The most exciting emerging young designers of New York fashion week

Photogenic husband-and-wife team Kris Brock and Laura Vassar have one of those meet cutes that you can’t make up. Both studying fashion design at Parsons, Brock asked Vassar to be his fit model for a wedding dress, and their pre-meditated rendezvous has resulted not only in a marriage but a buzzy line already gaining a cult following. Their Standard Hotel presentation was, like their debut last season, packed, filled with pretty young things (mostly blonde and lithe, it must be said) who gasped over their self-described “minimalist” – yet feminine – pieces.
Monse
As the story goes, two alums from Oscar de la Renta strike out on their own – Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia. The latter has worked on Amal Clooney’s wedding dress, and between them they dressed 14 celebrities during for the Met Gala. So you’d think that their pedigree and tastes would mean they’re aiming to hit up the Upper East Side society set-type, but their twisted shirt dresses in cotton poplin and satin stripes and clever coloured pieces all cool-evening-new-evening have a universal appeal.
Brother Vellies
Profiled already in our October 2015 issue, this ethical and sustainable label helmed by Aurora James is already a finalist in the CFDA/VogueFashion Fund competition. Made by traditional craftsmen in South Africa, Kenya and Morocco, the already It-girl-status James puts her money where her mouth is when it comes to social responsibility and delivers on the fashion front too. Her presentation was filled with everyone in the industry who mattered, from top department store fashion directors to Kanye West.
Self-Portrait
Big on the Internet already, the London-based label designed by Han Chong from Korea chose New York as its location for its presentation debut. Confused already? Already stocked in Myer in Australia, its unabashedly pretty pieces in lattice laces and embroidered translucent fabrics will surprise in both their whimsy and their very friendly price points.
Sally LaPointe
Think luxury designs – you know, for the type of women who shop at Bergdorf Goodman, the largest stockist of Sally LaPointe – and the most immediate associations are tasteful yet neutral pieces in the finest of materials. With Sally LaPointe you’re halfway right – yes, yes, with the high quality materials – but the colours and textures themselves are far more interesting yet not unnecessarily tricked out upon closer inspection.
Ryan Roche
There’s a complicated relationship to the colour pink – is it too girly, too juvenile, too much? So credit to Ryan Roche, who presented an elegant collection entirely in that colour palette without a hint of saccharine. An assured calmness.
Chromat
With athleisure one of the fastest growing segments in the fashion space at the moment, Chromat’s high tech pieces are in tune with our needs. Helmed by Becca McCharen, the label worked with Intel on a showpiece-only item that moves and expands depending on the wearer; sensors measure breathing and sweat levels.
Mansur Gavriel
We haven't been this excited about a handbag line in well, ever, so imagine the hype when it was hinted at that it will be exploring ready-to-wear andshoes next. In a packed presentation at Soho, the label evoked a Grand Budapest-like colour palette, all high saturated retro tones. The offering was chic with a hint of playfulness in brief lengths and retro shapes, with several other tempting offerings that will surely be next in line for wait-list status.