Glamour, fabulous parties and excess are what define fashion week.

But this year, even the famous tents at Bryant Park for the Mercedes- Benz New York Fashion Week were not the same as in years past.

“It’s just not as buzzed about,” said a PR girl in an elevator.

She was right.

Even fashion powerhouses such as Vera Wang and Chanel have been affected by the current economic climate.

Putting on a show at Bryant Park is expensive. Really expensive. Designers can shell out anywhere from $200,000- $1 million-and that is twice a year. Lasting a mere 10-12 minutes, its no wonder designers are straying away from these over the top productions.

“We had too much stuff, too much carpet, too much bling-bling, too much everything, and it was like having an upset stomach from eating to man good things,” said Karl Lagerfeld, designer for Chanel, to the Associated Press.

And I agree.

Extravagance is simply unnecessary these days when many people are just struggling to cope with everyday expenses.

Some designers like Vera Wang, who has one of the most anticipated shows, pulled out of the event. For those of you don’t understand the magnitude of what that means let me translate. Vera Wang is to fashion, what Tiger Woods is to golf- there is no one quite like her and she is in a league of her own.

Still, designers remained passionate to their craft displaying their 2009 fall collections with notable shows including The Twinkle by Wenlan, which took place at the Classic Car Club, mixing vintage feel with high glamour.

Yes, this year’s fashion week was mildly depressing, but eventful and fun nonetheless.

The scaled back shows served as another example of the crisis facing all industries across the country. Unfortunately, this includes the fashion industry, which some once saw as untouchable force field.

Yet, many designers powered through this rocky week with their head’s held high despite the economic hardship. There is a sign of hope. So for all my recessionistas out there, hold on tight, for high fashion and great design is here to stay.

Even if it means turning down the fabulousity notch just a tad.

- Karla Misjan is a contributing writer for The Red & Black