Get this: I wanted to attend Dubai Fashion for a few notable and indie designers, and was instantly pounded with a plethora of options, none of which lacked even an ounce of appeal, bringing decision-making to a complete halt. While on one hand was the Longest Catwalk at the Star Atrium of Dubai Mall, as long as 120 meters and obviously flanked by fashionites and wannabes,  there was also the Biggest Makeover, with over 100 stylists of Paris Gallery having a marathon of decking up 100 models in 10 minutes.

The opulence and energy of it all was unmatched, and having spent time in iconic cities of Paris, Milan, London and most of all New York, that is quite a remarkable feat.

Fast forward a few hours through a plane ride across the Atlantic, despite sitting through numerous shows in New York Fashion Week’s icy cold winds and media savvy air…and something seems amiss. Something about the opulence of the Middle Eastern fashion scene that pricks my memory and remains in my blind spot, beckoning me to turn around. I really doubt it was a mirage in the desert.

[Don't worry, reviews of Fashion Week and 2012 predictions will follow, akin to last year!]

A few things stood out more in the Middle Eastern fashion scene than others. What I found most impressive was Nova Krishnan’s work, which marked the closing of Dubai Fashion 2012. Her natural heritage of luscious Indian roots and an evident awareness of Emirati metropolis culture made her collection nothing short of an an electrifying fusion.

The focus was on long, ethereally flowing voluminous dressing, putting making figure hugging and barely there clothing a passé. Ethnic grounding was evident from the collection; we saw no peek of legs which is so prominent in New York, yet we caught enough of winged shoulders, sexy backs, and engaging collarbones alike. These more than made up for an overdose of body foundation, spray tan and nude leggings.

The most refreshing of all were the colors. Parrot extracted bright hues of red green orange yellow bordered with golden thread embroidery or sprinkled with dazzling sequins at the collar and bustier, all flowing effortlessly in the desert air. It was a splash of dramatic color that added made the pieces simultaneously modern, timeless, and undeniably fun! Top that with a sprinkling of prints from slightly pastel floral to wildly subtle animal print, and the temperatures of the desert were definitely soaring!

There was a large focus on accessories – and unlike shoes and bags which take the forefront in many accessory heavy New York shows, the aforementioned necks and backs were layered with chunky traditional Indian stonework jewelery, complete with headgear, tikkas and long chandelier earrings. The use of such traditional and stonework Indian jewelry was a perfect complement to the Arabian style luxury fabrics, bringing a focus point to the enchanting effect that the models created as they poised at the tip of the catwalk.

What was most surprising was the added Broadway tribute, with models sporting extra large aviator sunglasses that even Audrey Hepburn would approve of. [What was missing was the skinny cigarette which would have probably been a taboo for the setting.] I noticed that a majority of refined and dressed eye candy equivalents in Dubai would often sport their glares in glassy malls and delectable indoors. A nice way to catch the eye without the beholder noticing, don’t you think?

What I could have done without were the luscious and silky sheer scarves, which while sometimes extremely complementary and fitting to the Arabian sand dunes, and often glamorous and providing adequate companionship to the flowing dresses, seemed to take the sheen away from finer details in the fabrics, like the heavily encrusted tassels that snaked their way up a model’s derriere as she catwalked off the stage. A mere speck in an otherwise immaculate evening.

Finally, I honestly believe that music is critical to carrying on a full fledged show, and the catwalk thumping beats were simply perfect. Fluctuating between Rihanna’s addictive S&M and the irritatingly vocalized but undeniably catchy Chamak Challo by Akon, the sound choice was exceptionally fitting for the models to flaunt their fabrics and flirt with the runway.

I’m still enchanted by the swirls of fabric, like ink dissolving into a glass of crystal water, leaving an spellbinding, mystifying, and addictively appealing effect.

Cheers to Dubai Fashion and Nova Krishnan for etching a mark, even amidst the glitterati of upcoming media savvy fashion weeks in New York!

[ And the music refuses to detach from memory either ]

Where is the coolest place you’ve spotted a heart?

Many guys start their day with an incessant need to shave. On one such day my shaving foam reshaped itself into a sickeningly classical heart, reminding me of the inevitable Valentine’s season. Planted excuses aside, Valentine’s is the epitome of all things cute, pink, red, rosy, floral, and bubbly, enough to make some swoon, and others throw up out of sheer disgust.

Perhaps I fall in between these, but the evolution and interpretation of hearts has never ceased to amaze me. Which is why, whilst baking non-heart shaped cookies, I couldn’t but help to place them into a distinctive ceramic heart shaped box, warm and gooey to retain their lovely texture and taste, while being seasonally appropriate for a special someone.

Many other interpretations of hearts exist in the world, ranging from foodie delights to fashionable encounters, not forgetting the obvious influence on technoratti and gadgets. What merits its own out-of-hand observations palette akin to previous sightings one, two and three, an ode to all things heart is better on its own pedestal. Out of the thousands of items that have pounded my eyeballs in nothing short of a heart attack, many have been cliched – chocolates, underwear, socks, balloons, flowers, and the likes. Yet, some have indeed caught my fancy. Behold a collection of my favorites, credited to inventive creators, and bookmarked by yours truly.

Warning: besides being inspirational for your Valentine’s Day, or perhaps a neverending feed of shopping ideas, these will have some kind of inconsequential effect on you; they may make you levitate in delight, or wring in sickness, depending on your interpretation of the hearty day.

In the arena of foods, lets start with breakfast, a day’s most fulfilling, healthiest, and if you are awake for it, most gratifying meal. What better than to start it off with a hearty toast with a peekaboo sunny side up egg smack in the middle? Truly inventive indeed. Almost on par with heart shaped boiled eggs, where the heart-shaping process is one that is quite simple even for the most amateur of egg handlers.

Moving on to entrees, things get cuter (and if you are an anti-heart-ist, get ready to grimace). Heart shaped sushi, so cute that it actually looks like it is smiling. And if you are not a fan of the boho cold food trend, try hot heart shaped pizza, ready to order from many pizzerias worldwide. The latter is my favorite, owing to my affinity for crispy crusts in curvy shapes.

For desserts, try these giant cake renditions of the classic tasteless heart message candies that are a dentist’s nightmare. This deliciously accurate lifelike replica in a tastier cake form will leave any Valentine date salivating for more. And seeing a bag of love pasta in the kitchen next to the baking gloves is sure to conjure more visions than simply cooking. Turn on the heat and turn off the lights! (Heat of the stove, that is…).

For those who would rather romanticize over steamy liquid moments, there are many renditions of coffee and tea mugs for Valentine wannabes. Couple savvy mugs with heart shaped holders, designed by thoughtful designers definitely put fingers to better use. Furthermore, entirely over the top cups on saucers with birds-eye-views of ‘the heart’ relay a calming vision of hearty, frothy cappuccino. Yum. And for those who like to sip tea during the lazy hours between light and night or night and light, try an aptly shaped tea infuser, along with a heart shaped spoon to lick up a gooey chocolate dessert… Kitchen savvy gadgets never get sexier than this!

