11 Takeaways from New York Fashion Week, Day 4

Three days ago, Kate Hudson appeared at the Knives Out 2 premiere in a red Carolina Herrera dress that (technically) didn't exist yet. On Monday at the Plaza Hotel, it finally made its official debut as Look 39 in Wes Gordon's Spring 2023 collection. You could say, then, that technically Hudson was the opening model of the show...but Dutch brunette Mila van Eeten did a great job, too, as did Kenyan stunner Caren Jepkemei, who served as The Lady in Red for round 2.

The perfect mix of childhood joy and adult cool, these gummy clutches were the sweetest accessory spotted all day—but also the most practical, because if your latte spills on the side, all it takes is a quick napkin swipe and you're golden. (Actually, if you're this bag, you're tangerine orange, pansy purple, or glittery gold, but you get it.)

It was smart of LaQuan Smith to set his runway show on the SS Intrepid, a hallowed battleship that's now an Army museum in the Hudson River. Besides being a blast—and yes, climbing 2 flights of Navy steel alongside Julia Fox and Cassie is a total blast—the event placed Smith's bombshell designs among actual bombshells, Top Gun choppers, and NASA space capsules. The Mugler riffs on mechanical power were clear—check out Frida Aasen in a pair of chrome pilot wings—but what really raised the game was a lemon yellow raincoat so slick and sharp, every woman around me went "Ooooh" when it came out. Dear LaQuan—can you also make it in blue?

Rachel already illuminated the core tenets of designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh, but the atmosphere of her downtown show (held literally in Dimes Square) held its own kind of magic. Here's filmmaker and actress Coco Baudelle arriving for the show, and showing the perfect amount of skin.

Fashion's obsession with the era can skew into costume territory, but Kim Shui figured out a throwback look that actually moves things forward. As worn by singer Niki DeMar, the look mixes textures and tones, but keeps the shape flowing all the way down in a DKNY kinda way. It's sexy, it's smart, and now I finally know what to do with that J. Crew stretch satin skirt I bought on sale for $32.99 but never quite figured out. (Oh come on, you bought it, too.)

In her mini dress and boots, Olivia Palermo looks like she's about to call Liz Phair and tell her she needs a seat on the tour bus, plus room for her bass guitar and amp. Absolutely epic.

Can we take a moment to bask in Candice Huffine's appearance at Veronica Beard? The sun-kissed girl from Maryland stepped out in a shorts set the color of hot chocolate, with a fuchsia halter top and beachy hair. She looked like she was on her way to a party that everyone will still be talking about months later. (Also: we'll talk about the clothes.)

LoveShackFancy intern Ella Zimmerman just had foot surgery. She's feeling much better—yay, go Ella!—but the NYU student can't wear her favorite heels for a while. Instead, she worked with the LSF design team to create these sweet graphics to cover her walking casts, used ribbon trim from their new collection along the straps, and even bedazzled the fasteners to complete the look. It was a simple and thoughtful gesture from the brand that doubled as a great style moment, and really, every lifestyle label should take note.

What country, friends, is this? It's an acting studio in the East Village, where Interior NYC—the up-and-coming label by Bode alum Jack Miner and SoulCycle wordsmith Lily Miesmer—held their debut fashion show. The house was so packed that more chairs had to be found from the adjoining rooms, and the clothes themselves were a soon-to-be-coveted pile of massive grey knits, clingy netted dresses, and one leather trench that won approving nods (and even a few "get this on exclusive!" whispers) from the luxury retail crowd.

The show's models paced furiously back and forth—maybe they were searching for their lost twin Sebastian, maybe they were escaping an asylum...maybe they were just late to dinner? Anyway, it was all quite cool, though everything looks cool on very young, very thin, very pretty girls. I suspect the clothes would hold up anyway, but next time, I'd like to see.