My First Fashion Week Experience
It’s early 2024 and I’ve decided I want to start going to Fashion Weeks. My friend Yoli and I also decided around the same time that we wanted to do a Scandinavia trip. We decided we could do both.
Our trip to Scandinavia perfectly lined up with Copenhagen Fashion Week SS25 in August 2024. I started researching furiously how to get into fashion weeks. I researched all the brands that would be there, decided how I would pitch myself, and started sending out emails.
Once I got a few invites and events lined up, I put them all into my Google Calendar to keep track of them all. Lots of events at fashion weeks overlap, and they can be at locations all over the city. So you have to plan accordingly and keep timelines and distance in mind when running from one event to the other.
My First Day at Copenhagen Fashion Week
It’s Wednesday, August 7, 2024. We flew out of Barcelona EARLY in the morning. We arrived in Copenhagen around 10am. We checked into our hotel, Hotel Ottillia, but it’s too early check into our room yet. They allowed us to get ready in one of the rooms near the lobby since we needed to do our makeup, hair, and change outfits for the busy day ahead of us.
Our first event of the day was the Rabens Saloner Presentation in the Meatpacking District. Their garments are elegant and mix femininity with utility and can be reshaped and reworked to reflect different times or moods. We then took the metro over to the MLGA Presentation in the city center. They presented their fourth collection, “Exorior”, the word from Latin meaning “rise, appear, come forth.” It was a pleasure to see their take on neo-menswear and redefining how we think about men’s fashion. Our third event of the day was The Jewellery Room presentation, showcasing 22 jewelry designers. I was enamored by them all, but especially fell in love with RO Copenhagen, Engelbert 1920, and Maria Nilsdotter.
Our last stop of the day was the Mfpen store opening, a suitwear-esque brand for men that is made with deadstock fabrics. And after running around the city all day, we decided to go back to try the restaurant on the rooftop of our hotel and it was beautiful and the food was so delicious. We were pleasantly surprised!
Our Second Day
Thursday, August 8, 2024. Our first stop of the day was the In Our Name Belgium Presentation in the city center. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about each brand featured at the presentation, but I especially felt drawn towards Borrenberghs. The other brands featured were Esume, Yentsé, and 11PM Studio.
Our second event of the day was the Tess van Zalinge “momentum” Presentation. Her couture collection embraces movement as well as stillness, both critical dynamics in fashion craftsmanship. Her goal was to create modern and timeless, handmade pieces using deadstock fabrics with corset-shaped designs.
We then grabbed a taxi to quickly head over to our first fashion show for Fine Chaos! It was at a perfectly fitting venue in the Refshaleøen area of Copenhagen. Fine Chaos presented a post-apocalyptic take on today's fashion, showing pieces that demonstrated “a clash of despair and hope.” The clothing was ripped, deconstructed, and dark to mirror the many tragedies of the world today, with small details of hope weaved in through splashes of color, butterflies, and flowers.
After the show, we had just enough time to zip back to the city center to check out the Day Et x Teklan Presentation. DAY ET is a Copenhagen based travel & design brand, and they showcased their collection in collaboration with Teklan. We then stopped by the Maria Black Jewelry store to buy a couple pieces of jewelry before heading to Sticks ‘n’ Sushi for an early dinner. I bought an earring cuff and a flower stud and I debated getting a piercing but it felt a bit rushed.
Our Third Day
Friday, August, 9, 2024 - our third day in Copenhagen and the last official day of Copenhagen Fashion Week. We started the morning off by heading to the last two Fashion Talks of the week: ALPHA Talks: Danish Fashion, and The Importance of Cross-Pollinating in the Creative Industries for the Future of Fashion. We learned about how Danish fashion at it’s roots is affordable and pragmatic, yet stylish. And we learned how creatives from industries like tech and hospitality have crossed into fashion and how it has benefitted them in many ways. Since it ended up being a rainy day and the fashion week events were over, we spent the remainder of the day the Designmuseum Danmark.
Overall, I had an amazing time at my first fashion week, and I’m so glad that it was Copenhagen Fashion Week! I am proud of myself for putting myself out there and trying something new and learning about so many brands that I was not aware of before attending CPHFW. I am now excited to share my learnings with you all and hope you can take away some tips and excitement from my experience.
If you want to see more about my Copenhagen Fashion Week experience, check below:
CPHFW Vlog Day 1 Copenhagen Mini-Vlog Day 2 Copenhagen Mini-Vlog Day 3 Copenhagen Mini-Vlog
