Celebs Flock To Lindsay-less N.Y. Fashion Week

Although the weather has been grim throughout Mercedes-Benz Fall 2010 Fashion Week in New York City, celebrities have been trekking through the February slush to support their favorite designers.

The week started out on a sad note as the news of designer Alexander McQueen’s death spread through the Bryant Park tents where the shows are held. The designer’s death, most likely a suicide, coincided exactly with the opening of Fashion Week on Feb. 11. In a sense, the shows have become a tribute to a man who whose design sense was always provocative, and often tested the limits of what the industry regarded as fashion.

However, the unexpected passing of one of the industry’s brightest stars didn’t overshadow the week’s events. On Feb. 11, celebs came out in red to attend The Heart Truth’s Red Dress Collection show. Heidi Klum, Kim Kardashian, Kristen Chenoweth, Raven Simone and Jordin Sparks all walked the runway in their prettiest red frocks to promote awareness of heart disease in women at the event, which was hosted by (the original) Fergie, aka Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York.

On Feb. 12, Naomi Campbell hosted Fashion for Relief- Haiti NYC 2010. The charity show, which featured models and celebrities sporting designer duds, was held to raise funds to help rebuild the health care system in Haiti, and especially to benefit mothers and young children. Kelly Osbourne, Alan Cumming, Helena Christensen and Campell herself were all smiles as they worked the catwalk, eschewing the sobriety characteristic of a non-charity show.

Meanwhile, shows all over the city have been attracting everyone from fashion maven Sarah Jessica Parker, who popped up to support the debut of Marios Jacobs‘ line for Halston, to Susan Sarandon, who shocked everyone in a low-cut number at Donna Karan‘s show, to Gossip Girls Jessica Szohr and Michelle Trachtenburg at Jill Stuart.

One place where no celebs were spotted? Marc Jacobs‘s show, which was attended by stylist Rachel Zoe, but to which no stars were invited. And one face we won’t be seeing around the tents? Accroding to the New York Daily News, Lindsay Lohan has been banned from Fashion Week because of her reputation as a brand damager. Jill Stuart pointedly chose not to invite Lohan to her show, as the fallen starlet tends to attract more negative attention than positive these days.

And, of course, these days it’s impossible to talk about Fashion Week in New York without mentioning one of the most recognizable names at the tents – Project Runway. Not only did the finalists from the current season show their collections on Feb. 12, Runway alumni are on the Fashion Week schedule as well – wunderkind Christian Siriano and previous season’s Irina Shabayeva both presented their collections. –EMILIE LITTLEHALES