On Tuesday, February 13th, at 3pm the streets were unusually quiet in the Chelsea neighborhood and any trace of the Friday night snowstorm that frustrated the NY fashion world a few days earlier was just a distant memory. Outside the Metropolitan Pavilion on 18th street a line of devoted fans started queing up in anticipation of ASHTON MICHAEL F/W’13 “BLACK HEART” COLLECTION which was about to get under way. Celeb Dirty Laundry was honored to be in attendance and excited to witness the first show after a long eight-year hiatus from the runway by “revered designer and stylist to the stars, Ashton Hirota.”
The collection was clearly designed for men and women who march to their own beat, dark and dramatic yet light and calm. There are no defined gender differentials in this monochromatic collection of simple black and white looks as male models paraded down the runway in skirts and female models in drop-crotch pants. The human form camouflaged by the use of prominent hoods to disguise the face and accentuated collars to disguise their mouths.
Great time and care went into the engineering of each piece. Rich wools, cashmere, stretch lambskin leather, and denim are all hand-dyed and hand-perforated making each piece unlike any other. The emphasis is on comfort and versatility of which seems to contradict the use of bondage elements such as body harnesses and bound hand details. 
Carefully thought out detailing such as jackets with inter-changeable sleeves or quilted jacket shoulders accentuating the shoulders thus minimizing the look of the waist. Tricks yes, but tricks that work.
What also worked so brilliantly was that Ashton Michael proved that he tailors his clothes for any and every personality and public image. The most inspiring moment of the show was the moment when a couple of male models stepped onto the runway and couldn’t have been any farther away from the ideal model form. Whether it was a fitted wool jacket with leather sleeves or the lambskin leather pants, the clothes still fit beautifully!! Congratulations for putting the traditional stereotypes to rest!!
To complete the vision were the expected body art and piercings, black nail polish, dark lipstick and the always fabulous Dr. Marten boots.
While you don’t have to be a celebrity musician or artist to wear Ashton Michael you most certainly need to have the attitude and I expect wallet of one. Just ask Will.i.am, Usher or Nicki Minaj.
