Fashion Week and The Day The World Stopped Turning

11 years later, today fashion week in New York is in full swing; and eleven years ago it was the same story.   11 years ago fashion week was still held at Bryant Park rather than this year’s location at Lincoln Center.  On September 11, 2001 we all woke up thinking it would be an ordinary day, a day like any other that we would probably not remember, but that was not the case.  We all remember where we were and what we were doing, and for some, they were preparing for fashion week.  On September 11, 2001 fashion week was on their fourth day.  There had only been 53 shows and 73 shows had to be cancelled.  Liz Lange’s fashion show was the last one that year.  She was a maternity designer and her show was the first maternity show at fashion week.  She was excited and it was an anticipated show that “‘Good Morning America’ and the ‘Today’ show were both so anxious to cover it live that they almost battled it out.” Just like the rest of us Americans Liz Lange said “we were in our own little bubble.” On that day we were all prepared to do our own thing.  Children were ready for school, designers and the fashion world was ready to continue fashion week, employees ready for work, and everyone else was simply just ready to do whatever they do.  Somehow, people who had nothing to do with what was going on, people who had their own things to worry about were united by the same incident.  I look back to that day and feel sadness and anger, but I also feel happiness.  I feel happiness because our county was so united those few days, we were all New Yorker’s. Our country has been able to prove that we can get up, that we will be alright, and nothing is bringing us down.  11 years later Fashion week is running smoothly, Fashion is doing just fine. And for the rest of us, I think we are okay too.  We will never forget but at least we know that we got up and we will get up every time we are pushed down. 

73 shows were cancelled.  Designers like Ralph Lauren, Michael Kors, Oscar de la Renta, Calvin Klein and Donna Karan were some designers who were able to arrange simple presentations in their show rooms.  Other designer although weren’t able to do so.  Anna Wintour encouraged designers to continue but she did not know that many designers would not be able to carry on.  New and young designers had lost their deposits and had no more money.  From this Anna Wintour saw an opportunity to help.  On Septmber 21^st Vogue and Style.com presented a group show called An American View at the Carolina Herrera Showroom for 11 labels who otherwise would not have been able to showcase anything. 

Ms. Wintour said “It was adorable. It was about the industry helping each other. It was a very small thing, but it felt good. We’re not going to be defeated”

Dedicated to NYPD, NYFD, and anyone who helped at Ground Zero, and to all our brothers and sisters who went down that day. 

We Will Never Forget.

~Diana