While food always sits on top of every plate, fashion cannot lag far behind. If the leading lady does not feel up to strutting in challenging heart inserted wedges (on Karross, a simple DIY heart shoe grip will be enough to give anyone a neck sprain from an eye-catching double take! Inventiveness overpowers all in this season’s fun and frolic. Who else would think that the Gucci G’s could be repositioned to replicate a heart on a belt that exudes designer finesse alongside seasonal commitment? Probably more subdued than a pair of designer sunglasses with hearty frames, thankfully in black and not overdone red.

The shoe grip trend extrapolates into red hearted elbow patches, another cleverly inventive DIY idea that contributes to a feeling of cozy warmth in a season that truly demands closeness. As if heart shaped hot water bottles weren’t enough to do the trick!

Moving on from food and fashion into more domesticated comforts, Valentine’s hearts can easily spice up bedrooms and nooks and crannies of any love nest. Watch yourself pout in a mirror with flying hearts, both cleverly designed and beautifully mounted. Or consume the aforementioned foodie treats on heartbreak chairs of plush and wood in detailed designs. For those who would rather go for subtler details, replace any old-school knob with a ceramic hearty one to liven up the elements that don’t always directly meet the eye. Or spice up the garden with a whimsical hose tap, sure to bring love back into the indoors.

Speaking of the rugged outdoors, what is a romantic day without wet, wet rain, and what is rain without a heart shaped umbrella? Functional and utilitarian, and seasonally apt all at once! For the athletic types, build in some time for play with a heart shaped tennis ball, sure to set more than just the sport rolling on the court.

And of course when Valentine’s Day falls smack in the middle of the week, and with bureaucratic officials unwilling to mark it as a public holiday to spend strictly indoors, sadness is bound to infuse into the day. So why not build love into the working day with a functional heart mouse to tap through the excel sheets and hearty ear buds to drown out an annoying coworker’s monotone? Keep yourself simultaneously tech savvy and seasonally fit. And for more basic needs, there are always heart shaped paperclips, innovatively created in yet another DIY fashion, or better yet, hearty held scissors to snip more than just time from a day that begs to turn into night.

And for those feeling the pangs of heartbreak, try slicing up an ornately made heart, and feel the gratification.

For all others, happy shopping, baking, adorning. Hope you enjoyed the heart attack (with an obvious attack of hearts).

Have a happy heart day!

Come February, yours truly has already graced four continents in search of … while one would love to hear a purposefully worded goal or simply salvation, the honest answer is just a well planned series of trips that interlaced work, pleasure, gastronomy, and other loves and taboos.

Tripabilities aside, the flip of the calendar beckons the mapping of what astrology says about gastronomy.

Trend-hunting is slowly but surely becoming a vivacious sport that many unrelated players play, and in which there are really no winners.

Behold trends in one of my two core passions.

The Salt Dilemma

Salt, bashed by Mens Health so often that it is akin to the Barbarian plague, is at a dilemma of all sorts this year. With retailers demanding low salt items and restaurants revamping menus to reduce salt content, we seem to be swimming to safety from this bloating, blood enemy.Yet, the chocolate show was a crystal demonstration of the fact that chocolate is salt’s newest BFF. And the oxymoronic taste is truly liberating to the taste buds, who witness the clash of sugary sweet with very obviously large sour salt granules. I guess the shift from mealtimes to desserts will keep salt producers happy, but what about consumers?

Balls

Meatballs have existed for lifetimes, even nibbled on the loving Lady and her rugged Tramp. While bitterballen is the deep fried cheesy equivalent in Amsterdam, I am now seeing more balls emerging across several continents. Virtually indecipherable from each other, with a similar golden brown fried spherical exterior, the adventure commences in deciphering what is inside, and slowly becomes an addictive game to play. I’ve tasted crushed peas from chez mom, a tangy twist to the classic indian bhajia, and closer to the west, devoured insides of fried carrots or goat cheese and honey. This voluptuous spherical trend tickles my obsessive, comical fancy, owing to its playfulness and tongue-in-cheek prank-ability.

Desserts a la Vegetables

Sure, you are thinking carrot cake. But what else comes to mind after this lucky vegetable that has created a legacy by mating and baking with sugar and cream cheese? This year belongs to the likes of parsnip cake, an often heard but seldom tried sweetling, or beetroot pie, where the perception of its color is enough to send me salivating. Tomato ice cream and celery sorbet form the frozen component of this trend. Is it healthy? Not really, but any extra dose of vegetables is probably a better dietary bargain than oodles of cocoa. Featuring a sweet medley of sugary noodles and purple glazed caramelized carrots, and celery ice cream with tomato droplets.

Breakfast 24/7

Breakfast is indeed a coy character. Years ago it flirted with lunch to give birth to brunch, a Sunday staple. And now, its eyes are on dinner. Breakfast foods (at least the good ones) are generally happy – they bring a smile to faces, prevent infectious snacking during the day, are tasty and wholesome, and generally relay a sense of wellbeing. So why not eat them all day long? Health and haute couture brings this trend to the forefront, and leaves the likes of me smiling even more.

Provocative Pomegranates

Popping red and deep pink in color, pomegranate adds variety to just about anything. Infused into burgers, topped on salads, glazed on cakes, and even infused into cookies! Provocative in their plump redness, juicy with a sweet and tangy tingle, with a satisfying crackle at the last bite, pomegranates have been a longtime comrade of mine, and I am thrilled that the world has decided to unleash their potential!

Colorful Crunchy Peppers

Last year’s quirk was roots. This year it is pepper. In naturals like green and sunset colors of reds, oranges and yellows, the dash of color and inimitable crunch that it adds to any dish makes peppers the most sought after garnish of the year. Topple this with the variety of hotter peppers, spicy ones, foreign ones, almost lethal ones, and you have a kaleidoscope of flavors that is too irresistible to leave out at any meal. Better yet, chop them up and garnish them on toast, or dip them in dough and deep fry them whole. The possibilities are endless!

Canele, the new Baked Fad

There has to be one baked dessert that scores the bull’s eye in the food circles. Years ago it was soft baked cookies, followed by pies, cupcakes, and macaroons. Now the red carpet awaits a chef hat shaped, old-school jello shaped cake. Made with egg yolk batter and glazed with caramel, the plastic-y crisp sweetness on plain cake with a custard-y infusion makes it a novelty. A dazzling row of them also makes for a dapper sight. But can they replace household favorites like cookies and macaroons?

Decadent Donuts

Despised by yours truly, doughnuts and munchkins are synonymous with Dunkin’. Yet I have seen a plethora of medium to upscale to downright gourmet doughnut treats hitting my eyeballs. Culturally adapted and flavored doughnuts will be the akin to the bagel explosion, with fruit infusions, spicy mixes, and of course, the stereotypical healthy substitute. As long as we steer clear of the frosting dip that engulfed cupcakes and made them practically inedible, I can tolerate photographing a trend that simply refuses to settle down my throat!

