Dispatches from Fashion Week 2016
Kat and I have been attending and photographing various parts of New York Fashion Week since we started The Refined Woman in 2013.
Our first year, we hustled with the best of them. We went to as many shows as we could borrow tickets for. We photographed every blogger we could find. We fought our way into the photographers pit and tried to wow with our street style. We really did it all.
We have come a long way since then. Kat has faithfully photographed season after season of runway shows and backstage even when I couldn't fly from San Francisco to join her.
Last year, in the midst of being a new mom, I came to Fashion Week and learned some amazing lessons about just showing up. In the past we worked hard to get inspiring stories about the importance of creativity and dedication. We ran around like crazy women, and Fashion Week always felt like bootcamp. It usually meant long hours and quick turnarounds for editing images. We skipped meals, didn't get much sleep, and usually one or both of us had a good, hard cry.
This year, the goal was a bit different. As we have been fighting for balance and integrity in our lives and in our work, we tried to see how we could use Fashion Week as a way to build and deepen relationships with other creatives.
Kat and I were able to cover the Mara Hoffman show for our friends at Freda Salvador, who created a whole line of custom shoes for the presentation.I was able to attend and photograph a few shows (including Kate Spade!) for my gal Erin at Apartment 34, who's currently got her hands full renovating an incredible Victorian house and snuggling her baby boy.
We stopped by to support our longtime friend Sarah Seven and see her beautiful new ready-to-wear collection! I spent some time catching up and photographing my friend Alicia for her blog, grab dinner with a friend of mine who I haven't seen since college, and have a great heart-to-heart coffee date with our friend Sara, who's also an amazing photographer in the city.Instead of squeezing in stuff for The Refined Woman between shows, we set aside a day to shoot outfits for our Winter Capsule wardrobes (coming soon!) and talk about our dreams for this year.
We also spent a hilarious Galentine's day together watching "How to be Single" surrounded by a rowdy crowd of single Brooklyn ladies. (I remembered that nothing compares to the magic of dresses on the runway.)
I'm thankful for Fashion Week, because every year the struggle forces us to grow into more of who we are hoping to be.
Just being in New York, surrounded by dreamers and doers, challenges and inspires me. And I'm always grateful for The Refined Woman, and the work Katherine and I get to do together, because the struggle wouldn't be nearly as beautiful as it is going through it with a friend.
XO,
Em
