Can Fashion Reclaim the American Flag?
TL;DR-Too Long, Didn't Read-is ELLE.com's answer to Fashion Week roundups. It's packed with vitamins, nutrients, and must-have accessories... plus some talking points (and tea) you won't get anywhere else.
There were times-the '60s, the '80s, the entirety of Lana Del Rey's Born to Die video-when wearing an American flag was as cool as flexing a Supreme logo. But Twitter trolls have usurped our country's colors, hiding behind a stars-and-stripes emoji while spewing blurbs of hate. Can fashion recapture the flag for liberty, justice, and national sanity? Ralph Lauren is counting on it. For his 50th anniversary show, the American fashion legend layered the American flag into many looks for many people―all ages, all colors. Best of all, he made his iconic cropped flag sweater available online for under $150. It's the same one worn by Cindy Crawford on ELLE's September 1994 cover. 14 years later, it's still an essential item... much like another beloved American classic, the 14th Amendment.
Speaking of American classics, Steven King's hit thriller It had a major moment on the LRS runway. The label known for its reckless vibes and pinpoint tailoring had a line out the door of club kid fans, and a model dressed like a flasher clown. Should the show have come with a trigger warning? Perhaps... but the angled party dresses were scary good instead of just scary.
Hellessy makes floaty dresses for famous women, and backstage today, their team from Tresseme did my favorite trick for controlled waves: braid hair, mist with hairspray, apply heat if necessary (or if you're short on time), et voila! Unwind the braids for a soft, beachy shape. I have coarse, curly hair and this method is my go-to-but my straight-haired friends do it, too, with great results.
Kate Spade New York's new creative director, Nicola Glass, brought retro patterns and lavender boots (!) to her Fashion Week debut, along with pink cards at each seat memorializing the label's founder with a quote: "She left a little sparkle everywhere she went." That includes the front row, where Kate Bosworth had a Garden State moment when her dress matched the walls. Don't worry; she didn't disappear. See below for proof! (Or just check her Insta stories. See? Still there.)
Behold Winnie Harlow, newly-minted Victoria's Secret model and backstage fire-breather. Here she is vaping backstage at Cushnie, and if Tyra Banks sees this photo, I hope she sincerely regrets booting Winnie from Top Model because THIS PICTURE IS PERFECT.
While Ms. Harlow vaped, Pose star Dominique Jones vamped, making magic down The Blondes catwalk like the Sleeping Beauty sorceress Maleficent. The category was Disney Villains, and the winner was obviously Ms. Jones... though Paris Hilton dressed as Cruella DeVil (and carrying a tiny puppy down the catwalk) was fierce competition.
Meanwhile at Tory Burch, sneakers and ballgowns were coupled to the delight of front row fans Julianne Moore and Danai Gurira, as well as fashion editors craving an actual dance party at the next CFDA Awards. In the words of Tai Fraser, Oh, swoon!
Enfin, if Pete Davidson as Powder wasn't enough, we spotted another '90s movie icon in their reincarnated form. This time, it's Katie Holmes, who channeled Winona Ryder in her ghostly Girl, Interrupted hospital gown while arriving front row this morning. Just going to leave this right here.
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