the first designer. The dancers Aleksandar Vukosavljevic, Jess Li, Joanna Miller, and Justin Schaffner continued to perform in between designer lines along with drummers from the off-Broadway, “Stomp.”
The designers at the showcase included “Este and Chlo” by Henry Picado, the Uwi Twins, “Christalle” featuring Letica Bags, “Haute House” with works from three emerging designers, and Makány Márta. Although each of the looks were stunning, they all brought their own story.
“Este and Chlo” had some gorgeous wedding gowns, but also featured a little girl walking the runway in a flower girl dress. The line was ended by a woman in a pink dress with presidential candidate Hillary Clinton ironed on the skirt. When it came time to take bows, Henry Picado emerged wearing the same image of Clinton, a clear indication of not only his sewing talent, but his voting preferences this election season.
Makány Márta showcased an incredible range of gorgeous looks, from colorful bright dresses to black sheer wraps with almost nothing underneath. In between the designers, audience members could sample tasty Hungarian foods and Hungarian spirits to keep them warm during the windy night.
Just like the refreshments being provided, the showcase only gave a small taste of what to expect for NYFW Fall 2017 and left audience members hungry for more.
Concurrently, Kia was hosting their STYLE 360 party at District M lounge at ROW NYC. Here, TV personality Kristin Cavallari debuted her third collection in a row, this time featuring a shoe collaboration with brand Chinese Laundry and jewelry from her own line Emerald Duv. Sponsor Kia also previewed their 2017 Cadenza model sedan to the guests.
