New York Fashion Week: Phil Harris and Shamsun Elite Shine

New York City Art Sports & Entertainment - The New York City Arts & Sports New York Fashion Week team reviews some of the major fashion week events for this past season's February 2020 shows. Spokesmodel Millie Carbajal her makes editorial debut during Couture Fashion Week

Who was able to cut through the buzz that Fashion Week invariably produces, during the February edition of NYFW 2020, leaving a lasting impression with NYC-ASE.com? New York-based designer Phil Harris, whose exquisite collection - with its masterful combination of both futuristic and modern flourishes, and a nod to the opulence of the Baroque - closed out an all-around wonderful showing at Cliq Fashion Week, hosted by Cliq International, emerged as our favorite.

Later in the week, Couture Fashion Week producer Andres Aquino pulled off a two-day fashion affair at the popular 4W43 event space in Midtown Manhattan, that featured some very talented designers. Among them, Shamsun Elite (USA/Bangladesh) set the artistic bar very high with vibrantly hued gowns, expertly using silk, organza and brocade, that the models representing the brand did very proud, wearing the designs in such a way as to put the collection in a class by itself. As a Neiman Marcus veteran from the 90´s, had I currently been a buyer, both Phil Harris and Shamsun Elite would have been on my priority buy list.

We would be remiss not to mention hiTechMODA as one of the best overall Fashion Week events we have ever experienced. They are fashion forward innovators who use their platform to allow for the flow of creativity from a long list of very impressive emerging designers and independent talent, and their shows were some of the best run and organized. hiTechMODA showcased a variety of stunning garments that caused many an audience member to gasp as the models came down the runway. Flawless is a word that would describe our experience aptly.

Here is a recap of all the shows we attended during this season´s NYFW: Art Hearts Fashion Week Opening Night | Date: Thursday February 6th, 2020 Location: Angel Orensanz Foundation | 172 NORFOLK ST. MANHATTAN | Reasons to attend: One of the best venues to host a fashion show. Amazing art display. Runway is what you expect from a fashion show. Models walk down a stage/raised platform offering you a great view of the collections that are being showcased. So if you are sitting or standing in the back you have an excellent view.

Things to know: The shows tend to run significantly behind schedule. Assumingly in an effort to make sure many ticketed guests are in attendance. Long lines waiting outside to enter the venue. This may present an issue during inclement weather. Opening night at Art Hearts, we were treated to runway shows featuring designers Charles & Ron, and Mister Triple X.

The Society New York Fashion Week | Venue: Broad Street Ballroom, 41 Broad Street, Downtown Manhattan (near Wall Street) Reasons to attend: Excellent host, downtown location near Wall Street, nice airy event space, organizers and staff do their very best to keep things moving along on time. Media and press accommodations are some of the best. Lots of interaction with designers and models. Best post-show experience and access to the designers & models. Things to know: If you are photographing this event, the lighting color temperature changed often throughout the 6pm show. Also, front row patrons have a tendency to have their feet on the runway. Children in the audience begin to lose interest and can present a distraction to the show because of easy runway access. Broad Street Ballroom has high ceilings, and is a wide-open venue which tends to get very cool, so be mindful if you are sensitive to cooler temperatures. Personally, we prefer cooler venues because of the amount of equipment we tend carry to cover these events. Cooler is better for models wearing heavier garments because of issues with perspiration, which is not good for make-up or photo sessions to have a model beaded in sweat.

hiTechMODA---- Date: Saturday February 8th , 2020 7:30pm show | National Geographic Encounter Ocean Odyssey | 226 West 44th Street, Manhattan, Times Square | Designers: Dominion Couture Costume Design; Gulick & Ybarra Wearable Sculpture; Jovani; Terani; Mila Hoffman Couture; MM Milano; Vila Beauty Resources ; Portia and Scarlett | Reasons to attend: To say the least, hiTechModa is , by far, the most well-executed and well-thought out New York Fashion Week event. Everything from location, venue lighting, to the designers, models, and, most notably, the simple fact that their shows start on time as stated on the ticket and advertisements. Nothing is more aggravating to buyers, press, media, industry, and influencers than waiting around for a show to start 30 to 60 mins late. Late start times, in many cases, ruin the fashion week experience, especially when you have to be across town on the same evening for another show. This is an area where the organizers of hiTechModa easily became our favorite show to attend this season. This show started on time. Not a minute before and not a minute after. Things to know: Many children are in the same shows with adults. So our advice is to be mindful of over-critiquing out loud, or to your neighbor, as you may be sitting next to a proud parent who will not hesitate to read you your rights.

