Tastemakers take to the runway

The Beehive was the perfect spot for Friday’s Fashion Trail Kickoff party, as it embodies Boston’s fashion aesthetic at its best - an unabashed marriage of antiquity and funk. Guests circulated amid the velvet curtains, aged gold chandeliers, and occasional taxidermied wall ornament, while sipping Valentino martinis, an inspired blend of vodka, blood orange, and passion fruit juice. Elegant munchies, in the form of crustless finger sandwiches, adorned the bar. Stil, owned by the chic Betty Riaz, set up camp downstairs, offering a rack of selected merchandise discounted a bit for the evening. A few mingling models displayed the wares as well; it was a credit to the crowd that the models were hard to pick out from the fashionable civilians. We especially loved Dava Muramatsu in Elm, an Icelandic line she carries at her Newbury Street boutique, Matsu. LUCY BARBER

The attendees of the Parkway Fall Fashion Fiesta came out Friday to support neighborhood businesses and the Roslindale Food Pantry. Retailers, friends, and a lot of kids packed a small space on Centre Street in West Roxbury where antique mirrors adorned walls swathed in star-printed tulle. Tables were covered in everything from vintage brooches to paisley-printed Christmas stockings. It was a glorified craft fair. Someone yelled “positions!’’ and a fashion show commenced, an emcee narrating elements of each outfit. Little girls in pastel dresses from Maria Lisa Bridal flung flower petals across the hardwood floors, and a host of women modeled looks from Maria Lisa as well as Gypsy Boutique, Just as Nice, and Kalembar Dune. One little girl shouted to her model mother, “I’m your number one fan!’’ and a visitor couldn’t help but grin at the sweetly familial quality of the whole affair. HANNAH MARTIN

The Drea Designs Couture show, Saturday at Vinalia, was a situation where editing would have made a mediocre show truly stunning. The kimono-influenced robes were quite lovely - especially the first three or four times they came down the runway. Showing every available print for these robes was probably unnecessary, and distracted from some very fine tweed and houndstooth day looks. There was also a spate of bathing suit overkill, especially when it appeared that some of the gentlemen in the audience were more interested in the models than their very wearable swimsuits. Trimming the 45-minute runway show to a more easily digestible 15 minutes would have allowed some of the finer pieces to stand out. While a few of the evening gowns relied on too many ruffles and glittery fabrics to carry them, there was promise in Drea’s designs. However, by the end of the extended catwalk parade, it was difficult to recall exactly what those standouts were. CHRISTOPHER MUTHER

Drawing a host of fashionistas on a rainy Sunday afternoon, the Launch was an early high point for Boston Fashion Week. Held at the Boston Center for Adult Education on Arlington Street, the show featured five local designers selected for their fresh new looks. The two standout collections of the afternoon were shown by designers Millie Bautista and Elana Sanders. Bautista sent a thoughtful collection of ’40s-inspired looks down the runway, while Sanders’s designs featured leather, lace, rusty gears, aviator goggles, and - wait - is that a gas mask? Fashion Week director Jay Calderin said after years of trying to raise the city’s fashion profile, he’s ecstatic to see “clean shows where you really see the clothes.’’ Something to brag about, indeed. H.M.

Sunday marked the third and final installment in Fashion Evolution’s trio of runway shows. Called “Forever,’’ the show took place at the Moakley Federal Courthouse, and was loosely constructed around the theme of timeless fashion. Frankly, though, the title was a bit arbitrary. Will the gold lame micro-swimwear that Brooklyn-based designer Ty Scott sent down the runway be relevant in 100 years? Probably not. Still, some of the 13 designers did make bold statements about the fashion world to come. Los Angeles designer Delise Ana cracked the whip with her all-leather couture and was a standout in regards to styling. Other designers were less distinct and their collections less cohesive. Even so, the soaring space made every part of the show mesmerizing. The runway was situated in front of a tidal wave of windows and the marble floors of the courthouse echoed with electro-pop and the clap of high heels. L.B.

The young and fashionable were out en masse Monday night for the Stylist Closet event at Hotel 140, where local stylist Terry Mahn showed off her reworked vintage pieces. Once attendees packed into a warm Lyric Stage Auditorium (there were more guests than seats), Mahn took the floor. “We’re hot, we’re sweaty, now lets see some fur and leather!’’ she yelled. Cheers erupted as sassy models filled the stage wearing leather, fur, tweed, and frocks of every variety. A few male models stalked the catwalk as well, though their vintage blazers and vests seemed like mere accessories to their rock-hard abs. H.M.