Week in Review | Altuzarra, Alexander Wang, Paris is Closed, Lucky's Eva Chen, From Cute to Cool

LONDON, United Kingdom — Given how quiet it is on the fashion front, you'd never know that the start of New York Fashion week is less than two weeks away! Designers like Joseph Altuzarra and Alexander Wang, who both made appearances on BoF this week, must be quietly working away at their Spring/Summer 2014 collections.

Speaking to Joseph, we learned about his short but illustrious fashion career. He has been decorated with many awards and celebrated by many of fashion's biggest names, but what was the turning point for him, and for his business? Read our latest Turning Point feature to find out.

One of Joseph's closest friends, Alexander Wang, was also prominently featured on BoF this week, courtesy of our friends at Dazed & Confused. Accompanied by a gorgeous photo shoot of his debut Balenciaga collection, Alex talked about the weight of expectations that came with filling the shoes of industry darling Nicolas Ghesquière, and the factors that played a role in helping him to make the decision to helm of one of the fashion industry's coolest brands.

But over in Paris, things are still pretty quiet. Designers there have a few extra weeks before their own fashion week begins in late September, so most of the city, it seems, is on its annual extended summer holiday. Indeed, while the rest of the fashion world is hard at work preparing for the busiest time of the year, many fashion businesses in Paris are closed. We paused to look at the real reasons behind the month-long, collective break and to consider how and why it works.

As the youngest editor-in-chief within the big media world of Condé Nast, Eva Chen has already made an impression with her first issue of Lucky Magazine for September 2013. In our latest Creative Class piece, we spoke to Eva about the incredible journey she has been on, and how she was hand-picked by Anna Wintour to take on such a significant role, at such a young age.

And, we learned how the long-standing obsession with everything "cute" is beginning to wane amongst young Chinese women, who are now gaining confidence and looking for something cool, instead of something cute. It's an interesting shift in consumer preferences in one of the most important fashion economies in the world.

And with that, I wish you a great weekend. We are off on Monday for the last UK bank holiday of the year, but will be back on Tuesday with all the news you need to know in fashion.