Indian, Gourmet Style

Many have an aversion to upscale Indian food. Blame it on the plethora of Indian fast foods that are so delicious, easily concoctable, and effortlessly eaten. But there is a lot to be said about the slow cooking biryanis made of layers of rice, eggs, soy nuggets and meats, and the patiently prepared glazed to perfection, or the indecipherable transformation of fruits and vegetables and dough into wildly designed desserts and sweet treats. Not forgetting the plethora of Indian breads of all hues of brown, stove made and fire burnt, even topped with unrefined sugarcane sugar! While I enjoyed last year’s gourmet junk food trend, this is quite the antithesis. Alluring, nonetheless.

A Moroccan Makeover

While Korean posed to pencil itself as a tough competitor to a classic sushi, Moroccan food seems to be moving forward as the ‘it’ item in urban gastronomy. Peeling itself away from being an exotic and an African-Middle Eastern medley, the world is waking up to the distinctness of couscous, the plethora of macademia nuts that can grace mushrooms and tomato sauces, and the variety of baked to burnt meats that can be glistened with spices and lemon.

Moody Food

Ever felt your mood rise from plummeting depths after nibbling a bar of dark chocolate? Or upon chewing through a melted cheese pie? Or after devouring seemingly unhealthy but crunchily delectable Indian street food and spherical sugary ladoos? Biologically, serotin is a chemical that is responsible for swaying you from ecstatic to depressed, and while foods do not contain the chemical, flavors and aromas can help sway the balance to produce more to make you happier. A new fad and claims gimmick? I can only imagine a “happiness tea” or “mood-lifting brownie mix” coming onto the selves.

Real Food

Passe as it sounds, the real and organic trend still generates buzz. Perhaps because there is a wealth of debate over what is real, organic and natural. Smacked on every grocery store item is the word natural, which, despite its straightforward simplicity, is open to interpretation. Seeing one of my favorite pastas as 51% natural made me quiver in repulsion. And thus the world continues to seek its roots. For after all, natural organic or green aside, all we want is real food.

Next Door Ingredients

When I lived in Africa we used to buy food from the grower next door. And then came the supermarket age. And now in the west, the supermarket age wants to revert to forgotten times of the past with farmers markets and neighborhood purchases. Besides inevitable cyclicality, food literally grown next door extrapolates from the real trend. Be it fear of novelty, economical distress, or the urge to try something in its naked, unprocessed form, the world is becoming a voyeur to seeing the roots of food sources. (So, when I see a chef making fresh tomato puree, transforming beets into bright beet sauce and churning out fresh wheat crackers, I’m obviously elated.)

Mini-me or Share-me

Double triple and quadruple whopping multiplicative combinations of everything from chocolate brownies to Bolognese bowls and ice engulfed sodas to burger stacks are all thankfully exiting planet earth. This trend extrapolates from last year’s, with the focus now on having reasonable portions for sharing. With restaurant culture changing from meals to grazing on heaps and piles, it really either drops to minimizing sizes, or introducing sharables. Behavioral food adaptation at its best.

Control, not Banish

‘Mini size me’ leads to a behavioral trend that I hope catches on well. As a comrade I Live in a Frying Pan pointed out, eliminating an entire food group from your diet like gluten or fats is bound to have terrifying aftermaths in the aging aftermaths.  So, why not shrink your tortilla to small manageable portions topped with little shrimp, abundant greens a beautiful radish and onions, instead of going the overload way, or the carb-free way? Portion control thus becomes an apt way to move forward without the prison-like feeling of sheer deprivation.

And thus ends a relentlessly long rant of my cravings for 2012, some self imposed, self induced and self desired, others aptly collected from a sprinkling of foodies, trendhunters, chefs, culinary artists, and editors. As the layers of the year peel, let’s see which ones turn into salivating staples during mealtimes.

As you eat through the year, keep your senses consistently tasting, for you may be licking the next gastronomic revelation of all time.

Salivate.

It’s what I do when my passions of food and fashion ignite into an unmeltable bond.

It’s what you would do if you saw exquisite fashion models draped in edible chocolate.

Lick. Thy lips, and thy thoughts.

And let your eyes taste the bodies wrapped in chocolate.

With all the excitement building up, I have to make a confession. Despite the edible chocolate show being a successful tale of the many affairs of chocolate, the chocolate fashion show and exhibit left more to be desired. It is a pity how the laws of physics can also apply to event management, where overall entropy must summate to null. A lukewarm show last year was matched by a dazzling plethora of fashionista chocolate. An indulgent affair this year with delectable concoctions was matched with a less-than-perfect show.

I believe the flaw was in the fact that chocolate was not creatively utilized as a medium of wearability, but rather an embellishment or accent. Barring a few contenders for playfully wearable chocolate, most were often bizarre, other times provocative, sometimes akin to film noir, all of which though did succeed in raising buzz for critical abandon and plausible acclaim alike.

The theme this year was playful and demanded a lot more glamor, glitz and flamboyance than it was given. Broadway.

When glitterati and melodrama are offered as props, it comes as a surprise when most creations are caricatures that evoke a sense of déjà vu. Nevertheless, some stars sparkled slightly more than others.

The most wearable of outfits was Roxie of Chicago, a gorgeously yummy colored and teasingly short dress with a smooth, solid chocolate hat and a seemingly chocolate cane. The dress itself was stitched of of net and sheer fabric, apt for draping with more chocolate, and was studded with chocolate flakes and sparkling Swarovski lookalikes. Charming and thematically fitting in the spirit of the evening.

Picture Courtesy: Gathomist and Huffington Post

Elegance rewrote its definition with The Chocolate Chang Song of Chi’nglish, a dress which, despite having lack of chocolate, was still graceful enough with the season’s favorite color, red. While the wraparound itself was entirely made of fabric, the oriental accents around the buttons, the headpiece, and neckwear were neatly crafted swirls of pliable chocolate, looking sturdy enough to hold the costume in place, and decadent enough to bite off, in anticipation of seeing the dress falling off!

Photo Courtesy: Huffington Post

The one that got all us men salivating was Cabarets of Paris. Ask any man what he likes in women, and the answer will always be breasts or butts. And this is what the designer chose aptly to cover (or rather, accentuate) with chocolate. Provocative chocolate spheres in suggestively large proportions were thrusted onto the breasts and decked with smaller, edible sized chocolate circles and a fresh-plucked red cherry as a nipple. Looking ripe enough to eat, it was no surprise that most guys were passing side glances and mischievous smiles at this outfit. Those preferring derrieres could fancy seeing humungous mounds of chocolate planted onto the model’s butts, looking touchable, alluring and intriguing all at once. With sheer bare minimums and lingerie completing the trick, this was one outfit that most could not wait to yank off, plough into, or simply nibble through.

