Peter Som‘s imaginary muse is undeniably a wealthy, uptown lady. But unlike her St. John-suit-wearing lunch companion, she prefers a messy bouffant, purple lipstick, and a pair of lime green kitten heels. Oh, and she listens to Erasure.

We like Peter Som’s girl. Mostly because she’s a character. A character we’d be inclined to switch places with for a day.

In the world of fashion, there is a definitely distinction between designers who design for girls, and designers who design for women. In real life, women obviously wear clothes designed for “girls” and vice versa. Yet for some reason when you see a collection, you know if the designer had a girl in mind or a woman. And it doesn’t necessarily have to do with age or price point, but rather an attitude. Francisco Costa, for example, designs for a woman. Anna Sui, a girl. Narciso Rodriguez, a woman. Proenza Schouler, a girl. It’s all about whether or not your garments evoke youth, regardless of who is wearing them.

Despite their differences, the collections of Katie Ermilio, Misha Nonoo, and Nahm all fall into the girl category for us.

“Delicate” and “exquisite” are two adjectives that often find themselves in the same sentence as “Jason Wu’s designs.” Let’s add “opulent” to describe his A/W 2011 collection, which featured no less than 15 different kinds of lace, gilding, Swarovski crystals, and models with gold leaf painted onto their hair.

Rachel Comey might be a New York-based indie designer, but her schoolmarm look is decided European.

Whether it’s because of the limited-quantity fabrics she uses, or the odd-yet-refined silhouettes she prefers, Comey’s collection sits more comfortably alongside Vanessa Bruno and Isabel Marant than it does her American peers.

This theory rang true at yesterday’s runway show, where Comey showed matchy-matchy tops and bottoms, matchy-matchy bottoms and shoes, and baby-bell high water pants that are sure to set the tone for autumn. We were particularly drawn to her brownish rose corduroy swing skirt cut on a bias, matched with a corduroy blazer. Even Comey’s version of the Catholic school girl uniform comes off as more “teacher” than “student.”