China, China, China!

Ten years ago—five even—American women’s fashion was alllll about Marc Jacobs (and Marc by Marc Jacobs and, eventually, Jacobs by Marc by Marc Jacobs, the ridiculously cheeky line sold at the Bleecker Street bin shop).

Now, the U.S. scene is officially about, well, China—or at least adorable dudes of Chinese descent. There are the well-established elder statesmen of the realm, Peter Som and Derek Lam. Then came Phillip Lim, who won the CFDA for Emerging Talent in Womenswear in 2007 (a stinkin’ big deal, ifya don’t know). Then Alexander Wang sashayed into the picture, winning the ’08 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund award (another wowzers prize) and, most recently Jason Wu, of Michelle Obama dress-making fame, hit the big times.

What gives? Why is it that the Chinese & Chinese-American guys have cornered the market on all that is chic and modern in the U.S. of A.? I’m fascinated, clearly.