Fashion Week Friday kicked off early with two stellar shows at Milk Studios. First, I caught the NAHM show, designed by Nary Manivong and Ally Hilfiger—Tommy Hilfiger's daughter. The legendary Mr. Hilfiger was there, too, and genuinely beaming like a proud father at his daughter's school recital. But this collection wasn't child's play by any means—in fact, it just might be NAHM's best range yet. All-over egyptian and floral prints had the cult capacity of a Prada collection, and the matching wallpaper was a genius touch. 

Maybe it’s just that we’re so busy here at the BlackBook office, but New York Fashion Week always seems to creep up out of nowhere. Yes, it’s here again and starts tomorrow actually.

Spring is all about rebirth and growth and yadda yadda: for Manhattan scenesters it's mainly about ending winter hibernation and hitting the social circuit in order to show off the latest looks. This week was chock full of winsome odes to spring in Manhattan: parties to remind New Yorkers that the High Line will soon be in bloom, events that celebrated spring fashion openings and new spring catalogs and parties that got people excited to shed leggings, overcoats and layers of stuffy winter makeup. Here were some of the freshest beauty takes from this week's party scene.

At Lucky magazine's Lucky Shops:

This fall we'll be experiencing the harsh side of the 80s: Marc Jacobs with bright colors, Gucci with monochromatic contouring and hyper-voluminous hair. As spring rolls around, fashionistas will be extending their stay in the 80s, but according to the looks backstage at the Spring 2010 Tommy Hilfiger show, they'll be softening the overall aesthetic to the darlings of the era. While the hairstylists explained the hair and makeup belonged to "the clean, rich girls of the Upper East Side," the effect was reminiscent of the bouncy, fresh-scrubbed Breck Girls of the late 70s and early 80s

This year, Fashion Week was dedicated to the consumers. Even if Fashion’s Night Out will be known as a huge fiscal flop in retrospect, the overall idea was reinforced by momentous store opening celebrations, and corporations extending access to what has historically been a VIP pony show. American Express sold out of their highly sought after Mercedes-Benz Sky Box seats in record time, a hot ticket that offers AmEx card holders a behind the scenes look at fashion week, bringing experts into a windowed box, much like one you would find in a football stadium, to teach consumers how to consume in what seems like a lesson in ‘high fashion with training wheels.' Likewise, growing retailers like the downtown-meets-uptown-meets-Gwyneth Paltrow label, Generra, opened up shop during the week, settling into in the Meatpacking District, within winking distance of Andre Balazs’ shiny new Standard Hotel. Another newbie to extend brand identity is Douglas Hannant, who pin-pointed their market perfectly, opening in the Plaza Hotel. And, as if to truly trumpet the return of retail, Tommy Hilfiger will open the doors to his breathtaking new 5th Avenue store tonight, with a star studded celebration.

Word on the street, beach, the fairs and in hotel lobby banter was that Basel 2K8, as a whole, couldn’t hold a candle to last year’s event. Even so, hordes of New Yorkers made the airborne trek on Friday for the weekend wrap-up. As if Basel-goers needed to clock in more time at the Raleigh hotel, the venue hosted the Tommy Hilfiger & Vanity Fair gala to benefit Free Arts NYC. Regrettably, the soiree can be classified a poor man’s version of the Visionaire event of the previous night (no male models, no champagne fountain).

Tommy Boy is on the move today. First he told us what was up this morning; now, sources close to the Hilfiger clan say the designer has moved back into his seven-bedroom backcountry Greenwich estate with his ex-wife Susie Hilfiger, creative director at Best & Co. "They're totally back together," a spy told BlackBook. "They're living together as one big happy family in Greenwich." But wait, there's more! We're also told that his former fiancé Dee Ocleppo called off the wedding because she was unhappy with the prenup deal. The wedding was scheduled to be held on the Caribbean island of Mustique in August. Meanwhile, Hilfiger has put his duplex at the Plaza on the block for $50 million.

This morning, Tommy Hilfiger reminded us that it's his world -- we just live in it. In a sit-down with MSNBC's Morning Joe gossip cutie pie Courtney Hazlett and robotic honkey Willie Geist, Hils pitched his upcoming Bravo show Ironic Iconic America, got global, talked about the economy and dished on which fashion mavens will survive the impending doom and gloom. First, he chatted about the show: "There's sense of humor," he promises of the series. "It's about the good the bad and the ugly in America. If you really really dig in, you'll see that we've created an incredible world culture. This is entertainment, sports, and music. We invented rock and roll. We've created Hollywood. Think of what we live in here in America. It's amazing." Know what else is amazing?