New York Fashion Week :: Araks [The ZOO]

Araks :: Fall 2006

I was made less upset by the amount of time I spent in the frigid cold when I heard T. Rex's "Cosmic Dancer" and The Shins' "New Slang" in the Altman Buildling. But lo and behold, like the Michael Jordan of New York Fashion Week Fall 2006, the Postal Service's saddest track came on, and while it's a reliable track for putting me in that emotional space, it may be time to let someone else have a go and retire or try baseball.

The Knife, A Swedish duo seems first in line to assume the crown of runway pop. Jersey Cotton was so thin you could feel it with your eyes, and garments had an innerwear or summer feel.

Reserved, streamlined, and full of pastels, Araks is what the popular girls would wear at their summer homes when they get too old for their Abercrombie. Hair was teased into a powdery messy beehive. Rather than bees, this hive was surrounded by thin ribbon headbands. Hair was reminiscent of the pre-wrap field hockey players use to keep their eyes clear during games. Every accent including the bunchy sleeves, pearls and keyholes, was quietly proportioned. A big proponent of cropped shorts, I was pleased to see my dear little friends again. Subtle, structural changes in the normal fare made these shorts a likely candidate for "signature item of the collection." Such changes included tiny double pleats and matching wide belts.

Silk was used to play multiple characters in the Araks drama: indigo knee length pleated skirts, simple sleeveless tops, and an indigo blazer that vibrated with color. Have your cake and eat it too? Araks had sailor pants and cigarette jeans under her wooden-sole pumps. Now you can maneuver a boat by day and enjoy a smoke at night. The boy cut bikini bottoms and cotton wireless matching tops were coupled with rosy sheer cardigans that almost covered their bottoms, but not quite, much to the delight of the onlookers. Thank you for those fit cardigans, a vibrant alternative to the cropped jacket saturation.

That beachy loose and sleeveless amber sundress lit the collection up and the backless short short one piece looked like you'd never want to take it off.

Cheers: To looking good when you're in a room eating popcorn and sifting through magazines. Cotton: Like your favorite worn t-shirt or the jersey cotton sleeps you can't live without. Sounds: Harpsichords + Major Chords = Emotional Chord. [Xenia Viray] more...

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