Singer MOA struts her stuff in an ensemble by designer h.NAOTO; the other half of VY is DJ/VJ Rio (not pictured.) VY performed for close to the entire show.

It's my understanding that this show was put together in large part by FIT students; you could tell that the models weren't professionals because they looked entirely too healthy, and seemed to be having a good time- something that apparently goes against the fashion-model coda. It could just be me, but I think these shows go over better when the girls are allowed to smile if they want to.

The show opened with some brief words from Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of the Museum at FIT. Steele clarified that once the night's festivities were over, there would be more Gothic goodness in the form of Japan Fashion Now, the Museum at FIT's upcoming exhibition. Considering the fact that Japan Fashion Now will not be open to the public until September 17, we have a bit of a wait on our hands, but I trust FIT to put together a good show.

Steele then introduced Misako Aoki, or "Japan's Official Ambassador of Cute." Aoki read a short passage in Japanese expressing her excitement and gratitude for the interest in 'kawaii' fashion outside of Japan, and introduced the models.

While idol duo VY performed, the models sported a wide variety of Gothic Lolita styles- the predominant look was a kind of Little-Bo-Peep ensemble, but there were a few entries in the sleek and sexy camp as well. On display were outfits from Alice and the Pirates, Amy's Love, Angelic Pretty, Baby the Stars Shine Bright, Black Peace Now, and Mielette Tantou. Unfortunately, it wasn't possible to tell which outfit corresponded to which label during the show (at least for a newbie to the fashion scene like me.) In addition, Tokyo Girls' Style brand Madame-Killer made it's New York debut. Madame-Killer is actually a Japanese fashion boutique in NYC, so I believe that this was their debut as a label as opposed to a retailer.

To break up the show (and presumably give the models a chance to change), several videos were shown; most notably, we received a glimpse into the world of designer h.NAOTO, who explained that he wanted his brand to be known as "the most scandalous in the world." I don't know quite how successful he is at making good on that threat, but considering all the fangirl squealing in the Haft Auditorium when his segment began, I have to assume that he's on the right track.

There was also a music video from Jpoppers Hangry and Angry, a name that seems to be popping up on my radar a lot lately, and a promotional video for Sync Music Japan and the artists they represent, including the super group Morning Musume. Sync Music Japan is a company launched by The Council of Music Associations of Japan in order to expand the global profile of Japanese music; according to the pamphlets they released at the show, Sync Music Japan is slated to start up "at the end of February", meaning that TFFNY was probably their coming-out party, so to speak. It'll certainly be interesting to see what SMJ has in store for us from now on- I hope it involves more fashion shows, preferably with some more of this:

 After the show, my fiancè and I had an appropriate dinner at GoGo Curry, which pretty much made Friday the BEST DAY EVER, but that's probably a topic best saved for another post.