Philippines-born and Texas-raised, Nim Botor, a self-taught designer, uses his eye for style, drape and fit to create stunning (and sometimes futuristic) garments for todayâ€s fashionable, modern women (in other words, you).

Since he can remember, Nim tells Signature9, “I was always fascinated by the female form and dress, visually devouring fashion magazines from cover to cover and trying to recreate and illustrate those images on paper.”

His experience and talent soared working as a design assistant to New York design duo, Pepper&Pistol as well as Texan designer, Cesar Galindo (who is currently kicking butt as a contestant on the hit Bravo series, The Fashion Show, hosted by Iman).

We were inspired by this particular piece from Nimâ€s “Kimono 2010” collection, an array of coats and outerwear inspired by the elegance of the Japanese kimono and the ease and comfort of classic American sportswear. This particular collaboration of eastern clothing traditions and western dress conveys a new and modern aesthetic.

The pullover-silhouette coat in a cream-colored wool and cashmere blend offers a spin on the classic bomber jacket. Detailed with a funnel neck, exposed industrial side zipper, exaggerated kimono sleeves, and inverted center back pleat, this one-of-a-kind creation will surely get you noticed.

At Rendez-Vous Paris, Slam Jam‘s Forfex brand studded sneakers and blue suede shoes immediately grabbed our attention.  The Milan based company sells a variety of mainstay urban brands like Nike and Adidas through their online store, but the colors and details of their own creations will easily establish them as the go to sneaker in any connoisseur’s closet.

For their Fall/Winter collection, Killers Zip Boots take cues from the sneaker style with back studding and an added zipper, while the popular Killers sneakers get refreshed with a geometric inner ankle portion. For the ladies who remember the pom pom socks that used to peek over the heel of your sneakers, the Knight’s layered back detail will bring back memories of shoe styles past.

Like any true studs, the Kick It (pictured) and Killers are enough to make guys want to walk in your shoes, and girls want to walk with you.

Click the thumbnails to view larger images from Slam Jam’s forthcoming Fall/Winter collection. Current collection is available at the SlamJam store.

At shows by Alexander Wang, Jonathan Saunders and Acne models with severely slicked, messy locks were the trend. {Refinery 29} You know who we blame? Vampires. Well, actually one in particular. Seems like Pringle of Scotland (who also sent dirty haired models down the runway) and Chloe Sevigny (who rocked the greaser look out and about) have drawn a little too much inspiration from Robert Pattinson’s magical mop.

If you have a problem with people running their fingers through your hair, we guess this could be a fix. But tell us, will you be going with the dirty ‘do trend?

Dirty hair as a trend? We blame this guy.

While the show got off to a, well, rather dark and monotonous start – about 11 black or mostly black looks – it picked up as Choi threw in bursts of color and pattern.

Choi’s most successful pieces were the transitional looks –  the ones that meshed distressed jeans with a preppy pattern or paired destroyed knits with a blazer.  The collection even evoked some trendy, layered staples from womenswear – black turtlenecks, over-sized cobweb knits, Scandinavian-looking patterns, leggings with shorts,  and a little bit of Balmain with a band jacket and bleached and battered patterns.

The stars of the show were Choi’s exquisitely constructed outerwear pieces. Our favorite would have to be the royal blue (we love black as much as the next person, but it was great to see color) hoodie/jacket hybrid – featured left center – with its fabulous fur collar and brilliant asymmetrical detailing in the front. The perfect mix of hip, casual streetwear and structured, luxurious material.

There was, we have to say, the occasional flop – a few materials that looked, frankly, cheap and a couple glittery jackets that felt out of step with the collection as a whole. But at its best, the collection perfectly and subtly balanced textures, patterns, and materials – managing to be edgy and classic at the same time.

But that was only the beginning. The late Lee Alexander McQueen will have a place in fashion history not only for his tailoring and thought provoking designs, but likely as one of the people who shoved fashion communication forward as well. His final Paris show, broadcast live on SHOWstudio with multiple cameras, dazzling lights and clothing that would stand out in any stage production, firmly eschewed the thought that showmanship in fashion is only for a select few. While some are grappling with ways of bringing the professional trade show element of fashion week back to the forefront, if this season’s New York fashion week is any indication, we’re only seeing the beginning of fashion as entertainment for all. Proenza Schouler, who broadcast their show at 8pm tonight, are making it an even more business savvy move {Fashionologie} by selling runway bags for 24 hours after the show. This follows in the footsteps of a live broadcast, immediate sales strategy successfully employed by Burberry {Wall Street Journal}.

