Mikahila Bloomfield

New York Fashion Week Designers Sorted According to Mean Girls' Cafeteria Cliques

With Tina Fey’s announcement that her oft-quoted Mean Girls flick turned musical will debut October 31st at Washington D.C.’s National Theatre for a trial run before taking The Plastics to Broadway, and New York Fashion Week starting tomorrow (or more officially Thursday), here is a NYFW clique guide sorted along the lines of North Shore High School's cafeteria hierarchy.

ASIAN NERDS

Prabal Gurung – In his first year at Parsons, Gurung was awarded the “Best Designer” title at the annual Parsons/FIT design competition.
Derek Lam – Just two years after debuting his label at New York Fashion Week, Lam won the CFDA Swarovski Perry Ellis Award in 2005. He previously served as design director at Michael Kors where he was once an intern.

COOL ASIANS

3.1 Philip Lim – Laird Borrelli-Persson, Archive Editor for Vogue.com (formerly Style.com reviewer) praised Lim’s early work as "pretty-but-cool clothes" that "don't try too hard".
Alexander Wang – With his brief stint as Creative Director at Balenciaga, notorious after parties, and squad of muses known as the Wang Gang, Alexander Wang is the ultimate cool kid of fashion.

UNFRIENDLY BLACK HOTTIES

Rihanna - The Unapologetic Barbadian songstress is showing her fourth Fenty x Puma collection as well as debuting her hotly anticipated makeup line, which is quite inclusive with 40 foundation shades and a diverse cast of models featured in the Fenty Beauty ads.
Kanye West - After several seasons of kerfuffle, including disrupting the CFDA-approved schedule, holding important media and buyers captive for several hours at his listening party/fashion show at Madison Square Garden, and another captive situation at Randall's Island with fainting models - WWD has confirmed Yeezy Season Six will take place during NYFW. No details as to time or location.

VARSITY JOCKS

Ralph Lauren – The designer served in the United States Army from 1962-1964, and the military has influenced his collections. Lauren told Vogue:

“When I was growing up, officers in uniform were very impressive to me. They were doing a job; they were protecting our country; they were heroes. When you wear an old military jacket there’s some sort of connection to those qualities—to being strong, to being tough, to being a warrior.”

Tommy Hilfiger – Quintessential Americana, the Hilfiger brand is known for its preppy aesthetic. This September, after success with TOMMYNOW in New York and Los Angeles, Tommy Hilfiger will combine his men’s and women’s collections and his third Tommy x Gigi collaboration with a see-now-buy-now roadshow beginning in London, with multiple stops in Europe.

THE GREATEST PEOPLE YOU WILL EVER MEET

Baja East – Designers Scott Studenberg and John Targon have coined the term “loose luxury” and in 2013 Vogue requested a meeting with the designers to view their very first collection. Each Baja East style is ambisex, designed to be worn by both men and women.
The Blonds – This design duo has outfitted megastars, including Madonna, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Beyoncé. In explaining the vivacious energy they encourage their models to embody during shows, Phillipe Blond says, “You don’t have to be blond to be Blond.”