Photo Courtesy: Huffington Post

The unfortunate costume of the evening was once again clad in white chocolate, one of my fundamentally least liked chocolates. Aiming to recreate Glinda the good witch, the only redeeming factor here was the detailed star wand, whose kaleidoscopic layers took my fancy, alongside that of other photographers. The shapeless gown itself looked like it was melting, literally, with the chocolate corset falling way below the hastily tied silken sheet like bustier, and an eerie sea-blue-green dyed skirt falling into an unintentional V. Dorothy would’ve much preferred wicked had it not been for the delightfully childlike wand.

Photo Courtesy: Huffington Post

The Adams family mess came close to this one, whose details and finery were too saturated with tangles and ruckus that took away from the deeper beauty of Morticia’s layer. Eyeballs netted like flies in a spiders web on a long evening gown draped in chocolate that seemed to irritate the long raven hair of a damsel clutching onto a chocolate set of twigs. It was ironically all quite decadent and ornate to look at in solitude, but completely fell apart together.

The most thematically coherent costume was from Lion King, epitomizing the tastiest villains of all time, Scar. This one again cheated on the fact that chocolate was not a central element of the costume, except for the detailed headpiece which was the mask of the grand lion himself, complete with golden whiskers, a regal expression, and fiery green eyes. This alone commanded all the attention from a dress that looked more like the backdrop of the Serengeti, with pale sand-like grace adorned with green leaves (some of these may be edible chocolate dyed down) and a sash of orange feathers and ruffles (which again were solid chocolate molded into sexy faux fur shaped swirls), all of which gave it a rugged, yet fashionable look.

Photo Courtesy: Huffington Post

And finally, possibly the best dress of the lot was Playbill of the 50s and 60s, paying homage to the ladies with frilly curls, large sunglasses, and flared frocks. The entire skirt was bricked up like a wall of chocolate posters of Playbill, with details melted in chocolate and coming to life in touchably three dimensional textures. Even the petite blouse was spilling with chocolate polka dots, making it a bow-worthy ode to the days of yore.

Photo Courtesy: Gathomist

And thus ended an evening of my favorites and lesser preferred feasts for the eye. And yet, nothing really came to me as a bolt in my face, like the spectacle of last year’s plethora of outfits, many wearable and many beckoning chocolate to be their core identity. Yet, the Broadway theme and playful outfits gave the show what it needed most – buzz; something to talk about, for after all, sometimes that is all we need.

Photo Courtesy: Gathomist

And thus concludes an annual event whose alluring feast for the eyes will linger on for many moments to come.

There are few times when food and fashion can blend so skillfully into one space.

This is one such point in time.

It leaves me breathless.

… Just don’t hold your breath till next year.

How succulent, one might say.

Voyeuresque, another might think.

One would normally associate adultery with sin, or lip-biting epics like The Scarlett Letter, or recent renditions like the enigmatic Unfaithful. Yet, when dissolved in the world of chocolate, adultery takes on a new, daring, yet forgivably luscious path.

For in this year’s expose of all things chocolate, I realized that chocolate was starting to mate with flavors and beings that one would not traditionally associate it with. And depending on how one personifies the beloved cocoa, the hunk or vixen that led the temptation pack was salt. Following suit was a prowl of pepper, sesame seeds, chili, mango, alongside familiar lovers like cinnamon and ginger.

Adultery isn’t the typical ode to a new year, but why not.

While most start the New Year making resolutions, I take it to reminisce the poignant stances of the year that passed. And then I promise to either repeat them, or overpower them with even stronger experiences.

A year ago I chronicled one of my unlanguishing obsessions. The annual chocolate show was and still remains a staple in my life, and I will continue to document its legacy by utilizing all sensorial elements available.

Sight for visualizing, eating and capturing photographic memories

Taste for intentions of saturating the buds with endless forms of chocolate

Scent for inhalation that coaxes with a whiff of pepper from chocolatey burnt caramel

Sound for assessing the crunch of a of a salty praline in caramelized brownie

Touch for sensing that I really do coexist with the gradually melting indulgence of all time

After biting nibbling, touching, swooning and lusting over all things chocolate for over 10 hours, an applaudable feat, I began concocting a list of favorites.

Fika Choklad

All hands down for one of the finest juxtaposition of ironic, oxymoronic and alluring ingredients I have ever seen. While I enjoyed Fika Choklad’s sculptures last year, not forgetting the Tolkein-like dragon sneering at charmed eaters passing by, this year I gave in to devoting all my senses to the consuming the brand’s offerings. I tried virtually all that the Swedish brand had to offer, from the scentsational blend of goat cheese with dark chocolate to a whiskey infused concoction that made my eyes blink twice in astonishment of strong taste. The chocolatier had everything from bars to truffles to sinfully labeled treats. Other favorites to flirt with were the red gingerbread and the ruby licorice combinations, evoking just the rights oohs and aahs at perfectly climaxed intervals, making the taste buds plead for more.

A peppered bar which came just close enough to making me cough in delight, to one caked in pink Himalayan salt, were toppers for taste. The packaging too, was commendable – sleek and slender black boxes with deep blue or red titles that exuded voyeuristic and sexy simplicity. And I was one of many mortals devouring the treats under the glare of a decorative skull.

Salt of the Earth Bakery

Salt in sweet dishes has been a gradually growing trend in gourmet chocolateries, but never have I tasted such a skillful and tasty marriage of the seemingly opposite soulmates: cocoa and salt. Salt of the Earth Bakery, which opened just a few weeks before the show, had devoted its entire collection to salty chocolate. And it succeeded in taking my taste buds through a triple somersault on a gastronomic roller coaster. The gooey brownies were neither too sweet, nor sickeningly gooey, yet they managed to melt in my mouth with salt sprinkling like snowflakes on a lovely winter day, packing just the right punch. Likewise for the humungous soft baked chocolate cookies, which can make a fitting addition to my favorite cookies of all time. Gleaming with glamorous salt particles, the seemingly hand cut chocolate chips were blanketed in thick cookie dough, simply too good to look at and even better to gobble up. Here was a true winner of the chocolate-salt affair!

Comptoir du Cacao

Hopefully a staple to the show and applauded last year for the best pralines on earth, Comptoir du Cacao did not let me down this year. With a foothold as French praline masters, the chocolatier deserved every one of the many awards it won. As aforementioned, these were by far the best pralines and truffles that I ever tasted, even compared to those nibbled in Belgium, the United Kingdom, and homely crannies of Europe and the US. The delectable crunch that united with a multi textured gritty sensation of coconut and hazelnut all blended delectably with velvety chocolate. Momentarily, I believed that dreams do come true.

