When Your Moment Becomes Our Moment Malcolm Staples Created the Runway, Then Made Room for More
Before Malcolm Staples' collection hit the runway, designers Lucia Sardana and Troy Anthony helped build the anticipation—turning one New York Fashion Week presentation into three distinct fashion stories.
Written by Patricia “Alwayz A Lady”Fashion Stylist | Image Consultant | Fashion & Lifestyle Correspondent.
New York Fashion Week | September 13, 2026Runway Photography by Kevin Higgins
If you read Part One of my Malcolm Staples coverage, then you already know how I felt about his collection. Malcolm Staples Takes the Lead: A Front-Row Look at His First Self-Produced NYFW Show
The tailoring. The shoulders. Those hats. That zebra.
And, more importantly, the significance of watching Malcolm step into a new chapter by producing his own New York Fashion Week show.
But there was another story happening on that runway.
I knew when I left the show that I wanted to talk about the other designers Malcolm shared his platform with. I just didn't want to throw their names into the bottom of his story and call that coverage.
They deserved their own shine.
And to tell this story correctly, I have to take you back to the very beginning of the show.
Come sit front row with me.
Because Malcolm didn't open his own show.
Lucia Sardana did.
And that's where Part Two begins.
Lucia Sardana: Opening the Show With Craftsmanship
There's something about those first few seconds of a fashion show.
The room settles.
Phones come up.
Cameras get ready.
Everybody is waiting to see what kind of experience they're about to have.
And then the first model walks.
Except this time, my eyes weren't immediately going to the clothes.
I was looking at the bag.
Lucia Sardana opened the presentation with her completely handmade handbags, and that choice did something interesting.
It didn't give us everything at once.
It made us curious.
It made me lean in and look a little closer.
From my seat, I started doing exactly what I always do.
What's the texture?
What's the shape?
How is it being styled?
What am I supposed to notice?
And most importantly—
What's coming next?
That's the power of a strong opening.
You don't always have to come out screaming.
Sometimes you simply need to make the audience lean forward.
Lucia did that.
Handmade Hits Different
Once I understood that Lucia's bags were completely handmade, I looked even closer.
Because handmade means something.
We are living in a fashion world where something can be designed, duplicated, mass-produced and sitting at your front door before you've even decided whether you actually like it.
Handmade asks us to slow down.
Look at the repetition.
Look at the construction.
Look at the texture.
Look at the handle.
Think about the hands that actually created it.
This is also where Kevin Higgins' close-up photography becomes important to telling the story.
From my front-row seat, I could see the complete presentation.
But when you stop the movement and get close?
Now you can really see the work.
The texture.
The repetition.
The structure.
The details.
That's craftsmanship.
And as a stylist, I appreciated something else.
The clothing wasn't fighting with the product.
Because baby, if you're showing me the bag?
Let me see the BAG.
An accessory should have a job.
Sometimes it supports the outfit.
Sometimes it completes the outfit.
And sometimes?
The accessory is the outfit.
Move out of her way.
The white bag was a perfect example.
Statement doesn't automatically mean loud.
It doesn't need neon.
It doesn't need a giant logo.
It doesn't need everything and the kitchen sink attached to it.
Texture can make the statement.
Shape can make the statement.
Craftsmanship can make the statement.
That's one of those styling lessons you can take directly from the runway into your own closet.
You don't always need more.
Sometimes you need one really good thing.
And then came that little red bag.
Baby.
Small bag. Big attitude.
Give me an all-black look, that red bag and a good shoe.
I'm dressed.
Let's go. 😂
But while Lucia was giving us these moments of craftsmanship and detail, something else was happening.
The room was warming up.
The runway had our attention.
The anticipation was building.
And just when I was ready to see where the show would take us next...
The energy changed.
Then Came Troy Anthony
Now we were moving from accessories into clothing.
And Troy Anthony didn't come down that runway whispering.
He brought color.
Print.
Movement.
Femininity.
The energy changed almost immediately.
And sitting there watching it happen, I started appreciating the progression of the show even more.
Lucia made us lean in.
Troy made us sit up.
This look immediately woke up my stylist brain.
Because yes, it's beautiful together.
But y'all already know that's not enough for me.
I'm asking:
What else can I do with it?
Give me that skirt with a crisp white button-down.
Give me that top with a high-waisted trouser.
Throw a blazer over it.
Change the shoes.
Pack it for vacation.
Bring it back for brunch.
Now we're talking.
Because I don't only want women buying outfits.
I want women building wardrobes.
That's where cost per wear comes into the conversation.
Fashion is expensive. Life is expensive.
If we're investing in our clothes, I want to know how we're going to make those pieces work.
And when I'm sitting at Fashion Week, that's part of what I'm looking for.
Not only:
Can she walk the runway?
But:
Can she walk into a woman's real life?
With Troy's collection, I could see those possibilities.
Then that chartreuse skirt came around the corner.
Listen.
Let. The. Skirt. Work.
Everything doesn't have to fight for attention.
The black top grounded the look and gave that color and draping space to speak.
That's styling.
Give me that skirt another day with a bodysuit.
Next month with a blazer.
Later with a fitted knit.
Different shoe.
Different bag.
Different woman.
Same skirt.
Sometimes styling isn't figuring out what else you can add.
Sometimes good styling is knowing when you're done.
And this is where I started seeing the woman behind Troy's collection.
