Ella Emhoff's life pretty much did a 180 after Inauguration Day. Not only did she, along with fellow break-out star Amanda Gorman, win a contract with IMG Models, but with a month, Kamala Harris's stepdaughter was walking in her first catwalk show, albeit virtually, at New York Fashion Week.
Of course, she was bound to earn attention as the stepdaughter of the incoming VP, but Emhoff's overnight stardom - fan accounts like @ellaemhoffscloset are already in business on Instagram - had more to do with what she wore than who she knew. The fashion student - Emhoff is current studying textiles and apparel at the Parsons School of Design - side-stepped power suiting in camera-happy colours for a checked and beaded coat by Miu Miu, tucking a collared dress underneath from Batsheva.
And it's this dress which sealed her next move. Announcing the collaboration via Vogue's Good Morning America, in a video called American's Unexpected It Girl, Emhoff is partnering with Batsheva, and its founder Batsheva Hay, on a knitwear line. Hay admits to 'fangirling on your stuff', while Emhoff explains why she's so excited about their collaboration: 'That's what's so important about designing, especially to me, is being able to create things that you like, without the outside influence of what you think the fashion industry wants.' Then they start talking about panelled tops and top-handle bags, all in knitwear, which will have fans of both itching for a launch date.
This is a smart move for Emhoff, whose knitted pieces in joyful shades of lime and pink already have a following on Instagram. She even holds raffles for her knitted pants, which are brilliantly cheerful in their rainbow stripes, where participants buy tickets by donating money to causes close to her heart (like The Okra Project and For The Gworls), email their receipt to a special inbox and then get entered into the raffle. Stay tuned for what promises to be this year's hottest collab.
SEE: The Highlights From New York Fashion Week AW21
1 of 16Proenza Schouler
Ella Emhoff, Kamala Harris's step-daughter, walked exclusively for Proenza Schouler, making her catwalk debut in an understated yet highly wantable collection that went beautifully with her curled mullet. Ashley Brokaw did the casting, and is famous for cementing the next big faces so expect to see Emhoff's, hopefully still with those wire-rimmed glasses, everywhere this September.
2 of 16Zimmermann
Inspired by a '70s TV show, Countdown, Nicky Zimmermann embraced a rose-tinted attitude for AW21, with a heady line-up of diaphanous dresses, louche pussy-bows and trumpeting flares.
3 of 16Gabriela Hearst
Gabriela Hearst is set for a stellar year. She's about to take the reigns at Chloé, and delivered one of her most breath-taking collections to date for her eponymous brand based in New York. It was something of a family affair - her inspiration was Saint Hildegard of Bingen, a German abbess, after her husband gifted her a book about her - and the flowers blooming across the knitwear were transposed from her daughter's doodlings. An impressive 40% of the collection was made out of deadstock fabrics, a percentage that the designer hopes to shift to 50% this year. 'We found them and turned them around and gave the planet a little break. My father used to say, 'Small things for the world but big for me.' It makes me feel good,' she told Vogue.
4 of 16Colin Locascio
Colin Locascio's autumn collection, #madeforthecoolgirl according to his Instagram, is the perfect antidote to all the neutrals you've been that, while mellowing on the soul, aren't exactly mood-lifting. An apple-print jacket on the other hand is just what the doctored order.
5 of 16Jonathan Simkhai
Jonathan Simkhai's collection - a meditation on kinship, craft and connectedness - proved that the medium of video, while restrictive in some ways, can be a blessing in others. Zooming up to one particular dress - butter-coloured with an asymmetric cut-out - you could really focus on the delicate chain strung across the skin, instead of just watching it flash by on the catwalk.
6 of 16Anna Sui
Anna Sui's rose-tinted collection, Phantasmadelic, was inspired by 1968's Wonderwall, a film that tells the story of a who scientist peeps through a hole in his wall and discovers a dazzling new world beyond. 'As we wait 'on pause' for the new world that will emerge from this pandemic, my mind is awhirl with visions of the vibrant world that lies just ahead,' said Sui.
7 of 16Rodarte
To celebrate their 15 years in fashion, Rodarte's past collaborators, admirers and friends each filmed a tribute to its founding sisters, Kate and Laura Mulleavy. Model Anwar Mou, pictured, spoke about their welcoming attitude on set; Autumn De Wilde, photographer, talked about meeting them for the first time, before anyone had seen their clothes, and how just seeing one sketch and a swatch of fabric was enough to convince her that she wanted to be part of their journey.
8 of 16Private Policy
America's Asian community has seen a spike in hate crimes since the start of Covid-19, which is why Private Policy, from design duo Haoran Li and Siying Qu, decided to dedicate their autumn collection to Chinese immigrant workers in the 19th century. Speaking to The Cut, Qu said: 'The least we could do is speak out against anti-Asian violence. We want this collection to teach people about how generations of Asians have contributed to develop this country.'
9 of 16Libertine
Libertine's Johnson Hartig is the master of embellishment, and for AW21, seems to be suggesting that the future is full of it. Whether it's a trench coat with glitter-sprayed sleeves or hats twinkling with paste gems, it's time to indulge your inner magpie.
10 of 16Bronx and Banco
Staged in an old-fashion piano bar, Bronx and Banco's virtual catwalk show made a very convincing case for dressing up. Cue diamanté bras, satin trousers, feathered bustiers and little black dresses slashed at the hip, all of which whispered, 're-emergence'.
11 of 16Lavie by CK
Inspired by Coming to America, Black Panther and Bridgerton, Lavie by CK's lavish collection was the perfect antidote to all the loungewear we've been wearing.
12 of 16Adeam
Adeam's latest collection was inspired by a trip to Tokyo's Mori Art Museum, and its exhibition STARS. Its deconstructed shirting, fluid forever dresses and polished sportswear are exactly what we want to wear now.
13 of 16Jason Wu
For AW21, Jason Wu created a catwalk out of a space very familiar to us all at this point - the supermarket. 'Mr Wu's General Store' was a grocer's filled with fresh produce and flowers, where the models snaked through the stacked wooden crates wearing coats, easy dresses, sweaters and knee-high boots (i.e. motivation a plenty to get out of your leggings) to a socially-distanced audience.
14 of 16Monse
For its video presentation, featuring model-of-the-moment Indira Scott, Monse explored what we're currently wearing (loungewear) and what we hope to be wearing in the not too distant future (occasionwear), perhaps suggesting that a marriage of the two is possible now with its little red dress and white sneakers combo.
15 of 16Sincerely Ria
Sincerely Ria's collection is dedicated to women. 'Here's to the women around the world, the strong, the beautiful, the infinite, the powerful, the soulful, the divine,' says the short film's narrator, while its models appear wearing halos of gold in their hair and clothes that showcase the power and beauty of the female form.
16 of 16Prabal Gurung
Perhaps because it was Valentine's Day, Prabal Gurung decided to write a love letter for AW21, not to a person, but to New York. 'New York makes me feel loved,' he says in the short film, which is filled with clothes that speak of romance - and not just because they're largely pink and red. Here's hoping it won't be long before we can all don big sleeves, big flares and big ruffles and revel in the cities we love.