Alexander Wang F/W 2010 Show, Broadcast on SHOWstudio

In the past 5 days, we’ve seen the live broadcast of shows from Michael Angel, Lacoste, Alexander Wang, Men’s Calvin Klein collection, Perry Ellis, Marc Jacobs, Rodarte and G-Star. Today, Michael Kors and William Rast join the list. Tomorrow’s streams start with Marc Bouwer and Isaac Mizraahi, and conclude with Women’s Calvin Klein collection stream.

While SHOWstudio, the site which broadcast McQueen’s last show, is a pioneer in the medium of broadcasting live fashion events online, the other favorites are decidedly mass. Robert Duffy, Marc Jacobs’ CEO, tweeted live before and during the show as people tuned in online. Lacoste and Calvin Klein didn’t just broadcast on their websites, but prominently on their Facebook pages as well. Noticeably absent, is YouTube, which would seem to be an obvious choice.

Why Facebook? For Calvin Klein, “using Facebook as the platform for the live stream is appealing because of the real-time social chat functionality that isn’t possible on video-focused sites. We also think that Calvin Klein’s Facebook page offers current, relevant content, and allows our fans to engage and share it with their friends, so it makes sense to direct them there.”

And therein lies the real shift in communication. While some brands are still noticeably absent from the conversations taking place online, the walls surrounding direct communication are slowly coming down at the highest levels.

It remains to be seen if the live internet show trend continues, grows or wanes, but the trepidation surrounding being an active participant in social media seems to be outweighed by the prospect that exclusivity will result in a missed opportunity to connect with customers.

Malcolm Carfrae, Executive Vice-President of Communications for Calvin Klein, says “We continue to explore new opportunities to expand the reach of our brands and create more touch-points for our consumers to interact directly with our brands and our creative directors. We think that this is a great opportunity for us to share our collections with a larger audience. Italo and Francisco are both very excited to have so many more people experience their shows in real time.”

Live Streamed Fashion Shows

Today

William Rast in association with Sony, 7pm EST Click here to view {WilliamRast.com}

Proenza Schouler, 8pm EST Click here to view {ProenzSchouler.com}

Tomorrow

Marc Bouwer, 9am EST Click here to view {MarcBouwer.com}

Isaac Mizraahi, 12pm EST Click here to view {IsaacMizraahi.com}

Women’s Calvin Klein collection, 3pm EST Click here to view {CalvinKlein.com} also on Facebook {Calvin Klein page}

If you’re not one for the blue lagoon shades, fear not as 9 other colors are included in Pantone’s most recent report. From left to right as they appear in the vertical stripes pictured above, there’s Endive, a pale yellow; Golden Glow, which as the name implies is a rich autumn gold; Living Coral, which is, well – coral; Lipstick Red, a berry-tinged shade of red; Purple Orchid, a bright purple; Chocolate Truffle, a purple-hued brown; Lagoon, possibly a sister shade to the Turquoise announced as the “it” color last year; Woodbine, a grassy green; Oyster Gray, a soft gray with a hint of pink; and Rose Dust, a soft pink with a hint of gray.

Lipstick Red, Living Coral, Purple Orchid and Chocolate Truffle are obvious choices for shades likely to pop up in beauty products, with the others more likely to make appearances in clothes on the runway.

The second scene was lightened by softer tones and pops of color as shades of gray and navy served as the foundation with accents of flourescent orange, blue, olive, burgundy and aubergine shoe laces and skinny ties. Pants suits and striped pullover sweaters were done in contrasting colors and we noted some classic pieces like the trench coat and a surprisingly stunning poncho in this scene (hello Andre Leon Talley).

The last lineup featured the pureDKNY Collection which was the most casual of the three, where rugged really made a statement. Khakis were paired with sweatshirts worn beneath suit jackets and fur-trimmed parkas, bubble vests and corduroy trousers mixed with cotton hoodies and canvas jackets.

Clear themes running through the entire collection included the noticeably slim silhouette, skinny pants tucked into wool socks and chunky hiking/combat boots. Donna Karan describes the Fall Collection saying, “The clothes are built different: innovative fabrics and inventive construction, active sport elements and easy to live with fabrics redefine the lifestyle for the man on the move.”

The overall essence of the line is sleeker and edgier than seen in past collections and the versatility is amazing. The lightweight wools and jerseys stand alone or can be layered or reversed. These highlights cater to the “Buy now, Wear now” aspect of menswear. It is refreshing to see the effort put into the functionality of this collection that maintains the sleek lines and versatile urban elements that have become the signature of DKNY To view the entire collection visit GQ online.