I distinctly remember the Art Deco-style brooch my grandmother wore to church on a Sunday almost twenty years ago. It was a cluster of emerald stones set in platinum gold, so entrancing that I couldn't pay attention to a single word of the sermon. During this past New York Fashion Week—which, some would say, is another gathering for worship—brooches proved to be quite the distraction yet again.
Everywhere I looked, a street-style outfit featuring a clip-on adornment would catch my eye. On day one, I was stopped in my tracks by an extra large red rosette clipped to a blazer's lapel and a logo pin tacked to a necktie. I was almost hit by a yellow cab on day three—too busy balking at a diamond-encrusted jaguar sitting atop the shoulder of someone's peacoat. My favorite, the one that made me late for the Kallmeyer presentation, was a geometric grouping of '20s-era jewel-toned gems—just like the pins my nana wore.
