With Twitter all over New York Fashion Week and Donna Karan using a virtual trunk show to promote her fall line, there is no denying social networking is hot this season. Top brands have embraced new social media tools to help spread the word about new trends and further brand loyalty. With the launch of Facebook Deals last fall, retailers are now able to drive customers through their doors while creating a word-of-mouth buzz and customer loyalty.

With Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at a close; designers, fashionistas, journalists, and bloggers alike, shed a little tear and reflect on lessons learned from the iconic event. More so than in season’s past the 2011 New York Fashion Week presented fashion trends and shows to the public at lightning fast speeds, across multiple channels, mobilized and in 140-characters-or-less. In sharp contrast to the way fashion week was covered and executed in the past, many are calling this season’s event the Fashion Week of the people.

We have learned from Project Runway host Heidi Klum, that in fashion, “one day you’re in and the next, you’re out.” It has always been assumed that what is trendy this week will not be trendy next month, let alone next year. However, certain fashion trends have surpassed this stigma with a subtle and natural progression that keeps it updated and fresh, very similar to the replication and memes common in viral videos and the world of social media.

A new fashion trend has recently emerged that is sending some seasoned fashionista’s reeling: socks with heels. A trend like this needs more than just celebrities and runway models rocking the look, consumers need to see the look being worn by ordinary people, the easiest and most effective way being through social media. Only then will they be able to imagine themselves adopting the trend, and the sorts of situations they could fathom themselves wearing what was once a serious fashion faux paus.