New York Fashion Week 2018: The best events to go to this year, from a YSL hotel to Canal Street

If you're not going to the shows, you can still join in the fun

Things to do during NYFW (Getty)

As fashion’s biggest names arrive in New York City for New York Fashion Week, the streets will soon be lined with couture and clothing that will fill you with envy.

Although the runway shows, the reason for the week-long celebration, are the main event, the city offers other options for those who didn’t receive an exclusive invitation.

Whether you're into the history of fashion, looking for the perfect place to capture an Instagram photo, or simply want to rub elbows with fashion’s elite, it's easy to get involved in the fashion week fun – if you know where to go.

New York Fashion Week 2018 takes place from 6-14 September. Here are the best places in New York City to go.

Free shows open to the public

All NYFW shows are free to attend – but that doesn’t mean they are open to the public. Fortunately, some designers choose to forgo the exclusive nature of the week and open the doors to everyone.

VFiles

The edgy streetwear designer announced that this year’s NYFW show, held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, will be inclusive – and free for anyone who gets tickets via Eventbrite.

Of the decision, Julie Anne Quay, founder of VFiles, told WWD: “I’m Australian and I remember seeing fashion shows in the mall and anyone could watch it. When I came to New York I couldn’t believe how locked away fashion shows were.

“At VFiles, our mission is to connect and empower the youth, so it made logical sense for us to open the doors so that everyone can experience the event.”

The show will take place at 8pm on 5 September – you can get tickets here.

A. Human

A. Human does not create clothing – but it’s still fashion.

A. Human, created by Simon Huck, focuses on body modification and will premiere its debut line in SoHo during NYFW.

The immersive experience, produced by Society of Spectacle, will take place at the A. Human store, where you will be able to try on body modifications and browse the realistic creations showcased last month by Kim Kardashian and Chrissy Teigen.

The collection will premiere on 5 September.

Bars and restaurants

If you want to bask in the glamour of the city's most fashionable and spot models after-hours, New York City nightlife is the answer.

In the city that never sleeps, models, fashion designers, and those deemed important enough to sit on the front row at the shows, will all be out mingling once the final model hits the runway.

For a chance to play paparazzi, be sure to get dressed up in your most fashionable clothes and head to any of these spots.

Catch NYC

The trendy restaurant in the Meatpacking District doubles as a club at night.

Grab a late dinner and then make your way to the roof for a drink for a chance to see models and celebrities.

1Oak

If clubbing until dawn sounds appealing, head to 1Oak – a regular spot for models such as Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid.

The club, opened in 2007 and in the Meatpacking District, is heavily guarded by bouncers – so dress up.

Rose Bar

A speakeasy-esque location, Rose Bar is the perfect option for a late-night cocktail surrounded by New York’s best-dressed.

With delicious drinks and old-fashioned decor, this bar, located in the Gramercy Park Hotel, is the place to see and be seen.

Sky Room Penthouse

Located at the top of the Marriott Times Square hotel, this multi-level club promises to be the go-to destination for this year’s NYFW.

With NYFW-themed events every night and no cover charge, it may be worth stopping in.

The Blond

A cool, dimly lit cocktail bar, The Blond is a favourite of New York’s fashion crowd.

Located at 11 Howard St in Downtown, the small plates and cocktails aren’t the only reason to go.

Top of the Standard

Also located in the fashionable Meatpacking District, the Top of the Standard is a bar on the 18th floor of the Standard hotel.

There is also a pool – but that doesn’t mean the strict dress code includes turning up in swimwear.

Things to do

Fashion shows aren’t the only thing to do during New York Fashion Week – pop-up exhibitions and special events all take place and promise to be as entertaining, if not more.

YSL pop-up hotel

The luxury beauty brand YSL, of the design house Yves Saint Laurent, will be joining in on the fun with a five-floor beauty pop-up hotel in honour of Fashion Week.

The “beauty hotel,” according to Elle, will be set up in SoHo’s World of McIntosh Townhouse and showcase YSL makeup.

With neon lights, purple sofas, an indoor pool and a rooftop, the space promises to be the backdrop for the perfect Instagram photo.

If you can’t model in the runway shows, you can at least model on Instagram.

Fashion Fun House at Moxy Times Square

To celebrate the best part of fashion week – the fun – Moxy Times Square will host a carnival fun-house interactive experience at Bar Moxy.

Open to the public and filled with distorted mirrors and carnival games, the experience is sure to be entertaining and Instagrammable.

Open 5 September.

ON CANAL

Canal Street regularly undergoes transformations – but this new initiative promises to transform the Downtown street into a fashion hub.

Beginning in September, 20 previously empty storefronts will be changed into pop-up art exhibitions.

Museums

Pink: The History of a Punk, Pretty, Powerful Colour

As the school where some of New York’s future designers learn their trade, the Fashion Institute of Technology is an integral part of Fashion Week.

This year, the Museum at FIT is hosting its own fashion week exhibition – focused on the colour pink.

Pink: The History of a Punk, Pretty, Powerful Colour will feature 80 ensembles from the 18th century to the present from designers including Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent and Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons.

The exhibit aims to encompass the many, varying attitudes towards the colour pink and will run from 7 September to 5 January 2019.

The Met “Fashion in Art”

In honour of NYFW, the Metropolitan Museum of Art will host an exhibition of fashion around the world.

Tours will take place throughout September.