Playing dress-up begins at age five and never truly ends.—Kate Spade
With so many shows to watch, deciding where to spend one’s time is a difficult decision
New York Fashion Week, aka: NYFW, starts in less than 24 hours. I think I’m ready. There’s coffee. There’s chocolate. My phone is charged. There are pain relievers in my pocket. My comfy pseudo-dress shoes are ready. Everything is ready on Pattern for our reviews. Reading glasses, ink pens, photo editing … yeah, we’ve got this. I think.
Last year this season, we took it really easy, rarely doing more than two reviews a day. This season, we might be a little more aggressive, depending on the weather and exactly what we see from the different shows. There are a lot of new names on the official schedule this  season, so we’re setting our sights on shows that are dependable and saving the rookies as possible additions if they manage to really impress. If there’s someone you just really, really want to make sure we cover, then let me know ASAP.
No schedule is ever as firm as we might like. Marissa Webb has already had to move her show to avoid conflict with a loud-mouthed, attention-seeking, ego-driven rap star. The weather forecast for New York isn’t exactly friendly, either, which could impact shows scheduled for the Dock venue. So, what we’re highlighting on our schedule below are the shows we know we’ll cover regardless of circumstances. We’ll try to be as timely with our reviews as the process allows. Follow along and let’s make this fun!
What we’re doing for NYFW:
Thursday, 11 February
We’ll start our day with BCBG Max Azria. Lubov Azria is firmly in control of the brand now and as such we’re hoping to see some changes in the direction she goes for fall. Creatures of the Wind hits at noon and will likely be the highlight of the day. We can’t miss Marissa Webb early in the evening, especially since she’s changed her show time. We’re totally ignoring the big mouth showing at Madison Square Garden. Show off.
Friday, 12 February
Jason Wu is the big show to watch today. We were disappointed last season and are really hoping he steps up his game this year. Tadashi Shoji, Kate Spade, and Nicole Miller are also worth watching. Zoolander 2 hits theatres today, though, so cross-marketing surprises could show up anywhere.
Saturday, 13 February
Dion Lee has our attention in the morning. Then, Alexander Wang shows at 5:00 PM and that never fails to, at least, be entertaining. Altuzarra will keep us up late. There could really be some surprises in today’s schedule, though, so we’re trying to stay as flexible as possible.
Sunday, 14 February
Will we fall in love with anything we see on the runway? We certainly hope so! There are SO many choices here, and a lot may depend on weather and timing. Victoria Beckham, Public School, and Derik Lam all show in the first part of the day. Hood by Air,  Diane von Furstenberg, and Prabal Gurung show later. We may need an extra heart-shaped box of chocolates to get through this one. Public School is really going to be under a microscope.
Monday, 15 February
Another very busy day as Carolina Herrera and Tommy Hilfiger dominate the morning. I’m especially eager to see how Tommy implements his Instagram photographer’s pit. Real photographers are upset, so this could get messy. Zac Posen and Rag & Bone finish the day with a few new faces tossed in between. I wouldn’t mind seeing someone really break out of today’s pack.
Tuesday, 16 February
There’s a lot of activity during the day, and one newcomer to NYFW we’ll be watching closely is Ohne Titel at 1PM. However, the heavy hitters are much later, with Oscar de la Renta at 6:30 and Narciso Rodriguez at 8.
Wednesday, 17 February
Here’s where things could get really boring. Can Michael Kors show us anything that is really worth discussing? Jason Wu usually does better with BOSS than he does with his eponymous label but will he really show us any creativity? The guys at DKNY have a lot to prove this season if they’re given the chance, and Marchesa tends to like this season. However, they’ve all stumbled in recent seasons and left us yawning. We’ll see how it goes.
Thursday, 18 February
Only the big boys are allowed to play here. Ralph Lauren, J. Mendel, Calvin Klein, and Marc Jacobs. Of the group, though, only Marc Jacobs is likely to do anything really astonishing.
All the reviews will be on Pattern, so bookmark it now if you haven’t already. Follow us on Twitter (@charlesletbette) and Instagram (@charlesletbetter) to be alerted when new reviews are posted. It’s going to be an interesting month, NYFW is finally here, so buckle in and hang on!