Pure Dark

While I initially found the brand’s marketing to be rather plain and less in-your-face, Pure Dark proved that you do not need glamorous packaging to sell great taste. Texture was the seller of this natural variety, with bars akin to jeweled planks, studded with caramelized nuts, whole raw almond centerpieces, gleaming fruit slices as symmetrical decor, and whole pieces of pepper for accents, all making the bar looking simultaneously sturdy and gritty enough to exfoliate the mouth! Deceptively enough, these mingled together into a charming orchestra of juxtaposed tastes. But the winner was the dark chocolate salt medallions, layered with specks of gigantic sea salt granules which grew slowly but addictively on a lusty mind. Akin to a mystery that envelopes one in its attractive clutches, Pure Dark was luring, and rewarding.

Christophe Roussel

Pink pink and more pink! The evidently French haute couture brand looked more fitting to be on Paris fashion week, with its alluring salesfolks and punchy packaging, and a name evoking luxe exotica: Christophe Roussel. While the ladies fingers looked cute, the name Pop Finger was mildly freaky; only because a closer glance reminded me too much of the wicked witch’s stern and bumpy finger that beckoned of chaos beneath the calm. Yet, probably one of the sole reasons I enjoyed this brand was the collection of praline fingers in cute boxes called Electro’Choc. Delectably crunchy with an orchestra comprising of crackling nut and interlaced with silky chocolate, it arrived dressed in hues of pink like a gorgeous damsel’s inviting arms. Oh la la!

Prestat

Apparently mainstream in Harrods and the haute streets of the Queen’s land, it was a first for me to taste Prestat’s simple yet meltingly seductive chocolate. Bright pink seemed to be a trend, and an inviting one at that! The passionate pink packaging was embellished with flowing golden swirls alongside a royal stamp made me devour the packaging before nibbling into the smooth bar itself. While not as adulterous as aforementioned European beauties (sticking to its British sensibilities perhaps!), Prestat merits a mention due to its solid clutch on traditional, uncluttered roots – a pure milk chocolate bar, a pure milk chocolate truffle, and a forgotten scandal with cinnamon which resulted in a delightfully tasty offspring!

Peanut Butter & Co

How can you avoid these guys? With a big monkey prancing about the floors (reminiscent of a Halloween costume hangover) to the homely Americano feel of their booth with picnic boxes, cute reusable shopping bags, and a plethora of jars with old-school dipper spoons for tasting, Peanut Butter & Co definitely makes it into my list of bests. My favorites include the aptly labeled Dark Chocolate Dreams which puts up a tough fight with the likes of Nutella, alongside unique combinations of honey and peanut butter personified as The Bee’s Knees, or a favorite of spicy peanut butter, drizzled with paprika and spices to really Turn on the Heat!

Several other brands gave these favorites a run for their taste. Nibmor continued its green rainforest and vegan roots pledge with delicious dark chocolate. Davis Chocolate swept the cake for freebies, handing out a fantastic jar (which I wish had been packaged as a magical vial) of antioxdant ridden nibs. Divine chocolate was cute with its plethora of tattoos and gold edged packaged bars. Gnosis, a favorite last year, was rather unchanged, but still had an inventive, grassroots approach to the story behind each of its bars. While pomegranate was a favorite last year, the zero-g bar was eye candy this time around. And of course, No Chewing Allowed was as deliciously meltful as ever.

And who gave the best demonstrations? So much is déjà vu from last year, perhaps because I was lured back to see some of these presenters, or perhaps because they are truly charming and witty after all.

Serena Palumbo

What more can I say about Serena Palumbo, a chef with infectious laughter, impeccable cooking skills and an approachably friendly attitude? She recognized me right off the stage, and even acknowledged so amidst her lineup of fans waiting to pose for the shutterbugs. That is what truly crafts a refined chef – one who creates the time to spend quality moments with friends and fans alike, talking about everything from chocolate sourcing to fame management (she independently handles her internet presence!) to my infamous plaid pants. To top that, her dark chocolate panna cotta left me licking the plate for more!

Johnny Luzzini

Johnny’s fan following was surely admirable, as there were lines of fans waiting to find a seat after the previous demonstration ended, only to realize nobody was getting up, fixated by the sight of this mysterious guy who, as the MC pointed out, had “girlfriend” as one of the most googled terms after his name. The best part really was the candid Q&A round where he gave a brief take on ‘lessons from life’, with an evident knack for addictive and honest story telling. My favorite lesson: taste your food as you cook, for it tastes different to each person. His play with liquid nitrogen continued from last year, including a hand dip into the smokey, cold chemical! His concoction was once again a semi frozen, an architectural wonder that encapsulated several types of greenery. Creativity at the peak of curiosity!

Zach Young

Whisked into this by a friend who is both a dentist and a fan of his humor, I was slightly surprised by Zac Young‘s whimsical style, and even more so by how much I enjoyed it! It takes quite some skill to talk about chocolate and jelly and precision with gourmet crafmanship alongside sharing tips and tricks and evoking laughter through tongue-and-cheek humor all at once! If that wasn’t enough to make us all laugh and gasp, the chocolate peanut butter and jelly cheesecake was high on peanut butter and low on jelly, just how I liked it. A densely packed hour of tasty fun!

And thus concluded an evening of true double entendres and love affairs. Yet, unlike what morals may suggest, I was content for chocolate of having been so promiscuous. It most positively led to an entertaining orchestra of gastronomic proportions. Unlike a few diluted former years, this one will be etched as a year of the chocolate show that will not languish from memory. I will wait anxiously to see what the next show unleashes on its eager eaters.

Until next year, enjoy the tales of adultery that hit your television, your books, your lives, and your overflowing chocolate flavored shelves!

Procrastination is the plague of the i-era.

We are all very last minute about some things in life.

And Christmas and holiday shopping probably tops the list for things that we always run out of time for. No matter how early you start (Black Friday for me!), the list of people who merit a gift always seems to grow like roots of a tree that cracks the walls of a house.

Even holiday shopping isn’t pardoned by the plague of procrastination.

 Yet, recall that a gift is a mirror of one’s personality.

And those who love you remember you mainly because of your virtues, but perhaps even partially because of your gifts.

Which is why, if you are the types to pinch on splinters of time to collect the last few presents for lovers and haters, turning into the Grinch who got annoyed with holiday rituals, do this: have a drink or a piece of chocolate, and think calmly.

What are the two traits a gift must embody? Bearing in mind that price is entirely dependent on your love for the receiver, and you have the sensibility to distinguish paper and plastic forms of payment for copious bills to arrive, there are two perceived elements that constitute the way a gift will make its recipient feel:

1)      Will the person like them?

2)      Will the person use them?

 These dimensions give rise to a favorite two by two framework, one which is christened Red Alert: The Gifting Strategy.

