Two, Two, Two Shows in One

The Araks/Mara Hoffman show was a little bit different. For one thing, two lines were showing at the same time. This was very confusing for me when I got the invitations. I kept looking at them side by side. Both said 2 PM, in the Promenade at Bryant Park, on February 2. I tucked both into my bag and figured they'd make it clear once I was seated.

Boy, did they ever.

"We are showing two shows today, one right after the other," one of the PR people said over the PA. "No one will be leaving in between shows."

I don't think that was intended as a threat, but I had an urge to bolt anyway.

I'm glad I didn't, even though the first show, Araks, wasn't for me. There were a lot of neutrals and baggy dresses. One model was wearing what looked like the big blue sweater I throw on when the radiator is broken and I'm depressed. Everyone wore big ugly-on-purpose glasses. Maybe I just didn't get it.

In my notebook, I wrote my short-hand of the aesthetic on display: "Does anyone need brown lipstick?" Not me, that's for sure.

The second show, Mara Hoffman, however, was pretty much everything I want in a fashion show: great clothes that most people could wear, neat little details (gray chevrons on black tights!), accessories that make you think, "Why hasn't anyone done this before?" The models strutted down the runway wearing these awesome split handbags that hung from holsters around their waists and looped over their backs. They looked like saddle bags, kind of, and I need one.

Photos by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images. Araks Fall 2008. Mara Hoffman Fall 2008.