Five labels we’d love to see back at New York Fashion Week

Unlike her fashion capital sisters in London, Paris and Milan, the runways of New York are never a stable bet when it comes to their semi-annual schedules. Promising designers dip a toe into the fickle tents of Lincoln Center, only to retreat off-site – or bail out of New York altogether. Other reasons have nothing to do with popularity, and more to do with location, timing and additional factors. In alphabetical order, here are five designers and labels we’d love to see back at the rush that is New York Fashion Week:

Carlos Miele: The Brazilian designer’s shows at the tents often featured famed musicians from his home country, including singer Bebel Gilberto, and DJs Sean and Anthony Souza. Miele’s womenswear, also drawing from Brazil as its inspiration, includes elegant, swaying evening gowns, and floating caftans in a variety of vibrant colors and prints, no matter what the season. However, it was home that called his name after a decade of runway shows in New York, and although an appearance at the Fall 2013 collections in Sao Paulo promised to be a one-off event, the designer has not looked back. It may be awhile before Miele returns; his flagship store in the Meatpacking District closed earlier this year, and the majority of his overseas locations are situated in the Middle East and Europe, save Canada, the Dominican Republic and Taiwan. Here’s hoping that Miele will eventually inject a bit of joyous Brazil back into New York.

A gown from the Carlos Miele Spring 2013 collection. (photo by Bibs Teh / Meniscus Magazine)

Edition by Georges Chakra: For a time, while the Lebanese designer showed his namesake couture line in Paris, Georges Chakra brought his ready-to-wear label, Edition by Georges Chakra, to New York. His red carpet-ready dresses always flirting with danger, both of Chakra’s lines are a consistent favorite of Hollywood stars. Since leaving the New York runways, Chakra has concentrated on other markets, including Houston for Spring 2013.

Georges Chakra (right) with Russian model Vlada Roslyakova at his Spring 2011 show in New York. (photo by Kwai Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Gottex: More specifically, Gottex when Gideon Oberson was at the creative helm. His shows featured healthy, athletic models wearing his gravity-defying swimsuits, the types of styles favored by the late Princess Diana and other celebrities. Without a care in the world, Oberson ignored the clock, sending a runway parade of dozens of outfits accented by belts, giant floppy hats and other accessories more suitable for one to lounge on a yacht in the French Riviera rather than dive into the water itself. Although Oberson stepped aside from the label a number of seasons ago, his protegee Keren Gasner is now the Gottex lead designer. Perhaps it is time for swimwear chic to make a return to New York?

Who needs the beach when one can rule the runway? Various swimsuits from the Gottex Spring 2009 collection. (photo by Kwai Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Thuy: Vietnamese American designer Thuy Diep’s journey into fashion went from a degree at Brown University to a consulting job, back to school and, eventually, to launching her own label. Her runway shows at New York Fashion Week featured the types of clothing that appealed to the styling preferences of many Manhattan women: feminine, edgy and unique, particularly with the use of zippers beyond mere function. Unfortunately, the label shut in 2012, and Diep has moved on to other creative ventures.

An outfit from the Thuy Spring 2010 runway show in New York. (photo by Bibs Teh / Meniscus Magazine)

Y-3: Listed on the official Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week schedule but acting like a rebellious stepchild – always showing off-site in smoky, apocalyptic warehouse atmospheres – the adidas label Y-3 built up its aesthetic from sportswear to pure Yohji Yamamoto. As the collections, celebrity headcount and parties grew in rambunctiousness each season (the designer himself even appeared at some of the shows, playing the drums at one of them), the celebrating suddenly stopped after the Spring 2014 collection. Why? Part of is due to the enduring criticism of New York as the only one of the four Fashion Week cities to not hold a separate men’s event, which typically takes place a couple of weeks before the ready-to-wear collections. As a result, adidas took its unisex Y-3 Fall 2014 collection to Paris in January. Spring 2015 will also be a no-show, so hopefully it is just a matter of time before Yamamoto and his friends return.