Photo

Vanessa Friedman, Chief Fashion Critic at The New York Times.Credit Larry Busacca/Getty Images for The New York Times International Luxury Conference

It’s over. Fashion Week concluded with the Marc Jacobs show. Vanessa Friedman, Chief Fashion Critic at The New York Times, who covered the shows, reflects on the big week.

Q. Headdress feathers, bathrobe coats, 60s cabana vibes, nudity, sexual transgression, what stands out most after 8 days of full-on fashion shows?

A. In the end, what sticks with you are the ideas; the way Thom Browne made a schoolgirl’s uniform endlessly transcendent; the way Givenchy managed to reconcile fashion and 9/11.

It’s like going to a host of modern art galleries: a lot of what you see is derivative or silly, but then you see one show that makes you reconsider what you thought you knew, and suddenly it’s all worthwhile.

Q. How many shows did you attend?

A. I am afraid to count.

Q. What did you wear?

A. The shows are work for me, so I wear what I usually wear to work, plus mostly flat shoes. And I only change when I go home and get into my pajamas.

Q. Can you describe a typical day-in-the-life of a fashion beat reporter during Fashion Week?

A. Get up very early. Drink coffee. Edit review written the night before. Drink coffee. Read newspaper. Wake children. Drink coffee. Take them to school. Pack bag with invitations, notebook, phone, sweater (shows often very air-conditioned), water, book (hope springs eternal). Get on subway for first show at 10. Sit at show. Wait for show to start. Tweet. Wait. Tweet. Wait. Spend 15 minutes watching show. Take notes. Run out of show and get on subway to go to next show. Complain that my shoulder hurts from carrying a too-heavy bag. Go to show. Repeat. File final review copy at 2 p.m. for paper, usually from coffee shop on iPhone between shows. Go to another show. Repeat until 8 p.m., last show. Home by 9:30. Dinner. Start writing.

It’s very glamorous, clearly.

Q. Where do you sit?

A. Front row, with other New York Times journalists.

Front row seats tend to go to celebs, very devoted clients, buyers from major department stores, editors-in-chief of magazines and reviewers who need to actually see how long a hemline is to report accurately. That can mean newspaper reviewers or widely-read bloggers. That said, increasingly brands are starting to structure their shows so there is only a front row, maybe two rows at the most. So this isn’t as exclusive as it sounds.

Q. How many Times reporters attend the shows? How do you decide who covers which shows?

A. In New York a lot of us, because it’s our hometown. In Europe, there are usually three of us from Styles, plus T editors.

We try to have at least one of us at as many shows as possible, always. But it’s hard, because there were over 300 shows and presentations this week alone, and even with, say, five people, you can’t go to all of them and actually write about them too.

Q. Does the same basic pack of fashion reporters travel from show to show?

A. Give or take a few people each season. I have journalist/retailer friends from California, Chicago, Asia and Europe whom I met at shows, and whom I only really see at shows. It’s like a mini-reunion. There’s something about sharing these surreal experiences that creates very strong bonds.

Q. Is there competition between reporters from different venues?

A. Friendly competition maybe. We all do our own thing. There’s respect.

Q. Are there different vibes at the New York, Milan and Paris shows?

A. New York starts a little slowly; it feels more local. Paris is the biggest, and the most eclectic. Milan is more about the shoes and bags.

Q. What were the most talked about subjects during the shows? (Or in between?)

A. The U.S. Open, the weather, the Republican debate, 9/11, the conflict between shows and the Jewish holidays, traffic.

Q. Is there any kind of follow-up reporting involved in covering the shows?

A. Shows are great sources of all kinds of fashion information. You can pick up invaluable nuggets in idle conversation while waiting for a show to start, or when talking to a designer during a preview, or at another event. Runway trends tell a story about identity politics and the personalities that make up the edges of the fashion world (the clients, the unexpected fans — I met Madeleine Albright at a Vera Wang show), and so provide fodder for months of coverage thereafter.

The collections themselves are just the beginning.