New York Fashion Week is about three things: great looks, American pride and celebrity sightings—and we got all three at this year’s Coach runway.

“It's become important and intuitive to me to support American fashion, and no fashion is more American than Coach,” says SAG award-winning actress Hari Nef. “[Coach Creative Director] Stuart [Vevers] understands the history of the American woman and how she dressed. He also understands the present of the American woman, and is not afraid to take risks in defining her look for the future.”

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Nef was in attendance at the Valentine’s runway, and she’s giving us a sneak peek into her preparations for the day with a series of fun day-of Polaroids. From planning the perfect outfit to finding her friends, here’s how Nef absolutely nailed her look and her day with Coach.

“There’s never enough time when you’re getting ready for a fashion show,” Nef says. “I styled myself this week, so the look was all me. I spent an unforeseen 15 or 20 minutes trying to find the perfect sheer tight to go with my Coach dress (thank you Skims!).

“I paired the dress and tights with a pair of vintage Manolo Blahniks and I was ready to go, but then I realized: the dress looked cuter without the coat it had come with,” she says. “Nothing beats a micro-mini dress and a sheer tight—think Edie Sedgwick, Marlo Thomas. Stuart has an amazing command of these references. It was about 16 degrees outside. I decided looking cool and insouciant and feminine was more important than staying warm. I layered some Uniqlo Heattech beneath the dress and ran out the door into the freeze. I have no regrets! You see the pictures!

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“Sometimes there is a frantic energy at a fashion show,” Nef says. “This is not so at Coach, which is a well-oiled machine (the finest leather, after all, is always hydrated and glistening). I found a friend first: Dara Allen, who was just named fashion director of Interview magazine (congrats Dara!!). Even Billy Farrell, who founded BFA stock images, is something like a friend after all these years of events. Coach shows are strictly family affairs, for me anyway. “Home” is a good word to describe how I feel at one. Walking to my seat, I was greeted by a set that looked remarkably like the street I grew up on.“

“I carried a bag inspired by a vintage design by Bonnie Cashin: the mother of American sportswear,” Nef says. “Her clean lines, craft details and playful approach to utility resonate today. The bag and dress share a print: a kicky, blown-up houndstooth whose muted blues and browns evoke American interiors in the '70's—that moment when mid-century became muddy. Stuart summons all of these references effortlessly. It comes naturally to him. At the end of the day, you want to wear Coach because it feels new and familiar at once.”

Follow Hair Nef on Instagram to see more of her NYFW adventures, and visit Coach.com to learn more about the collection.