I wasn't watching one version of her over and over again.
I could imagine her life.
I could see where she was going.
I could see how she wanted to feel.
That's something I look for as a stylist because clothes aren't supposed to exist only on a hanger or a runway.
Women have to live in them
And then Troy took us somewhere else.
Now we've got shimmer.
Texture.
Movement.
Drama.
Okay, sir.
We're going out tonight. 😂
That's what I enjoyed about watching his collection develop in front of me.
Maybe she was vacationing earlier.
Maybe she was going to brunch.
Maybe she had an event.
But now?
She has somewhere to be tonight.
Different moments.
Different moods.
Different ways of showing up.
And with every look, the runway energy kept climbing.
Watching Troy take his bow reminded me of something we don't always stop to think about when we're watching Fashion Week.
We see the finished garment for maybe 30 seconds.
The designer lived with it much longer than that.
The idea.
The fabric.
The fitting.
The changes.
The doubt.
The work.
And then eventually...
the walk.
So yes.
Take your bow.
Because by this point, something else had happened.
Lucia had made us curious.
Troy had raised the temperature.
And sitting there front row, I could feel it.
They were getting us ready.
And Then the Room Was Ready for Malcolm
By the time Lucia had introduced us to craftsmanship through her handmade bags and Troy had brought the color, clothing and movement...
the room was ready.
Now we wanted the main event.
And Malcolm Staples was waiting.
That's what makes the order of this show so important to this story.
Lucia didn't feel like something added before Malcolm.
Troy didn't feel like somebody squeezed into the program.
They helped build the experience.
Lucia created curiosity.
Troy raised the energy.
And then Malcolm had a room ready to receive whatever he was about to say.
And baby...
Malcolm came with something to say.
If you've already read Part One, you know exactly what happened next.
Structure.
Tailoring.
Exaggerated shoulders.
Black.
Zebra.
And those HATS.
Malcolm's collection had an identity before the models even reached the end of the runway.
But experiencing Lucia and Troy first made me understand something else about Malcolm's first self-produced show.
He didn't have to do it this way.
This was his milestone.
His production.
His name.
His opportunity to say:
Look at me.
And yet, before we got to him, he allowed us to experience them.
That's important.
And that's when the bigger story came together for me.
Because this wasn't simply about letting somebody else put clothes on your runway.
It was about creating space without making yourself smaller.
Malcolm's collection didn't become less important because Lucia opened.
His moment didn't become smaller because Troy went second.
Actually?
I think the build made Malcolm's arrival feel bigger.
Because by the time he came...
We were ready.
One Runway. Three Different Voices.
Sitting there front row, I wasn't watching three designers fighting for the same spotlight.
I was watching a story build.
Lucia Sardana opened the conversation.
Her handmade handbags made us slow down, look closer and get curious.
Troy Anthony built on it.
His color, movement and clothing raised the energy and gave us a woman I could immediately begin styling in my head.
And Malcolm Staples brought it home.
Three designers.
Three different points of view.
One runway.
And somehow everybody had room to be remembered.
That's what I love about fashion when it's done right.
Someone else's shine doesn't have to dim yours.
There Are Levels to Creating Opportunity
We spend so much of our careers trying to get into rooms.
I'm still doing it.
I'm still sending emails.
Still pitching.
Still introducing myself.
Still hearing yes.
Still hearing no.
And sometimes?
Still hearing absolutely nothing. 😂
But I'm still showing up.
South Side girls know something about that grind.
You keep working.
You keep learning.
You keep knocking.
You keep showing up prepared when somebody finally opens that door.
But eventually, there's another level.
You stop only asking:
“Who's going to give me an opportunity?”
And you start asking:
“What can I create?”
Then comes an even bigger question:
“Who can I make room for?”
That's what makes this story bigger to me than three collections.
Malcolm didn't become smaller because Lucia opened his show.
He didn't lose his moment because Troy walked before him.
And Lucia and Troy didn't have to become Malcolm to be memorable.
Everybody brought their own voice.
And by the time Malcolm's collection hit that runway...
We were ready to hear his.
When Your Moment Becomes Our Moment
Maybe that's the biggest thing I carried home from this show.
Yes, fashion is clothes.
And we're going to talk about construction, silhouettes, color, accessories and styling.
I love all of that.
But fashion is also people.
Relationships.
Opportunities.
Business.
Access.
And sometimes it's somebody deciding that the room they're creating is big enough for somebody else too.
Lucia opened the show and made us curious.
Troy built the energy and gave us more.
Malcolm stepped into the moment he had created and brought the story home.
And me?
I was sitting front row taking all of it in.
Not just watching clothes come down a runway.
Watching three creatives get an opportunity to tell us who they are.
I'm still building too.
Still pitching.
Still walking into rooms.
Still taking every opportunity seriously.
And maybe that's why moments like this mean something different to me.
Because I know what it feels like to want the opportunity.
I know what it means when somebody opens the door.
And I know how important it is that when you finally get your turn, you do the work.
That's what I'm doing now.
Making sure these stories don't disappear when the runway lights go down.
Because if I tell you I'm covering the show...
I'm covering the show.
From the first walk to the final bow.
That's Part Two.
Written by Patricia “Alwayz A Lady”Fashion Stylist | Image Consultant | Fashion & Lifestyle Correspondent.
You are the CEO of your life—and your style should introduce you accordingly.
Runway Photography by Kevin Higgins
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