New York turns into a different city altogether during fashion week. The streets hum with a vibrant energy as the fabulously dressed hop from venue to venue for the biggest runway shows of the season. This year, with new focuses in creative freedom and diversity, fashion week is evolving with the times.

Spring Fashion Month, spanning from mid-September through October, gives designers a chance to exhibit their latest line for A-list buyers. In the days of instant media access, these first impressions are crucial, as a celebrity photographed wearing their looks can turn an unknown designer into a fashion superstar overnight.

This year, the focus seemed to be less on the designs and more on the absence of some regular names in the schedule. American flagship brands Rodarte, Thom Browne and Proenza Schouler all made the move to Paris, while one familiar designer, Tommy Hilfiger, chose to show in London, reported The New York Times. These relocations left New York Fashion Week one day shorter, but made ample room for new designers and some high-profile comebacks.

Tom Ford made his reappearance in New York this year. In his return to the Big Apple from a stint in his Los Angeles studio, Ford, hot off a Golden Globe nomination for his film “Nocturnal Animals”, immediately made his presence known. His collection, shown under fuschia lights, featured leather, metallics and neon accents. The show reflected many of the week’s trends- bright, playful pieces that evoked feelings of celebration.

Observers saw sequins throughout the week in the collections of Stuart Vevers of Coach and Michael Kors. Vevers accented simple tunics with copper sequin patterns, while Kors paired a blue button down with an ombré embellished maxi skirt, as seen on the New York Fashion Week website.

Athleisure also continues its reign over fashion, and Rihanna, in another success for her Fenty x Puma label, showed colorful sportswear including spandex one-pieces and basketball jerseys, says Maeve McDermott of USA Today.

In addition to the changes in designs and designers, the models themselves are different this year. This year, many of the shows highlighted diversity through models of varying race, age and body shape. The Fashion Spot’s biannual report proclaimed the Spring 2018 shows a banner season for diversity, with people of color making up 36.9 percent of the castings and more plus-size, transgender, nonbinary and over 50 year-old models than ever before.

Anna Wintour, Editor-in-Chief of Vogue, spoke in an interview for the magazine on the progress being made in the world of fashion.

“I think that those who have spoken up in the past publicly should really be given a lot of credit, and I hope that those who did not follow suit will now recognize that fashion has a responsibility to be in step with the times,” Wintour said.

New York Fashion Week took a step forward for many designers. Long gone are the days of simplistic collections on only one type of women, as labels welcome bright fabrics and elaborate details on models from all walks of life