It now becomes quite intuitive to strategically deduce your shopping plan. Recall that not everybody requires a perfect gift. Some utilitarians prefer functional gifts since it keeps their operative minds and meticulous processes going. These are kitchen tools, electronics or accessories, and the likes. Others prefer flashy adornments or classic crystalware, which they can happily regift as a charming present to someone else, or sometimes just drape around the china or wall as eye candy. This is a collectable gift, one that ends up never really being used, but is high on the happy quotient. Reserve fillers for those we dislike but have to give something to, or avoid them altogether – for we ourselves would hate to receive fillers. Recall the random picture frame, the salt and pepper set, the holy printed paraphernalia, and such. And naturally, the antithesis of all this is a blend of both a recipient’s interests and needs, which enables them to receive the perfect gift, one that is valuable in all respects. Both useful and liked, this highly depends on your knowledge of the person, or at least their age-group preferences. Sometimes, guesstimation helps too: a young adult may like an iPod or upbeat gadget, while mom can find solace in useful home upgrades, etcetera.

The key to note is that what’s practical for some may be a filler for others. So, know your people, as best as you can.

While knowing a person is key to improving the usability of a gift, it is seeking out something pretty, somewhat trendy, or upgraded that boosts the  probability that someone will actually like it. On that note, anything red seems to be piping hot this winter. Check out the plethora of RED that has been seen in every avenue of shopping this season, and come explore more with your eyes, or on tumblr! From food to fashion, encompassing kitchenware and coats to desserts and beverages, its time to paint the town red.

Photo Courtesy: Various bloggers via my tumblr page (http://sssourabh.tumblr.com)

Inspired?

Overwhelmed?

Or did something just click?

Enjoy shopping, strategically.

Happy holidays!

But no, this is not a psychological deduction of your life. Nor is it a sequential detangling of your love life.

Rather it is a take on maintaining this distance without letting shopper psychology interfere.

Recalling a strategic view on shopper psychology versus retailer strategy, I found that shopper psychology in particular takes the toll at this time of year. After Thanksgiving commences holiday shopping season, but unlike a car that slowly accelerates along to reach a cruise controlled racing speed, shopping commences with a roller-coaster drop akin to a deadly game park ride.

Behold Black Friday.

Called so because this is the day we make the profit and loss statement of a retailer move from red to black. (Negative to positive, for anti accounting and Excel peeps).

Black Friday hits shoppers like a jolt, and just like your stomach coming to your throat on a roller coaster, your brain and heart begin to bounce into each other.

While retailers will try anything to incentivize, they make shopping seem like urgency. Even Chelsea Property Group have begun advertising Black Friday to tour operators, swallowing the world into a Western dream of shopaholic bliss.

And this is when shopper psychology interferes.

The key is to try to separate your needs from your wants. Separating “must-haves” from “nice-to-haves” is a tactic that not only caters to tactful business decisions, but also to shopping… and believes it or not, even to dating and finding your soul mate! (Take this: She needs to be able to carry on an intellectual conversation, and it would be nice if she was a Scarlett Johannson lookalike; you pick your priority).

Yet, separating needs and wants can only take you as far as ranking everything into two buckets. What is more necessary is to view the extremes in both cases to assess what emotion each is fulfilling.

Classically, I would hope most people require a product enough to buy it. A requirement is that of high need, but low want. Think utility items. Yet, the pendulum often swings towards crave on Black Friday – a plethora of work has been done on trying to figure out why people stock up on what they don’t need, piling on credit card debt based on exponential wants. These are products that are fads – so fashionably driven from clothing to gadgets to seasonal fru-frus! Retailers tug at our sentiment of love by offering items that we still don’t need, nor do we want. Yet, when we feel its SUCH a good deal, blinded by the % offs and alarming deductions, we fall for it. Be it items those at checkout, or pile-on accessories with electronic purchases, they all seem attractive, and we simply drown in our brain-heart soup and scoop them up. And there is no need to explain desire, for brands like Apple epitomize it. Why oh why do you want and need an iPad when its upstaged me-toos are so much better?

What consumers fail to grasp, especially in turbulent economic times is that high spending will not boost the economy! Salvation is found in building a well-guarded savings account, not an over exposed credit card debt.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the season, and am quite the dude version of the confessions of a shopaholic chic. Fashion and food savvy, yours truly is also a tech freak and gadget hunter.

I too fall for the emotional turmoil year after year. But in hindsight, perhaps SaveThanksgiving.org does have a point: the more you crave and search for deals instead of spending time with family, the more a holiday loses its value. Not to mention, the more people that do so, the lower your bang for the buck. Probability dictates that early openings will lead to fewer scoring customers.

What is your emotional driver to shop?

I definitely sway through all the emotions, and despite words of wisdom, see myself sometimes falling into the crave and desire trap. Though I have learned to avoid the love deals – who wants to sort through a plethora of paraphernalia and clutter, not to mention the guilt that washes up shopping accumulated hysteria upon seeing a credit card statement?

By all means I’m still going to scout the market and pick up quite a few items. And have fun while doing it. Retail therapy works! But I will keep my own words of wisdom in my mind, and share them where needed.

However, remember that your brain is a foot or two above your heart for a reason.

Denim. My second skin.

Distressed or embellished, periodically evolving like a recurring kaleidoscope, and with an exponential combination of fits and washes, it is no wonder that the average Gen X, Y and Z mortal has an escalating array of denim jeans. I too fall into this group!

Having globe trotted enough to have picked up jeans from every continent, I have noticed a surge in popularity for trends sourcing denim from East of the US. Many of these evoke glamor by originating from Europe, a geographical world center; west for the Eastern hippies, and East for the American yuppies. Yet, there is something intriguing about Europe originating brands, from their bolder campaigns (read as less strictly rule-bound advertising), interpretation of selling stars and stripes, to subtle yet effective environmental tie-ins.

Here is an unexhaustive list of brands that catch my fancy, based on their origin, their cutting edge ads, their die-hard for fits (either tested personally, or through friendly mentions!) and my very own eyeball for ubercool denim!

Replay Jeans

Made in Italy

Replay catches my fancy by its very name, and the prefix “Re“. It blends with the recurring wearability and nature of denim, juxtaposed with “play” to deliver something more mischievous. Replay was been introduced to me in the UK and in India, and I have quite liked its jeans-as-second-skin approach that relays sexy style and comfort all at once. Bordering the lines of Guess and Armani Exchange in its ads, Replay;s string of interesting washes make it more playful. The best men’s cuts range from skinny to slim to mossy and distressfully washed, while the women’s skinny, flared and ‘boyfriend’ fits offer a comprehensive variety. Replay’s other forte is  the sepia toned Americano inspired plaid shirts and functional accessories for both men and women, which hint at a dash of metal or the hot-and-happening splash of fur, adorned by a smoky European demeanor!

Photo Courtesy: Replay

April 77

Made in France

April 77 claims to be inspired by youth movements and modern history, which explains its nonchalant but edgy, minimalistic yet bold, and modern yet nostalgic feel. From de-glamorized visuals, amateur denim selection page photos, and streamlined fits that blend into backgrounds, the brand relays a sense of belonging. Top that with black, white and blue advertising of simple cuts, and you have a brand that exudes very little Parisian glamor, and a more uncharacteristic but cool, laid back appeal with a punchy attitude.

