Designs of the past return
Uneventful and lacking surprises seemed to be the main characteristics of the Fall 2003 Fashion Week in New York City. The old saying "New Yorkers are more anxious to leave social events than they are to go to them" proved true. The week started off slow and gradually declined as time went on. Recent articles in Women's Wear Daily and in The New York Times have criticized American designers and the dismal mood of this week's collections for the upcoming season. Most critics have cut the designers some slack, attributing the lack of frill to the recent economic decline and the code orange terrorist threat New York was under the entire week. I was not surprised -- most people forget that fashion is directly affected by politics, the economy and social unrest. No matter what state the economy is in, the looks on the runway were certain to be conservative.
