CNN  — 

Across Manhattan and Brooklyn, designers have been offering enticing twists on familiar dress codes at New York Fashion Week, which concluded on February 14. Perhaps fittingly, there was a lot of fashion to love.

Inside the neoclassical Williamsburgh Savings Bank, Peter Do presented the first collection on the official show calendar on February 8, rethinking “protective” fashion for his sophomore showing at the helm of Helmut Lang. To this effect, Do sent out silk bubble wrap trousers, knit balaclavas emerging from smart suiting, weathered sand-colored denim and soft armor in the form of slouchy puffer jackets.

Marking a tentpole return to New York Fashion Week, the designer (and current CFDA chairman) Thom Browne later closed out the proceedings on Valentine’s Day — and took a moment during his final bow to offer a large, heart-shaped box of chocolates to his partner, museum curator Andrew Bolton. Despite that moment of romance, Browne’s collection was inspired by Gothic horror and Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” specifically. (The actor Carrie Coon had provided an eerie narration of the story, which played throughout the runway show. “Hearing her transform ‘The Raven’ was a privilege for everyone,” Browne told CNN. “I wanted to embody that dark and romantic, almost grim, feeling you hear when Carrie reads.”)

Models — a “school of ravens,” as Browne’s show notes described them — walked through a field seemingly covered in subtly-fragrant white ash powder representing snow; a model wearing a 30-foot-tall puffer jacket stood throughout, as if a tree. The collection dissected traditional black tie tailoring with layering and “cinched” proportions; grungy elements like distressed leather jackets were juxtaposed with formal corsetry and, on occasion, floral notes. Textures throughout were rich, slick and sinuous.

“The standout moments for me come in the details,” Browne explained of the collection in an email to CNN. “Like the cascading banded military jackets and skirts meant to resemble centipedes… or the cinched waists paired with braided antenna’s meant to resemble mantis like shapes.”

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Model Anna Cleveland walks during Thom Browne's theatrical runway show, which took inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven." Cleveland embodied the titular bird.
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Browne's collection was a Gothic-inspired, monochromatic affair throughout its rich tailoring and tweeds, oily leathers and intricate embroidery.
JP Yim/Getty Images
Shoes and accessories were covered in a layer of "waterproof vinyl," protection whether against the white ash powder-covered runway or the wider world.

With its enticing riffs on hourglass silhouettes and scaled-up proportions, Browne’s collection was one of a number to play with form and shape to broaden the female figure — and femininity — whether literally or figuratively.

At Luar, which drew buzz both for its fashions and its front row, wide-cut shoulders and oversize sleeves ran throughout; at Sandy Liang, chaste “Sailor Moon”-inspired uniforms and prairie dresses embodied the designer’s aesthetic “growing up a little without sacrificing what you love.”

And models pumping gourd barbells showcased Collina Strada’s delightfully femme take on sports uniforms and gymwear, meanwhile, wearing “elegantly beefed-up silhouettes” — per the show notes — that included lace-trimmed boxing shorts and voluminous jackets mimicking bulging deltoids and biceps.

Daniele Oberrauch/Gorunway.com
Sustainably minded with deadstock fabrics and corn leather UGGs, “Collina’s Gym” championed the belief that “femme is flex."
Daniele Oberrauch/Gorunway.com
Throughout the collection, bubble tops and outerwear echoed beefy musculature.

Then there were the designers updating American dress codes more broadly, whether in their own contexts or anew. Tommy Hilfiger’s return to the runway — attended by the brand’s ambassador Sofia Richie Grange, among other celebrities, and ushered in with an opening performance by Jon Batiste — showcased new takes on prep classics that the brand itself established in the 1990s, with boxy tweed coats, varsity jackets, cashmere dresses and long, bulky scarves.

And Willy Chavarria, who previously held a top spot at Calvin Klein in addition to running his own namesake label, brought a bold vision of American power dressing to the runway through layers and structure, with exaggerated shoulders, sharp lapels and sweeping coats offset by ruffles and sculptural florals, all with Chicano-influenced flair. “I look at periods from the 1930’s Mexican tailoring to 1980’s Calude Montana,” Chavarria told CNN of his inspirations. “Tough leather jackets worn over warm traditional menswear patterns like houndstooth and glen plaid.”

Chavarria’s runway show was accompanied by a fashion film presentation, with a rich, frenetic visual narrative which spoke to community as a respite from the world’s ills.

