New York Fashion Week Trend: Futuristic

New York designers were looking further than spring ’12 when they sent avant-garde styles with a futuristic tone down the runway. The obvious color cues were in full force — silver, slate and crystal-blue metallics donned many silhouettes — but the most inventive new-age references were achieved in other ways. Designers such as Marc Jacobs and Phillip Lim played with transparency, an element that is decidedly minimalist and modern. Jacobs’ short boot with PVC shaft provided an unexpected twist for a style known to conceal, while the 3.1 Phillip Lim clear ankle-strap sandal proved that futuristic and complicated are not one in the same. Beyond fabrications, heel treatments, bandage straps and hybrid silhouettes kept these styles moving forward. For Calvin Klein, architectural interest came in the form of a sharp spindle heel, while it was all about bold, confident ankle wrapping for Nicole Miller and Narciso Rodriguez. Charlotte Ronson’s suede and metallic style was another progressive style. Half bootie and half pump, it was the ultimate futuristic fusion.