Prepping for NYFW ft. Mena Lombard

It’s here, it’s here! The most wonderful time of the year for every fashionista is here! When I get asked why I moved to New York – the answer consists of 4 simple letters…N.Y.F.W. Haha totally kidding, but I’ve got to admit it’s definitely one of the best perks of living in this amazing city! This will be my 5th season attending NYFW, and I’ve started getting some questions from a few gals about NYFW – so I thought it would be super helpful to share some prepping tips/what to expect for those planning to attend. It’s always tough if this is your first NYFW and you don’t know where to start, so hopefully this post helps some of y’all 🙂

Pitching to Shows

1. First of all, don’t freak out if this is your first time attending NYFW. Even if you don’t have a SUPER large amount of followers, you will get to attend some shows, I promise 🙂 I received a good amount of invites to shows when I JUST started blogging in the beginning, so have faith in yourself!

2. Start by looking at the full show lineup at Modem Online. You’ll be able to see the shows by day, time, and venue. From there, click on the ‘press‘ tab, and you can cross reference the PR contact for each of the shows. I create a list of the shows/pr contact that I want to pitch to, and then prepare my email.

3. When you send out your request emails, make sure it’s short and sweet. Think about all the emails that these PR contacts are getting! I keep mine really generic so that I can just copy and paste the same email to a bunch of brands, and switch out the show titles. For the shows that you may have a relationship with already or that you REALLY want to attend, I would take time to personalize it a bit more. I send out my pitching emails about 1-2 weeks prior to the show date. If you send it too early, you will likely get ignored. You can follow up after a few days of not hearing back – but seriously, don’t feel bad if you don’t ever hear a response back! Just keep in mind that these peeps are busy 🙂 . Here is an example of a good pitching email (tweak it to fit your own voice!):

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is XX and I am a fashion blogger of XX. My blog shares the latest on fashion trends, product reviews, and event coverage.

I have XX social media reach, with an avg of ~XX Instagram likes and ~XX comments. My blog gets about ~XX blog pageviews with ~XX users per month.I’d like to request an invite to The XX Show. It would be an honor to present the latest collection to my followers.

(if applicable) Please feel free to view my previous blog post on New York Fashion Week last season: http://XX.com

Thank you for reviewing my request.

All the best, XX

4. Lastly, Download the ‘GPS Radar‘ app. This will give you full visibility into all the shows, by day. If you get an invite, it will show up in this app and you can click ‘attending’ or ‘not attending’. You also can request an invite to any of the shows in here by a click of a button (I recommend emailing the PR contact instead though). Most of the designers use this app to send ticket requests and seat assignments. You can also pull up your ticket barcodes in this app, so it’ll be easy to keep track of.