Roy Rochlin/Getty Images
"I love the idea of 'The Don,'"designer Willy Chavarria (pictured above, center) told CNN in an email. "The person with the confidence to run their business based on their experience and struggle."

Like Chavarria, designer Prabal Gurung also took inspiration from community and family, mining his childhood diaries and heritage to create looks — which were richly colored in hues of saffron and vermillion, and embellished with crystals and gold embroidery — that paid tribute to his father’s lineage in Nepal after the death of a family member.

And a similar loss moved Brandon Maxwell, who channeled grief and its emotional stages into a collection that drew from nature and the American Southwest. A trip to the region, Maxwell told CNN, “really softened a lot in me — maybe it sounds really ‘woo woo,’ but in the nature I could understand that through storms and droughts and rains and fires and all the things that sort of things live on in whichever way you choose them to.”

In one of the week’s most anticipated shows, Paris-based designer Ludovic de Saint Sernin made his New York debut with an enchanting collection inspired by the once-taboo photographs of Robert Mapplethorpe, progressing from applique florals and wispy transparent fabrics to shimmering crystal mesh gowns to full-on leather bondage styles.

De Saint Sernin’s designs have often rewritten gendered dress codes, and he told CNN that his clothes show how “the evolution and competence you can gain with your gender and your identity is an exploration that you do your whole life.”

Scroll down to see this season’s runway highlights, updated throughout the week.

