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My career in broadcasting has provided so many opportunities to me.  While working in news I was chosen to fly with the Blue Angels in an F/A-18 fighter jet (one of the highlights of my career, one day I’ll have to share the story with you!).  I covered the finale night of American Idol in Los Angeles the year Jordin Sparks won.  And I gave away a million dollars as the host of a game show for the Maryland Lottery.  All of these were amazing experiences I’ll never forget but there is one in particular that had me more excited than any other.  Attending a fashion show at New York Fashion Week. 

It’s no secret I love fashion.  I follow the trends and latest designers in blogs and magazines.  I window shop for clothes online frequently.  And you know how much I enjoy talking fashion with you on air at QVC.  So the first time I received a formal invitation from Dennis Basso to attend his show during NYFW I felt like the luckiest girl on earth.  From what I had watched on TV and online, NYFW looked so exciting and posh and now here was my chance to be a part of the action!

This February marked my fourth visit to NYFW and it still hasn’t gotten old.  This trip I just happened to have a few nights off from work so I decided to stay a couple of days in the city and my hubby met me there for a quick get away (grandma watched Jace and Coco for us, thanks mom!).

 So the day of Dennis’ show I had to work an early shift at the Q.  The plan was to leave straight from work, catch the train to NY, check in to my hotel, freshen up and change, and then head to Lincoln Center for the show.  Well of course nothing ever goes as planned and I missed my train.  It wouldn’t have been that big of a deal but the next train to NY wound up arriving an hour late which only gave me 45 minutes to accomplish my plan.  As soon as the train reached the platform at Penn Station I high tailed it to the cab stand and to my hotel. 

This was my first time staying at The Towers at The New York Palace and I must say it was beautiful. 

First and foremost the staff were amazing.  The room and the view were gorgeous (ask for room 5104-great view of the Hudson River and the Empire State building). 

And my husband had the best room service steak I ever tasted in my life (and my eggs benedict weren’t too shabby either!). 

Anywho... back to the story, when I walked in the lobby there was a line about 5 deep of people waiting to check in, so I had no choice but to leave my bags with the bellman and grab a taxi to Lincoln Center.  At this point I had about 15 minutes to get to the show and with unpredictable NYC traffic I knew I had a slim chance of making it on time.  Thank goodness for President’s Day!  Because it was a holiday the traffic was lighter than usual for NYC so I made it to the show just in the nick of time.  Granted I looked like a wilted flower by the time I made, but I made it!

 I was so excited to see so many familiar past and present QVC faces.  Alberti Popaj, Lisa Robertson, Amy Oselkin from Clarks, QVC models Stacy and Monica, stylist Ed, and Lena McIllwain. 

Everyone looked amazing and it was so much fun seeing everyone outside of work.  We made plans to grab lunch after the show before we all took our seats.  The program explained the inspiration for this collection as the glamorous jet setting women of the 70’s, a la Jackie O. and Studio 54. 

Dennis sent down the runway a chic and lux collection of 70’s inspired jumpsuits, palazzo pants and halter tops. The looks were opulent and elegant yet modern.  The color palette featured warm golds, black, white and grey to brick red, plum and the color of the year, marsala.  My favorite pieces were the extravagant ball gowns topped with fur boleros.  If I ever attend a red carpet event I know who to call!

After the show I stopped backstage to congratulate the man of the hour.  He was being pulled in a million different directions but I did manage to take a quick photo with him and thank him for the invitation. 

While backstage I did get a chance to meet Mary J. Blige and supermodel Coco Rocha (I loved her in the dancing White House/Black Market commercials!). 

The next day was busy yet relaxed.  After sleeping in and ordering breakfast (the eggs benedict remember!) Judson went to the spa for a massage while I had my make-up done by celebrity make-up artist Nani.  She did a great job and suggested something no other make-up artist had before.  After my make-up was all finished she asked if I wanted the beauty mark on my cheek darkened.  She told me many of her clients don’t like how concealer and foundation cover their beauty marks.  So Nani goes in and enhances them with a little eyeliner pencil or gel.  Genius!  I’ve always embraced my moles but it never crossed my mind to play them up.  Nani was also just a really cool girl who I had a lot in common with so it looks like I also made a new friend as well!

After make-up I was ready to head back to Lincoln Center for another show.  This time to see the collection of designer Michael Costello.  You may remember that name if you’re a fan of Project Runway.  He was featured on season 8 and the first all-stars season.  While he didn’t win his seasons, his designs were a stand out on the runway. 

Michael has become a red carpet go to for many celebrities (he designed Beyoncé’s Grammy dress last year) and I’m a big fan.  I was able to score an invite for Juddy too so he could be my blog photog for the day. 

The show featured sexy and sensual body conscious pieces in shades of black, grey and silver.  There were lots of plunging necklines, thigh high slits and strategic cut outs.  Some of my favorite pieces included a long sleeve mini dress with a full skirt and a one shoulder maxi dress.  And you know I love a good jumpsuit and Michael featured a well cut black number with an exaggerated shoulder and deep-v plunge neckline. 

I was hoping to meet Michael but there was such a rush of people heading backstage that security closed off access.  While I didn’t get to meet Michael I did meet Jeannie Mai and Adrienne Bailon from the talk show The Real.  I also met stylist and designer Emily B and caught a glimpse of Christina Milian and singer Chris Brown. 

Following the fashion show we decided to try our luck at scoring tickets to a Broadway show.  Many of the big Broadway shows hold a lottery for deeply discounted day of tickets.  I’ve wanted to see The Book of Mormon for a while but with my work schedule it’s hard to plan far enough in advance to purchase reasonably priced tickets.  I figured we could try the lottery and if it didn’t work out we could always find something else to do.  The lottery sign up begins at 4:30pm and names are drawn at 5pm.  So we hopped a cab to the theater and lined up with about 5 other people to enter the drawing.  Exactly at 4:30pm a man with a megaphone came outside and explained the rules of the lottery. 

The main rule, only one entry per person.  So we both entered our names and went and had a glass of wine until 5 o’clock.  By the time we came back there were at least 200 people outside for the lottery.  Considering there were only 20 tickets to be given away we knew our chances were slim to none.  Needless to say our names were not drawn but it was a fun little experience. 

We finished off the night with a lovely meal at JoJo Restaurant and then took in a comedy show at Gotham Comedy Club (and of course we were seated in the front row but luckily we only got picked on a little bit by the comics!). 

As always New York never disappoints.  I had a great time at fashion week and I look forward to the spring collections this September!