New York Fashion Week Spring '09: Caravan

NEW YORK—Fashion and function merged on the runway when Caravan teamed up with Tide TotalCare to present fashionable “ready to wash” clothing on the runway. The show featured seven emerging labels that make clothing which is not only easy-to-wear but easy to care for. The show was presented on Sept. 8 at Style360 during New York Fashion Week at the Metropolitan Pavilion. California-based lines gr.dano and Rock the Vote by Sociology showed alongside Travel Jersey, Jocelyn, Ronen Chen, IVANAhelsinki and Caravan’s debut private-label collection. Claudine Gumbel, who owns Think PR and Caravan, the New York–based store turned stylist studio, produced the show. Gumbel said the focus of the show was to present travel-friendly, machine-washable clothing that require fewer trips to the dry cleaner—an economically friendly alternative in today’s challenging economy. Styles on the runway ranged from Sociology’s politically minded “Rock the Vote” T-shirts to Jocelyn’s chic sportswear and Ronen Chen’s glamorous dresses. And, of course, samples of Tide TotalCare were given out at the event.—N. Jayne Seward