Had designer Arthur Mendonca showed his Fall 2008 collection nearer the jostling crowd at Bryant Park on Thursday, Radar might have made it on time. As it were, and to our great fortune, we slipped in quietly to the Exit Art cultural center as the show began—directly into the front-row seat meant for Paper magazine's ubiquitous Mickey Boardman. Our newfound status sat us directly across from an almost unrecognizably blonde Nelly Furtado, who'd worn the designer's wares to the 2007 Juno Awards.
The show featured opaque stockings paired with knee-socks and gloves in myriad impractical colors that had us sifting through the gift bags—oh, you knew it was coming—which contained a wonder the likes of which we'd yet to see at Fashion Week: an actual item by the designer! In addition to Halloween-orange lip-gloss by MAC, attendees walked out with skinny, snakeskin-textured black belts measuring about 20 inches and best suited for a size zero. A not-so-clever wink and nudge to continue the binging and purging long after the tents come down? Probably. We're hoping to wear it with pride come next fashion week, but Mickey, if you're interested, it's rightly yours—call us!