Honorable Mentions to My “10” Designer List

1- Norma Kamali: This creative innovator (quite underrated in my opinion) who brought us the sleeping bag coat and glamorized sweatshirts, has ‘quietly’ been doing her thing for decades and this is the first time I can recall, that she is showing in conjunction with New York FaShion Week (her presentation will be at the David Rubenstein Pavillion)

2- Rag & Bone: Marcus Wainwright and David Neville’s consistently and unapologetically hip, cool, boy meets girl, somewhat unisex aesthetic (routinely pairing impeccable British tailoring with elements of preppy, motorcross, iconic Americana, etc.), could not be more ‘of the moment’ at the moment

3- Shamask: I first met Ron Shamask, the Dutch born painter, fashion illustrator, designer, when I was his editor at Harper’s Bazaar; known for his ‘intimate architecture’, he won the Coty Award as outstanding designer of the year in 1981 and has since relaunched his eponymous line; this is his first formal show in conjunction with fashion week in decades

4- Vera Wang: I ‘forgive’ this extremely talented designer, known for her artistic, often dreamlike creations, even though she designed the three wedding gowns Kim Kardashian wore during the course of her $20 million nuptials this past Saturday evening. KK made three changes during the ceremony alone and the entire thing, if you care (and I hope you don’t) will be aired this fall during a one hour special on E! In my opinion, this has got to be the most tasteless display of wealth, especially given what’s going on in the world right now.

5- Yeohlee: Any designer who consistently keeps the smart, intelligent, ‘urban nomad’ in mind, churning out museum worthy (she’s had more than a few museum exhibitions devoted to her craft), creations, like one coat I have which is waterproof, weightless, packable, can be worn as a dress, a coat, or an overskirt), is worth taking a look at.

-Marilyn Kirschner

Marilyn Kirschner

I am a long time fashion editor with 40+ years of experience. As senior market of Harper's Bazaar for 21 years I met and worked with every major fashion designer in the world and covered all of the collections in Paris, London, Milan and New York. I was responsible for overall content, finding and pulling in the best clothes out there, and for formulating ideas and stories.

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