We love New York City and Fashion Week, but it’s always great to be back home! Here are my final thoughts on what we saw and experienced:

5 Strong Trends for Spring 2011

1. Lots of citron, tomato red and bright purple.
2. Beige and off white will be “the” neutrals of the season.
3. Fun 70’s inspired design details will make their mark.
4. It’s about contrasts: silhouettes are both form fitting and voluminous, hemlines are both long and short, fabrics are both soft and stiff, colours are both bright and muted.
5. Move over dresses and skirts, pants reign supreme. Think wide leg trousers, palazzos, short shorts, skinny cargos and harem styles.

5 Things you probably didn’t know about Fashion Week

1. The venue is surrounded by the NYPD.
2. If people aren’t talking, taking pictures or watching a show, they are texting or tweeting about what they see. The thumb typing at Fashion Week is relentless!
3. People aren’t generally chatty when they stand in line waiting to see a show.
4. The security staff are amazing and their colourful personalities add a lot to the vibe of Fashion Week.
5. There is free bottled water, coffee and protein shakes for Fashion Week attendees.

5 Favourite things about Fashion Week

1. Shows: Edition Georges Chakra and Thuy.
2. Show ensembles: George Chakra’s turquoise ombre gown and Carlos Miele’s short red cascading dress.
3. What I Wore: LBD my way, and all the outfits I wore with jodhpur jeans.
4. Meals: Cheese Plate at la Boite en Boir, the salmon sashimi at Donburi-ya, and all the gelato.
5. Moments: Greg’s daily outfit comments, meeting up for the YLF gathering, sitting front row at the Thuy show, walking through sunny NYC with my sweetie in flat shoes.

We have listed the posts below If you missed some of the coverage and would like to catch up. Shows marked with an asterisk have special backgrounds — Fashion Week was a great opportunity to exploit the new chameleon feature and we were very happy with the results. We hope you enjoyed this fashion week as much as we did.

The Shows:

• Tadashi Shoji Brings the Renaissance to Fashion Week *
• EDITION Georges Chakra Does Not Disappoint *
• Summery and Sandy Ports 1961
• Mik Cire’s Edgy Menswear Collection
• Thuy: Fabulous in So Many Ways *
• Custo Barcelona was Fun, Fun, Fun!
• Carlos Miele’s Stunning Spring Collection *
• Monique Lhuillier’s Pretty Gowns
• Allison Parris: An Eco Friendly, Socially Responsible Collection
• Tibi’s Casual and Wearable Collection *
• Gottex Makes Swimsuits Shine at Fashion Week

My Outfits:

• First Day of New York S/S Fashion Week
• Fashion Week Day 2: Black from Head to Toe
• Fashion Week Day 3: The Colour Fix
• Fashion Week Day 4: Casual Neutrals and a Bright Bag
• Fashion Week Day 5: Theatrical Comfort
• Fashion Week Day 6: The Lady in Red
• Fashion Week Day 7: LBD My Way

I enjoy trying and retrying new trends, remixing existing wardrobe pieces and pushing my fashion envelope. That way I don’t get bored of my outfits. In some instances the look isn’t completely new, but more of an evolved and often improved version of a look that I’ve sported before. Either way, my style feels refreshed when I dress a little differently each season.

This is how I recharged my look for Spring and Summer 2010:

• Bracelet: My new chunky pearl bracelet means leaving off the chunky pearl necklace. Having never worn bracelets, this is a big change for me.
• Messy scarf: I love wearing messy scarf looks with my one and only bracelet. No necklace required.
• Flat loafers: These androgynous darlings put a new edgy and arty spin on my outfits.
• Harem pants: One of my favourite looks of the season, worn both in dressy and more casual ways.
• Faded denim: Giving my dark denim jacket a break in favour of the new faded one has been more refreshing than I imagined. My faded denim shirt has been fabulous too.
• Jodhpur jeans: Just thinking about these crazy jeans makes me smile. So different and a fab low rise surprise.
• Button down tunic shirts: As a shirt gal at heart, button down tunic shirts in both black and white are another Spring and Summer wardrobe workhorse worn in casual and smart casual ensembles, all the way to business casual and semi formal outfits.
• Nude shoes: It took me a while to get my head around this colour, but as long as the nude leather is textured, I’m thrilled to sport the look. My nude Fidjis and Summer slouch boots get loads of wear.
• Structured handbag: My one and only structured handbag courtesy of my London family is a pleasure to wear. Instant retro Madmen 50’s fun.

Over to you. How did you refresh and evolve your look this season? Are you liking the changes that you made?

I grew up with the Gottex brand of swimwear. My late Mum wore the Israeli brand almost exclusively from the 70’s onwards. She swore that they made the best swimwear on earth! I followed in my Mums footsteps, staying loyal to the brand for nostalgic reasons more than anything else.

I have a vivid memory of shopping with my Mum for Gottex swimwear when I was a child in the 70’s. We were in a Hong Kong department store and I was getting very impatient with my Mum’s cozzie shopping. She promised that I could have a chocolate sundae if I held out a little longer. Apparently I was so well behaved that day that I got my sundae and I came home with a cuddly toy. That’s a great Gottex swimwear memory

We were thrilled to have fab seats for the show and I enjoyed every minute it. The designer showed both very over the top pieces and perfectly wearable items. It might not be obvious from the photos here, seeing as so much of it looks like stuff you’d never wear at the pool or beach. You’ll just have to trust me that there were plenty of classic and timeless suits mixed into the collection as well.

The collection showed a range of colours, from neutrals and pastels right through to metallics and brights. The swimwear and their cover ups were very tonal. I really liked that and it made me think back to my own Gottex bathing costume and wrap which is tonal too. A tonal swimwear ensemble is flattering to my eye.

There was a subtle 70’s influence throughout the collection, like the frontal crisscross necktie detailing and tie dyed chiffons. But there was also an extremely modern techno mood. Amidst the delicate and matte Lycras and chiffons sparkled the most glittery of sequins and shiny lamé. Some of the beadwork was so shiny that it looked like little lights were flickering on the runway. Spectacular!

My favorite suit of the collection was the strapless white belted number with the little wings on the the leg openings (above middle). Not that I would ever wear anything quite so dramatic, but I really appreciate it’s strong and crisp design.

I enjoyed the Bridget Bardot hairstyles and the transparent peak caps. Somehow this gave a retro flavor to the collection, which contrasted well with the some of the space age fabrications.

All in all Gottex was a very fun show to watch and I’ll be looking out for the practical styles in stores next year. As the last show on our schedule, it was a fabulous show stopper to fashion week at YLF.

I thought it fitting to wear a little black dress for my last day at this season’s Fashion Week. I had hoped to pair my black crinkle patent, stacked heel pumps with this little number because I do love a short voluminous dress together with a bit of a heel. Unfortunately, it was not on the cards. My feet are healed to the point that they feel great in comfy low heeled shoes or flats, but are still too sore for 2-hour high heels.

So I had no choice but to once again pair the ensemble with two toned flat oxfords so that I could comfortably pound the pavements of NYC. I tend to walk fast, but keeping up with Greg is another story. Best you don’t get left behind!

Pairing an LBD with flat oxfords seems stumpy and dumpy to some, but on trend, arty and edgy to others. I’m going with on trend and arty. I added in black micro fishnets, citron trench and patterned LAMB bag. I left off the pearl necklace and wore a pearl bracelet instead.

I thoroughly enjoyed Greg’s comment on this particular outfit: “The black, citron and white create quite a contrast, but you look very stylish and pulled together. This outfit reminds me of a bumble bee. You are my Queen Bee!”