Model Amanda Lew Kee wears Amanda Lew Kee at the Amanda Lew Kee show (hi, Amanda Lew Kee!)

Model Amanda Lew Kee wears Amanda Lew Kee at the Amanda Lew Kee show (hi, Amanda Lew Kee!)

Amanda Lew Kee: back in black (Image: Jenna Marie Wakani)

Runway is out, apparently. Presentations in bars with white sheets hanging on a wall and projections of a model (that model being the designer herself) on those whites sheets are in (again, apparently). It was a black leather–clad guest list at The Hoxton last night for Amanda Lew Kee’s fall/winter 2012 showing, including Lew Kee’s bestie Jaclyn Genovese who wore one of ALK’s designs, model and industrial designer Jano Badovinac, Plaid magazine creator and editor-in-chief Odessa Paloma Parker (wearing Marni for H&M and a little colour, one of maybe three people in attendance who did so), Perfecto magazine’s Diego Armand and fashion photographer Paolo Azarraga.

Over the last couple seasons we saw Lew Kee veer from her debut collection of leather jackets and sheer separates, but this season she has returned to black, and for some reason her icy blue lipstick (our thoughts on this statement look are very well documented). With Lew Kee standing in as model, though, it was hard to focus on the clothes: more people asked “Is it really her?” than “Do you think that’s the same napa leather she used in her first season?” Still, she showcased looks worth wearing, like a satin, leather and bouclé wool jacket that fit like a glove, which she paired with a black sheer blouse and a fringe leather skirt worn just above the knee (this is how we wish private school girls dressed after school, instead of their trademark Uggs or Birkenstocks with wool socks). What we didn’t care for was a cotton blend and leather wide-leg trouser that should’ve had volume, but instead looked saggy and deflated. This season also marked the return of high-end hardware, except Lew Kee thoughtfully ditched the metal spikes and kept details simple with exposed silver zippers on dresses, jackets and skirts (we liked the zippers most on a skirt because they accentuated a woman’s natural curves). Despite the poorly executed high-concept, and the constant questioning of whether or not Lew Kee was the model in the video, she did produce a consistent collection that fit well, complete with separates that girls who aspire to live in Brooklyn will want to wear.

Click to see Amanda Lew Kee’s complete fall/winter 2012 collection »