NYFW The Shows At 4 W 43rd--- Venue: 4 W 43 Social Hall Building | Midtown Manhattan |

Things to know: Despite the choice of lighting, which was not the best, in some of the shows presented, we still love the event space because of its very convenient location accessible by most of the subway lines at Times Square, 5th Ave, and Grand Central. Situated at 5th ave and 43rd St, the location cannot be beat. Usually, the spacing between the shows allows one to grab a meal or a quick drink from the many eateries in the vicinity. Both the foyer and the grand staircase make for dramatic photo-ops. We attended 3 events in 4 days. For two of those, a second runway was made available in a private viewing studio with superior lighting, where the garments and the models wearing them really shone up close, so that both the details of the unique design and accessories, as well as superb makeup applications could be truly appreciated. Whether a buyer, an industry person, an influencer, or a catalogue/magazine photographer, this is the place to be.

Show: NYC Live @ Fashion Week, Adrian Alicea | We were invited to this show by Adrian Alicea's staff; thus, we only provided coverage for his show, one out of the three that took place that day. We do plan to attend NYC Live @ Fashion Week's entire event next season, so that we can get the full experience and appreciate the hard work and the efforts of all involved with the show. We thank the House of Adrian Alicea for a great show, as always. This year's collection was spectacular, and the Adrian Alicea brand never fails to impress.

Show: Cliq Fashion Week (Cliq International) | Designer: Phil Harris. Cliq International was up there with hiTechMODA in putting on a streamlined, well-executed showcase. This event presented our favorite designer for NYFW February 2020, Phil Harris. Phil's collection, as expressed immediately after the show, was breathtaking. His models, superb. Phil's show featured a popular runway model and actor, and one of NYC-ASE's favorites, Sergio Delavicci, known as Gio.

Reasons to attend: Excellent all-around show. The producers' choice of lighting and stage setup should be the standard for all events held at 4W43 Social Hall. It brought the best entertainment value of all the NYFW showcases we attended, by far. Phil Harris has emerged as our clear favorite for this season's NYFW events.

Show: Couture Fashion Week |

We ended NYFW February 2020 with the grand finale at Couture Fashion Week produced by designer Andres Aquino. Couture favorite this year has been Shamsun Elite. The collection, viewed from the smaller preview room was just as stunning as seen on the runway in the main event space, and the models did an excellent job with subtle yet dramatic turns which added a level of excitement to the runway show, as well as really sold the concept.
This year's line up for Couture Fashion Week featured the following designers:
Carlos Benguigui; Sonsie Q Plus Couture by Beth Anne; Beth Anne Couture; Ciputra Fashion Collective; Mariia Pashuk; Marisol Henriquez; Malika Rajani; Yans Creation by Yani Bakhtiar; Florens by Vanetta X Geraldussugeng; Diana Magesa; Shamsun Elite; Fatou Ndene Ndiaye; Juhi Jagiasi; Maria Mauro; Kirti Rathore; and of course Couture Fashion Week producer Andres Aquino featured his collection “Plaisir Sous La Mer“.

To sum up Couture Fashion Week, we asked SAG actress and NYC-ASE-affiliated fashionista Furaha Moye on her thoughts regarding this season´s showing “New York Fashion Week has done it again! Throngs of people lined up to see, to be seen, and to revel in the glory of Couture Fashion Show. All with good reason; designers showed their best, and a bevy of beautiful models, male and female alike, brought those intricately crafted and incredible designs to life. Couture Show has become a New York City staple and this year, once again, its enduring value has been practically proven. “ This editorial was a collaborative effort by the following New York City Arts, Sports, and Entertainment Fashion Week Team: Press Photographers: Evan Saucier & Igor Ktodoma | Photojournalist & Editor: M. Nuri Shakoor | Lifestyle contributor: Furaha Moye | Style contributor & cover models: Millie Carbajal & Kim Hernandez | Health & Beauty contributor: Anwar Hafeez | Stylists: Celi Padilla & Naisha Torres | Senior Editor: Alla Bevenko | Special alliance with 20/20 Studios, in studio, video, & production support Chelsea NYC, Jai Kapadia | visit https://www.2020studios.nyc/ Referral code: New York City Arts & Sports.

Edited by Senior Editor in Chief for New York City Arts, Sports, & Entertainment, Alla Bevzenko-Shakoor. For more photos and video please visit : http://www.newyorkcityartsandsports.com/