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Tommy Hilfiger’s refigured classics sought to define American prep for 2024.
Filippo Fior/Tommy Hilfiger
Hilfiger's collection embodied "the spirit of prep, modernized through a New York lens," its show notes explained, "channeling the city’s unique style and reinterpreting it with a distinctly 'Tommy' twist."
Filippo Fior/Tommy Hilfiger
As models walked, the Grand Central Oyster Bar’s tiled and arched ceilings, glinting with golden light, amplified Questlove’s high-energy soundtrack — and a performance from Jon Batiste.
Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images
For his sophomore show with Helmut Lang, Peter Do continued to form new dress codes for New Yorkers. This collection is “a system of dress” in “a world of chaos,” according to the show notes.
Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images
Do mulled on themes of “protection” versus “projection," and played with techniques such as bubble wrap made from silk.
Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images
Do also revisited Helmut Lang archival pieces from the label's Spring-Summer 2003 collection as jumping-off points.
Jonas Gustavsson/Sipa USA
Prabal Gurung’s collection was both melancholic and dreamlike, with the designer explaining that he had transformation and metamorphosis on his mind following the loss of a family member.
Jonas Gustavsson/Sipa USA
Gurung developed the concept for his show while on a 10-day meditative retreat.
Michael Ostuni/Patrick McMullan/Getty Images
"There's a sense of enveloping comfort," Gurung told CNN about his collection. "A lot of ease to the clothes and the collection."
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Willy Chavarria introduced handbags this season, pairing them with layered suiting and bold, exaggerrated silhouettes.
Fernanda Calfat/Getty Images
Chavarria presented the collection with a film called “Safe from Harm,” emphasizing the importance of community.
Fernanda Calfat/Getty Images
Baggy bomber jackets and 1980s-inspired leather jackets were among the outerwear offerings.
Dan and Corina Lecca
Libertine’s graphics this season were not quite inspired by fever dreams, but a hypnotism session that kept returning to the fashionable late art collector Peggy Guggenheim.
Dan and Corina Lecca
The collection was often matchy-matchy across garments and accessories and played with a number of eye-catching graphics.
Courtesy Kim Shui
Kim Shui’s show celebrated Lunar New Year on the eve of the holiday with vibrant colors and vegan materials.
Courtesy Kim Shui
Shui's collection ushered in the year of the dragon, paying tribute to the mythical creature's “strength and resilience,” according to the show notes.
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The runway was on fire at The Blonds, with the incomparable designers showcasing the power of "fuego" in Latin American cultures. "It's a declaration of identity, a celebration of life, and an affirmation of the enduring flame that burns within every Latin heart," the show notes explained.
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The collection paid homage both to the designers' roots, and the Latin pop divas they've long idolized, from Charo and Selena Quintanilla to J.Lo and Christina Aguilera.
Thomas Concordia/WireImage/Getty Images
Across lustrous textiles, sparkling jewels and sinuous silhouettes, the collection showcased fire as an embodiment of "renewal, and reinventing your identity," David Blond told CNN.
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Proenza Schouler creative directors Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez offered up ample wintery whites and continued to play with both translucent layers and elegant takes on suiting and outerwear.
Giovanni Giannoni & Monica Feudi, Courtesy of Proenza Schouler
The label has taken a more cumulative approach to design across seasons, continuing to build on the same ideas rather than overhaul them for new collections.
Giovanni Giannoni & Monica Feudi, Courtesy of Proenza Schouler
Highlights included tall cowl neck collars, asymmetrical cuts, knit capes and long apron dresses.
Courtesy Dauphinette/GoRunway
Every look in Dauphinette's frenetic "bedroom floor couture" collection was created using at least 50% upcycled materials, per its show notes.
JP Yim/Getty Images for Christian Siriano
Christian Siriano looked to the cinematic world of "Dune," with his interpretation of what "eveningwear and glamour would look like in a sci-fi, apocalyptic desert," his show notes explained.
JP Yim/Getty Images for Christian Siriano
Body-conscious draped gowns in rich, burnt oranges represented the movies' desert landscapes; black "tinsel" fabrics nodded to the starry skies of deep space.
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Anna Sui presented her collection in New York City's famed Strand Book Store, with a runway amid the stacks.
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The collection featured tailored separates and comfortably twee textures — artfully worn, like a good book.
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Ludovic de Saint Sernin collaborated with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation for his New York debut, and hoped to capture the energy of a late night out in the city.
Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
De Saint Sernin featured Mapplethorpe's floral pictures on wispy tops and sparkling crystal gowns.
Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
The Parisian designer opted to show in New York in part because the US has become his biggest market, he told CNN.
Madison Voelkel, Courtesy of Eckhaus Latta
Eckhaus Latta’s earth tone palette included sandblasted denim this season.
Madison Voelkel, Courtesy of Eckhaus Latta
Model Alex Wek closed the show in a layered column dress and furry mules.
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Irina Shayk walked in Altuzarra’s intimate show, which featured pillbox hats and different plays on draped collars.
Courtesy Dave Smith/Private Policy
At Private Policy, a "Wild West" theme covered both cowboy aesthetics (and a straw-strewn runway) and the current state of advances in AI technology.
Courtesy Dave Smith/Private Policy
Classic denim and workwear pieces were juxtaposed with innovative techniques, including "3D silicone-textured surfaces" and woven metal chains.
JP Yim/Getty Images
Christian Cowan translated a star motif across his high-glam, celestial-inspired collection. The final look, a flapper-style dress, featured polymer "petals" designed in a collaboration with Adobe to change colors on the runway, to lustrous, shimmering effect.
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After achieving cult status in New York, Puppets and Puppets said farewell to the city with a final ready-to-wear collection before relocating to London as an accessories brand.
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Creative director Carly Mark played with color-blocking, transparencies and luxe layering, taking a step back from some of the surrealist motifs of past collections.
