Vanhatapio says she's worked very hard for the past five years to get to this point, and hopes that Fashion Week will be a springboard to the North American market.
"Right now, really interesting things are happening in the Nordic fashion scene," she says. "We have an original edginess and a certain kind of strangeness, even though we don't do so-called Scandinavian fashion but we design from our own perspectives."
Designer Paola Suhonen will also be sending her creations for her IVANAhelsinki brand down Manhattan's catwalks. Her spring and summer collection, called "Where the fuck is my sailor," will be showcased on September 16th.
While there is always room for up and coming designers in New York Fashion Week, the real headliners this year are fashion powerhouses Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Vera Wang, Michael Kors, Donna Karan, Diane von Furstenberg, Calvin Klein, Gwen Stefani and Anna Sui.