What to Expect During NYFW

• Each show will be about 15 minutes long. After the doors open, the show usually will start 15-30 minutes after…so get ready to wait (also be prepared to wait in a long line for the door to open)! Cut the time that you see on your invite in half, because half of the time allocated is the time for viewers to come in/get seated and then leave after the show is over. If you are a few minutes late to a show, you will probably make it – but just in case, I would definitely try your best to show up on time 🙂
• Don’t stress about seating priority. You might get an assigned seat, or you might get a ‘standing’ priority. Don’t worry, as long as you have a barcode then you’ll be good. A lot of times you can get lucky with a really good seat (maybe even a front seat!) and move up a row if a spot is open 🙂
• Get ready for those Uber charges. There’s two main venues for the shows – Skylight Clarkson Square and Pier 59 studios. There are also other additional venues that designers host their shows at. You’ll have to be ubering back and forth (especially with heels on) – unless you plan out accordingly and only want to attend back to back shows that are at the same location 🙂
• Use your phone camera for photos. – Using your phone camera is totally fine! If you want super professional photos, I would recommend just getting them off the NYFW site afterwards. You probably aren’t going to want to lug around a big camera (unless you are SUPER dedicated) to all of these.
• It’s important to stay organized. You’ll be getting a ton (hopefully 😉 ) of confirmation tickets and emails, so it’s really important to stay organized. I create a calendar invite for myself for every show, so that I can see the full schedule for myself on my phone. I also ‘star/favorite’ every confirmation ticket so that I can easily find the show and pull up the ticket quickly when I check in. This will make your scheduling process super simple!
• You will see celebrities (probably!). It’s a cool experience getting to see the celebs! In the past, I have seen…Paris Hilton, Nicky Hilton, Sami Sweetheart from Jersey Shore, Kelly Rowland, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jay Alexander, Kelly Osbourne, Caila Quinn from the Bachelor, and a ton of Real Housewives ladies. I’ve stalked a few after the shows to snag a pic 😉
• Dress for the occasion. I couldn’t emphasize this one more! It’s only respectful to the designer to dress your best at the shows. You will be surrounded by super influential people in the fashion industry who obviously all care about style, so keep that in mind accordingly! Also, there will be photographers every where you turn…seriously, dress to impress! I’m featuring Mena Lombard in this particular blog post because this dress designed by her is a great example of something perfect to wear at the shows. She is such an amazingly talented designer, and her pieces are just fabulous. This ‘Narita Print’ dress is so unique and I love the wide, baggy style of it – I chose to wear it off the shoulder on one side, but you don’t have to! Check out her full collection here and see my previous collaboration blog post with Mena Lombard here. I also wore this dress with heels and (personally) recommend wearing heels to the shows to keep your outfit dressy.
• You will be tired, but it’s worth it! To be completely frank, NYFW is pretty exhausting…your feet will hurt and the day will seem so long, but trust me – it’s TOTALLY worth it! It’s an incredible experience like no other, so get EXCITED 🙂

NYFW Must-Haves

Based on my previous experiences, I think it’s super helpful to carry a big bag (matching your outfit of course 😉 ) so you’ll be able to carry a bunch of necessities. See below for the list of items that I think are CRUCIAL for you to relax & enjoy the shows!

1. A change of shoes. You’ll likely be sporting some stilettos, so it’s nice to have a pair of flats or sandals to change into after the show ends. I also use airpufs – comfy little slip-in cushions for my heels…they’re a life saver!
2. Bandaids. Just in case the ‘beauty is pain’ statement comes into effect for those hurtful heels 😉
3. Phone charger. As if this wasn’t an obvious! You will be able to find a plug outlet somewhere at the venue (there are some pretty cool lounges at the locations), and a lot of times you’ll be waiting in between shows – so don’t forget this one (especially if your phone dies super fast like mine does!). You’ll want to have your phone camera ready to capture those gorgeous designer pieces! AND you’ll need your phone to be alive for the workers to scan your NYFW ticket.
4. Business cards. Get them done if you haven’t already! I got mine done from . You’ll have many opportunities to network with bloggers/brands, so it’s nice to have them handy.
5. Dry Shampoo/Hair Spray/Makeup/Bobby Pins. There will be photographers EVERYWHERE, so it’s helpful to have a little touch up goodies at hand 🙂 There are also pretty swanky lounges around the venues that do touch ups for free – so keep an eye out for those and book an appointment ASAP!
6. Snacks. You WILL be hungry, and there is very little time for food in between shows. The venue will usually have some water for you, but I suggest bringing some small snacks that you can fit in your bag.

Not a blogger? Not in NYC? How to still follow along the fashion!

If you aren’t part of the fashion industry, but still want to be part of the NYFW madness, there are actually a ton of free fashion events that you can go to! Check out Fashion Week Online and EventBrite to see a bunch of open events with full details. If you aren’t in NYC at all, you can also watch the live streaming of all the designers’ collection shows here. To get an even more insider scoop, I’ll also be live insta-storying the shows I attend on my instagram 🙂 Lastly, the official NYFW site can be found here.

Please feel free to leave a comment or message me if you have any other NYFW questions at all! I’m so happy to help 🙂

Dress: c/o Mena Lombard | Heels: (similar) | Sunnies: | Clutch: (similar) | Photos by Dan |