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All eyes were on Area — and Area’s eyes were on all in attendance during the surrealism-influenced brand's latest runway show.
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In addition to luxury googly eyes, Area bedazzled models with oversized gems on retro florals and ruffles.
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“Just as our eyes observe, critique and appreciate, our collection mirrors the evolving dynamics of viewership in the digital age,” Area's creative director Piotrek Panszczyk wrote in the show notes.
Zeppelin Photo/Avalon/dpa/picture alliance/Sipa USA
Carolina Herrera's creative director Wes Gordon was inspired by strong, resilient women, according to the show notes.
Ik Aldama/picture alliance/Sipa USA
His latest collection contrasted architectural shapes with ruffles and swirling embroidery.
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Irina Shayk wore a voluminous pink gown on the runway, one of many floral looks in full bloom.
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Coach has continued to cater to younger luxury buyers, this season offering distressed bomber jackets, collegiate hoodies and school blazers.
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As part of its circularity initiatives, Coach upcycled secondhand materials into denim, leather and shearling pieces, and turned taffeta party dresses into tops and skirts.
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Jason Wu dedicated his show to his design team — as well as "those who dream" — and took his bow at the show's conclusion with members of his studio.
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LaQuan Smith said in his show notes that, this season, the woman he is designing for is “busy and she is the center of attention.”
John Lamparski/Getty Images
Smith’s menswear offered new takes on classic suiting.
John Lamparski/Getty Images
Smith was inspired by “the unapologetic strength and glamour of female power brokers,” bringing sex appeal to daywear.
Stolen Besos
Sandy Liang celebrated her label's 10-year anniversary with a new collection expanding on her own codes for girlhood style.
Stolen Besos
Japanese manga series "Sailor Moon" was one of many inspirations for Liang this season.
Stolen Besos
”There’s something so beautiful when girls match each other,” Liang wrote in her show notes. ”In a uniform, there is fantasy and in nostalgia, there is presence.”
Thomas Concordia/Getty Images
Tory Burch presented her Fall-Winter 24 collection at the New York Public Library. The show marked 20 years, to the month, since Burch founded her label.
Thomas Concordia/Getty Images
"We continue to explore volume and silhouette in new ways, with sharp edges, unusual textures and technical sports details," Burch wrote in the show notes.
Victor Virgile/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images
Michael Kors' collection was inspired by "timeless" fashion trends, with the designer highlighting — and modernizing — classic pieces and silhouettes.
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Kors "(played) with the idea of covered and uncovered," he explained in a statement, mixing textures and layering pieces throughout.
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A veritable snowstorm couldn't stop guests from getting to Gabriela Hearst's show in the Brooklyn Naval Yards. And her collection featured many chunky cashmere knits perfect for colder-than-cold weather.
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Hearst's collection was in large part inspired by the work of ground-breaking surrealist painter Leonora Carrington, and the broader art movement.
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The show's closing looks were a sculpted gold corset and corset dress. The coated leather fabrication appeared both like the cast and molten metal simultaneously.
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Having started from "a place of anger," as Brandon Maxwell told CNN, the designer's Fall-Winter 2024 collection saw an emotional journey reflected in soft lines, deliberately ripped seams and delicate prints.
Monica Feudi/Courtesy Brandon Maxwell
Maxwell found inspiration in the landscapes of the American Southwest, which he translated into the colors and cuts of a refined collection.
Monica Feudi/Courtesy Brandon Maxwell
Maxwell told CNN he took inspirations from nature — Aspen pines, leaves, mountains and rock formations, as pictured above on a look he described as his "striations dress."
Jonas Gustavsson/Sipa USA
Juelz Smith, Solange’s son, made his runway debut for Luar, resulting in a surprise front-row appearance by Beyoncé, Solange and Tina Knowles.
Jonas Gustavsson/Sipa USA
The collection featured a number of dramatic, sculptural leather pieces, and proportion plays in the cut of shoulders and sleeves.
Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
For her eponymous label's Fall-Winter 2024 collection, the designer Batsheva Hart cast models over the age of 40. In addition to the eye-catching fashions in sequins, lace and animal print furs, the runway show also featured two modern dance performances.
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The show also marked a NYFW debut — on the runways, that is — for actor Molly Ringwald.
Zach Hilty/BFA, Courtesy of Concept Korea
At the Concept Korea showcase of Korean designers' work, the K-Pop star Shownu (of boyband Monsta X) walked in each of the three collections featured.
Courtesy Aknvas
Intricate, chunky knits and pom-pom detailing punctuated the Aknvas collection.
Courtesy Aknvas
Decidedly retro notes — shearling-lined flight jackets (pictured above) and acid-wash denim — were also woven throughout.
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Baroque tapestries with an extra-terrestrial twist: at Monse, a fascination with UFOs and aliens ran throughout, to whimsical effect.
Darian DiCianno, Courtesy of Lou Dallas
At Lou Dallas, designer Raffaella Hanley created a "fashion mixtape" with patchwork-style ensembles.
Darian DiCianno, Courtesy of Lou Dallas
With a playful juxtaposition of fabrics and textures, the designer looked to fuse "country charm and (a) rebellious edge."
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Models pose backstage at the Wiederhoeft show, which also centered eclectic, playful separates.
Courtesy Cucculelli Shaheen/InDigital
At Cucculelli Shaheen, the clothes "(revolved) around opposites: chaos and classicism, vice and virtue," show notes explained. Delicate ornamentation featured throughout, in embroidery, sequins and tassels.
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A (star) sign of the times: Celestial imagery and astrological themes had also inspired the label's designers, Anna Shaheen and Anthony Cucculelli.
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For Fall-Winter 2024, Sergio Hudson continued to develop his signature aesthetic — luxe, statement dressing for the corner office and the club — rendered in a palette the designer described as "crayon colors" in his show notes.