TV presenter and model Alexa Chung debuted her first fashion collection for Madewell at New York Fashion Week. Madewell is a US store and sister to J. Crew. The company has had a rather rocky start since launching over 3 years ago, but Alexa may be what it needed to take off.

Alexa said that Madewell’s vision is sort of the same as hers, as they like styles that are laid back and relaxed. They offer timeless and classic clothes, she continued, so she thought it was the perfect fit when they asked to collaborate with her.

The fall collection is influenced by the 1960s, including a mix of vintage blouses, cute shorts, high-waisted skirts and mini dresses, all with plaid, velvet and stripes – which are all very Alexa-like styles. The 26-year-old says that she is eager to do another range with the store in the future, but they have talked about it yet. She added that they will see how this collection goes.

Project Runway’s fourth season winner Christian Sirian, who also showed a collection in Bryant Park this week, said that this is a great way for Madewell to freshen up their image and look. Alexa was just featured on the cover of the latest Vogue issue and was named the Best Dressed Woman of last year by the mag.

Meanwhile, various other fashion designers, like Diane von Furstenberg and DKNY, have shown off their new collections at New York Fashion Week. The biggest trends seem to be coloured tights, men’s tailoring and large jackets.

Victoria Beckham showed off her 2010-11 autumn/winter collection (her fourth) at New York Fashion Week on Sunday, impressing critics. Fashion designers are constantly being scrutinized, but Beckham has proven that she is no joke and will be designing fashion for the long run.

This is Beckham’s fourth collection of dresses, which includes 26, and in just these four she is showing her signature look. Her designs are nothing short of sexy – with restraint – using elegant lines and great attention to details. She explained her collection to the audience, saying that it was exercise in control, and she wanted to push herself and work with drapery and structure.

Beckham said she was inspired by the colour palette from the cartoon Dick Tracy, as well as dance pioneer Martha Graham and 1940s Hollywood femme fatale. This color palette, for those who don’t know, includes emerald, blood red, graphite and sapphire. She even wore one of the dresses from the new collection – a grey wool sweater-like couture dress – that she explained could be just thrown on.

Before the show, Beckham is said to have told her sons that she was going to do a big test. Then after the show she talked about how she wants to open a shop for her collections by 2015. She also joked about Romeo, one of her sons, wanting to take over the business, which may be a successful inheritance some day.

Beckham’s line is priced pretty heftily, but it has sold out even during the recession. According to various reports, it’s estimated by insiders that the collection could be worth as much as £4.7 million or £5.4 million ($7.5 million $8.4 million) just this year.