The Carlos Miele show this morning was utterly splendid. It was packed to the brim with people so we felt very fortunate to be well positioned behind the seated audience near the end of the runway. We were just close enough to capture the intricate technical work of the garments, soaking up the brilliance of every pleat, dart and stitch. The fabrics were lusciously drapey and substantial and I was in my element appreciating the luxury of first class couture.

No prizes for guessing what colour was most worn by the audience. Although, being a morning show, a few people branched out to wear grey — and drum roll please — some even added pops of colour. A few others hauled out animal print coats and accessories. All in all, this has been the most colour rich day at Fashion Week.

Carlos Miele’s garments were wearable and I very much enjoyed the aesthetics. They were clean and innovative, but somehow pretty classic too. It made for a dazzling combination.

The collection was beautifully colourful and it worked well on the runway. There were strong statements of tomato red matched with bright purple – a combination I’m incorporating into my wardrobe as soon as possible. A bright royal blue and rich emerald green appeared in a handful of the garments, which was quite delicious too. Skirts and dresses were both short and on the knee. Paperbag waist detailing was strong, so watch out for more of that this Autumn. Slacks were very tapered, but sleeves were voluminous both in shoulder poof and in the form of under arm batwings.

There was also lots of zipper trim, sequin and pleat detailing on skirts and dresses. But the best part about the Carlos Miele collection was the superb use of colour blocking. It’s not an easy sewing technique and it was flawlessly executed with what I imagine to be super slippery fabric. His colour blocked garments looked both strong and graphic, yet soft and feminine. Very fab.

As much as I love colour and it’s effective impact on the runway, my favourite item in this collection was a short, black, spiders web sheath dress with flesh toned lining (you can see it in the picture above). It would work in my wardrobe with a pile of pearls, a tailored tuxedo jacket and red shoes, so I’ll take one of those please.

At the end of every show the designer appears for a few seconds for some well deserved applause after six months of hard work preparing their collection for this ten minute spectacle. We thought Carlos was particularly humble in the way he acknowledged the recognition.

There are several photographers outside the tents snapping pictures of people at Fashion Week. A rather hip and dashing photographer asked if he could take a picture of me today and I obliged. Not too shabby.

The Irina Shabayeva show we attended last night was held in the Garment District, away from the main Fashion Week tent at Bryant park. The avant garde setting, darker with blue lighting, gave the show much more of a nightclub atmosphere than the Georges Chakra show we had attended earlier in the day. The people, or course, were every bit as colourful as we’ve come to expect.

The collection was also quite different to the one we saw at the Chakra show. Irina’s garments were a lot more complex and the outfits were highly accessorized for true runway drama. Fabrications weren’t as high quality and the tailoring wasn’t in the same class. There were also at least five different fabrications integrated into one outfit. Some of them had more. Hectic! I’m a less is more kind of a gal favouring strong simple lines and clean bold statements, so I much preferred the aesthetics of the Georges Chakra collection, but enjoyed this show all the same.

The young designer showed immense creativity crafting dresses and skirts from feathers, leather and fur. She took the wings of a bird as inspiration and the theme came through strongly in each outfit. The dresses looked like moving sculptures as the models took them through their paces down the catwalk. It was very impactful and I fully appreciate the innovative thought processes that went into each creation.

The palette was dominated by camel, grey, black, white and light blue. All the pants were sleek and skinny. All the skirts were short and straight. The dresses were knee length and both A-line and straight depending on the fabric. Knits were chunky and oversized jacket silhouettes reigned supreme. The collection reflected my suspicion that we’re going to see a lot of extended shoulder lines for Autumn. Sorry ladies, but a new fashion era of shoulder pads lies before us.

The outfit on the left below was was so dramatic that much of the audience started clapping, thinking it was the show stopper that marked the end of the procession. But another, even more dramatic black outfit followed right after. The dress on the right below was my personal favourite, and judging by the crowd reaction I wasn’t alone.

Seeing ramp models in action up close during fashion week has made me think a little more about their job. Striding along a slippery runway in unwearable clothing and six inch heels in front of hundreds of people and blinding camera lights can’t be easy. Not to mention stripping off your clothes in front of the world at the speed of light while five people tug at your outfit and touch up your hair and make-up. Try doing that without appearing sweaty, flustered and exhausted. It’s quite a skill.

