The Best of New York Fashion Week

New York Fashion Week 2009 will be remembered as the one that "dealt" with the recession. And by dealt, we mean avoided. Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Diane Von Furstenberg - all showed escapist collections that recalled the heyday of the 80s not its problems. In psychology, we believe this is called denial. You can say that the menswear and womenswear shows collectively addressed the economic crisis in the somber palettes (Calvin Klein) or that they strived to protect the body (Narciso Rodriguez, Duckie Brown). But these are still obscenely expensive clothes. Is it really necessary for Yigal Azrouel and Rodarte to make outfits that look ragged and filthy when the possibility of looking as penniless as a Madoff investor is looking like a reality with each passing day? The New York Times' The Moment blog has a list of the eight must-buys of the week. As people have less money to spend, what becomes important is to edit: getting the most for your buck, buying clothes that look expensive, thinking about the material. In other words, think of that Calvin Klein suit (below) as your February investment. The Moment recommends the Fair Isle sweaters at Patrick Ervell (above left), the double-breasted blazers at Zegna (center), and Tim Hamilton's red suit (above right), among others.