Photo Courtesy: April 77

Acne

Made in Sweden

Acne is relatively new, born in 1996, when I had already stepped out of baby-growths and had started selecting my own jeans (yes, this is true denim loyalty). Mentioned as a designer brand to watch for by Elle, it’s psychedelic runway looks are made by juxtaposing block prints and textures from plastic to sheer to metal. Acne’s denim is as kaleidoscopic, from electric blue calf-cut to baggy cotton black to metallic indigo skinny jeans. And it is often complimented with red stitching (so reminiscent of a Levi’s red tab) for an electric look. At one point in history, it created unisex jeans too, where blurring the lines between menswear and womenswear, tops and bottoms, pants and shorts, sleeves and gloves, all hinted towards a paradoxical freshness.

 Photo Courtesy: Acne

Nudie Jeans

Made in Italy

Again an Italian heritage, this one alarms me with its focus only on menswear (perhaps the alarm is because the concept is somewhat lacking in mainstream America!).  Nudie, controversial as it sounds, has an environmentally conscious, hippie, tree-hugging approach that is infectiously appealing. It is also made of Italian, American, Japanese and Turkish materials. Topman-like skinny jeans on rebellious looking models are only half the story. The brand enforces recycling and reusing jeans by redesign or simple repetition. Taking pride in the manufacture, the emphasis is also on the craft, conveying superior workmanship without making the brand superficial and untouchable. And the coolest thing is the naming of its fits, which make me grin repeatedly. Like Grim Tim and Slim Jim, or Tight Long John and Average Joe! A cool way to both have fun and be conscientious all at once!

 Photo Courtesy: Nudie Jeans

While most look westwards, I find that the inspiration lies more eastwards, at least from me. Yet, at the end of the day, you can never have enough denim, no matter where it comes from. (Time to venture across the Pacific this time!)

And thus continues my quest for eying all things denim.

What does your denim eyeball see?

Mythical:

Predatory: a carnal desire that awaits awakening

Saccharine: a luring sensation that mandates recurrence

What do these elements of have in common with the fall?
And how do they interrelate to food and fashion?

While deep routed in legacy, the fall season of October and November truly evokes the spirit due to two festivals that trigger the taste buds and body hugging attires alike. While ghoulish and gory in its legacy, Halloween is a time for eating everything dunked in sugar and bringing the quirk out of the wardrobe, spelling fashion in a edgy, yet whimsical way. While the end of a war and captivity mark the epitome of a firecracker and candlelit welcome to the auspicious Diwali, it is a time to walk out layered in glitterati and consume all things that start and end with sugar granules.

Diwali derives from Deepavali, which means row of lamps. It signifies the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and good over evil. Historically, when Lord Ram arrived after rescuing his wife Sita from the clutches of the evil Ravan, it was celebrated with lights and festivities. Symbolically, this represents welcoming our higher qualities by vanquishing our less perfect ones. These come in many forms; forgiveness and anger, generosity and greed, gratitude and grief, and the Siamese likes that arrive in nothing but pairs. They always battle each other, while in our mind we fall to one side or the other. Amidst  noise of glistening firecrackers, populations welcome Goddess Laxmi of wealth into homes, drenching the air in a general mood of festivity.

Halloween precedes All Hallows day of November 1^st, considered a magical night which straddles the separation of the mystical outer-world from the one we live in. It is the day to honor ancestors and the day of the dead. Related in some ways to the Celtic festival of Samhain, it is from here that people dress in costumes and light fires to ward off wandering ghosts. And all this to avoid being recognized as a human, so that the wandering ghosts who return to earth think that human folks are one of them. The trick-or-treat part rises from the myth to leave food outside the door for a vicarious ghost’s appetite.

In both cases, it is a belief of overcoming the darkness with light. Hence the lanterns – diyas and cotton candles in clarified butter on Diwali, and jack-o-lanterns in pumpkins on Halloween. It is a day to chug down sweetlings, from candy corn and chocolate on Halloween to sugar and flour combinations of mithaai on Diwali. Coincidence?

It is thus in October and November that my passions of food and fashion collide once again, and elevate to insatiable heights.

Over the past months of observing trends in both food and fashion, it surprises me how closely linked these festivals are. For instance, despite celebrity or character costumes on the rise, have you seen mainstream looks of leopard, and zebras and others too? Animal prints deserve an article of their very own dedicated to their hereditary and enigmatic inspiration, which have now come so mainstream that they are adorned by every celebrity, every clothes rack, and every fashion show. Even the epitome of Indian fashion, the saree, sees itself clawing onto animal prints in times of festivity. While in Indian mythology, Goddess Durga rode atop a tiger to vanquish the demons, leopards and likely predators make for a slithering Halloween costume to ward off the spirits.

Givenchy Animal Print Menswear Courtesy Givenchy

Animal Print Sarees by Satya Paul Courtesy Satya Paul

Celebrities sporting animal print Courtesy Elle Magazine

Bling is another polarizing fashion statement, so prominent in Indian cultures and so opulently set out in Diwali in particular, with jewelry and silken embroidered palettes of men and women alike, glistening with symmetrical stones. The jewels and luster is paving into Halloween too, with sparkling vampire accessories, be it a choker, touches on the ring or gazeful necklace, or tinkling accents to many classic costumes, perhaps as a bridge to the snow-lit December.

Bling encrusted menswear by Benzer Courtesy Benzer

Heavily embellished sarees by Sabhyasachi Courtesy Sabhyasachi

Bling accessories as pharaohs and vampires Courtesy Spirit

Finally, a sugar collision is inevitable.  Cities are flooded with recipes, gooey concoctions of all things melted, dunked, and soaked in chocolate, reformed ghoulishly yet tastefully into perfect treats for transitioning from autumn to winter. My favorite is the caramel candy apple – a succulent sour green forbidden fruit dunked in a river of chocolate and studded with crunchy edibles galore (pecans anyone?).

Succulent Halloween Themed Recipes!  Courtesy Tastespotting

Similarly, sweetmakers (halwais) in India and worldwide start setting up stores and streets full of mithaai, the fusion of nuts, flour and sugar to create endless combinations and colors of sweets – warm, cold, soft, tough, chewy, bite-able, and of infinite colors and textures. For picking favorites, I am torn between cashew barfi’s semi-sweet and crumbly texture and the opulent ladoo’s delectable granular chewiness, especially when infused with almonds and other nuts.

Two months. Dual holidays. Two festivals. Many tastes. Several attires.

Welcome to my life of cultural fusion.

Eat.

Wear.

Live.

Twinkle Twinkle.