For those who don’t follow Project Runway, Irina won the sixth season of this reality TV show.

We attended the Georges Chakra fashion show today and it was spectacular. Gown after gown was an artistic marriage of flattering design and technical skill as the models glided down the runway. I have yet to see gowns drape and move as flawlessly as they did in this show. It was captivating.

There were no slacks or skirts at all. It was a show of short and long formal dresses in red, navy, black, white, silver and gold. Lace was huge, as was the tuxedo jacket as the “it” cover-up. (I want a black tuxedo jacket RIGHT NOW). The models sported simple updos and wore six inch stiletto heels. No accessories and minimal make-up. This show was all about the dress and making it shine. I loved that discipline.

The creations were for the most part pretty commercial in that you wouldn’t look out of place wearing them in the real world. Often, runway collections are so impractical and over the top that you’d look daft wearing the creations in any situation other than in a fashion show. But these wearable works of art were a breath of fresh air.

If I went to the Oscars this year, I’d want to wear the tomato red high-necked sleeveless gown on the model above. That’s my favourite catwalk garment I’ve seen so far. I haven’t paid much attention to Georges Chakra in the past, but after today’s show I’m a new fan.

Waiting for the show to start was in itself a show. Hundreds of people queuing up in fabulous outfits with invitation in one hand and cellphone and handbag in the other. The audience was once again a sea of black. Almost everyone wore soaring skyscraper heels to accent their form fitting skirts, dresses and skinny pants. Today, I chose to wear a black 60’s go go dress over skinnies with biker jacket, bold scarf, pearls and cream ankle boots. I’m making a my own fashion statement at fashion week by NOT wearing black from head to toe.

YLF got a press pass to view the 2010 Fall Collections at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. So here we are in gloriously sunny but freezing New York City soaking up the magic. People watching takes on a new meaning around here. It’s sublime! Observing the street fashion has been the best part so far. So many inspirational outfits. But the activity that surrounds the fashion shows is almost as impressive. Wherever you look there are headsets, walkie-talkies, microphones, cameras, laptops, cell phones, strict security and people delegating like they mean business.

There are clearly two groups of style statements here at Fashion Week: those who want to look chic, sophisticated and trendy, and those who want to be a fashion spectacle. Both are totally fabulous and make for a superbly interesting and colourful atmosphere. Black is definitely the colour of the moment for both men and women. I have NEVER seen so many people wear black in one place at one time. I felt quite rebellious wearing my off-white Bond girl leather jacket, which also made it easy for Greg to spot me at a distance.

As expected, almost all of the women are wearing four to six inch heels. Some of the groovy men are wearing platform wedged heels too. Very few people are in jeans, but many more are wearing leggings, ponte knit pants, skirts and dresses. For my first day at Fashion Week, I decided to go with a black shirt dress, white studded belt, low heeled black patent boots, Burberry scarf, pearls, white leather jacket and black puffer coat. I was very comfortable and felt fab.

There is a media room for bloggers that’s conveniently set up with tables, chairs, and places to plug in laptops and cell phones. This is where bloggers are furiously typing away their thoughts and impressions live for you to view. There’s no question about the influence that bloggers and new media have in the fashion world these days. And yes, that’s me tweeting! If you’re into Twitter you can get my realtime fashion week updates on the YLF twitter feed.

Behind the scenes activities are extra fab. I loved, loved, loved seeing the garments, shoes and handbags being trolleyed in backstage for the fashion shows. This takes me back to my much loved fashion buying days. We caught glimpses of models walking backstage too – one covered in a lime green blanket to keep warm in her show outfit.

We haven’t seen too many celebrities yet. Last night we saw Kimora, who designs Baby Phat, and this afternoon I caught a glimpse of Heidi Klum as she stepped into her car. Gorgeous! Unfortunately we were blocked by a stampede of paparazzi and didn’t get the picture.

Tomorrow, we’ll start attending shows so stay tuned as we tweet and blog our thoughts over the next week.