Like stars twitching uneasily in the dark sky, countless lights gleam in the darkness of the audience in a fashion show, competing against the bright glare of the runway. Not stars on earth, nor the sparkle of sequins; but these are in fact illuminations of smartphones: taking photos, updating statuses, and doing so much more than classic shutterbugs (which still, naturally exist).

Fashion Weeks for Spring 2012 have astounded me with the level of social media acceptance and usage that has been a catalyst in making fashion so much more accessible. Retailers and designers alike have truly harnessed this power to create nothing short of a racing phenomenon.

Rubbing shoulders with the celebrities, donning the sequins, stilettos and authentic designer cut leather jackets is no longer an aspirational dream for fashion enthusiasts. There was an era when fashion week would only be for the glittering elite and those who tiptoed in amidst shutterbugs and sat precariously like pigeons on an electric wire, well aware that they were being watched.

Fashion week shows today consist of a construction of minutely segmented moments of a collection, a speech, a look, a sentiment, an accolade and much more, all of which are instantaneously photographed, retweeted, shared on a social media platform, and bulge up to relay a magnanimous sense of real-time brand equity.

To think fashion week is classically an event for media and buyers, who often forget that the ultimate wearer is the consumer. To that benefit alone, social media can take credit for bringing fashion glitz and glamour straight into the lap of its owner. The mainstream consumer can now scratch the surface of fashion week, and even indulge into wholesome bites of the world of haute.

And this has been more the case this year than any other.

While fascinating to recap the measures taken by designers and brands alike, my thoughts with the upcoming shopping season is this: how much brand loyalty has it really created?

Fashion’s Night Out (FNO) is a glittering example of Anna Wintour and Diane von Furstenburg’s economics-class-driven idea to boost consumer spending by engaging customer interaction with their favorite brands and brand endorsers, namely drool-worthy and idolized celebrities who grace the streets in the flesh to share the air with their fans. While shared across 700 countries, it is now an excuse to have a party, with stores carding at entrances and serving cocktails and offering live performances amidst littered clothing and accessories. From Armani Exchange’s tee distressing bargains to Kenneth Cole’s personal kick off amidst paraphernalia, brands lure and endure simultaneously.

Although critics may argue that few shop during FNO, the simple connection with a designer, a celebrity, and a plethora of freebies and memories ensure that the mainstream consumer aspires the fashion icon and brand, and consequently cements the relationship. I feel this is the strongest, most viable reason for the existence of a platform that truly connects.

With Fashion Night Out’s third public outing, brands clamor on twitter and Facebook to ensure that the wireless networks are abuzz with their followers. Take Barbie’s QR code enabled scavenger hunt through Manhattan, for a rewarding gratification of having the city at your touch phone savvy fingertips. Digital marketing has shown to be the Launchpad when targeting the yuppy iPhone and android tugging urbanite. View DKNY’s inventive paper-clad e-vitation, as a blaring example of new times. DKNY is one of many brands that successfully converted followers on social platforms into shoppers. Including myself!

CFDA President Diane von Furstenberg deserves two thumbs up for promoting twitter hash tag equivalents and beckoning New Yorkers to indulge in the conversation, which allowed lucky winners to pick up a fragrance sample two weeks in advance of an official brick and mortar launch at Bloomingdales. Smart eh? And as a police check, there was a crosstab of twitter followings and updates with foursquare check-ins. Forget the walls, even the air has ears.

Forget the bustling streets and lack of direction; iPhone apps like Lustr and interactive maps (shareable on Twitter and Facebook – stalker friendly or friend-wowing?) all allowed tagging of partner stores as an entry to a fabulous giveaway. It was not the retail brands that attach themselves to the digital fiber optics – from Bendel to Jimmy Choo, the upscale market sensed the current of the circuit, too.

And the perks of simply fanning or following a brand on Facebook or twitter? If Burberry, one was indeed lucky enough to get one of a gazillion samples of Burberry’s Body scent, launched and sampled on Facebook for its fans. Truly a far cry from makeup caked age-ing and harsh pitched sales folks at department stores who jeered scented cards in passerby faces. Oscar de la Renta raised its ‘likes’ by up to 40% through a similar campaign, exhausting 25,000 samples in 3 days – that’s more than department stores nationwide can do for a single fragrance in a month!

With so much interactive media space, I was envious of my non-Manhattan friends who were enjoying the FNO festivities, albeit in a comforting environment. Livestream drew them to witnessing events in a less sweaty party, all on the laptop. Fashion brand channels offered coverage of their respective concerts, like Janelle Monae for Ralph Lauren or Joss Stone at Nine West. Was the endurance really worth it? I should say yes!

Coming to fashion week, I wondered the worth of standing at the back of a tent, compared to the minute by minute updates of everything from the gleam of the stage to the wardrobe malfunction of a model to the beat of the music, all of which was easily viewable on one’s smartphone, and at a location of choice.

Note to voyeurs: indulge in livestreams.

Note to brands: livestreams can either build your brand equity, or drown it.

Livestreaming live showers @Gant Photo Courtesy: Gant

Oscar de la Renta jumped on the bandwagon this year, following up from the fragrancing campaign, with a rather inventive idea. The designer created a live generating kaleidoscope of all content hash-tagged with #odlrlive premiering as live coverage. Not discriminating on source, this comprised of photos, videos, tweets and texts from editors to bloggers to models (who also tweet before walking the ramp!). Meriting from a first-mover honor on Tumblr, this was a distinguished and buzz generating livestream (which however, Tumblr had to monitor with scrutiny for spam – the s-worded pitfall of social media).

I personally feel that anything on social media has a rawness, an edginess that much overpowers the seemingly airbrushed gleam and sheen of the web and media coverage of fashion shows. Particularly if this includes an element of backstage costume drama or makeup endeavors. It makes the whole brand seem more relatable, more real. The grainy truthfulness and misaligned pixels  generate a sense of assurance that fashion is truly for the consumer viewing these on their laptop screen. Transported on the wings of twitter and tumblr of course, where a plethora of iPhone images flourish like feathers. While fashion week consumes lives of four key cities – New York, London, Paris and Milan – the internet travels space and time to unite borders. (Given the electricity, of course, a fact taken for granted).

And yet, two weeks after Manhattan’s glittering bustle, are people shopping more? Am I really recalling the great times of brushing shoulders with Bieber, Radcliffe, Klum, and many others? I sway on this pendulum of perhaps and perhaps not. And I’m sure others do too.

Photo Courtesy: Refinery 29

The point here is not to educate marketers of harnessing the power of social media for brand equity and loyalty building, nor is it to persuade consumers to jump on the bandwagon to lose life in the process of micro-managing a plethora of brands. It’s simply to depict the evolution of tech-savvy-ness, which has flirtatiously hit the doors of a widely loved phenomenon. Fashion.

Designer Cutting Up a Model’s Tee, Live

Marketers: Embrace. With passion and evolutionary strategy.

Consumers: Embrace. With anticipation and instant gratification.

May the affair last a lifetime. In real-time.