Luella
NEW YORK, September 9, 2001
By
It seems that prairie girls are here to stay, at least according to Luella Bartley, who decamped to New York this season. To a blaring soundtrack that included everything from "Sweet Home Alabama" to "Get Ur Freak On," the London designer sent out a cavalcade of country gals decked out in trailblazer skirts, embroidered dresses, off-the-shoulder tops, frayed denim skirts, and Navajo-inspired wrap coats in vivid colors.The American West motif eventually gave way to an array of candy-colored looks that included a playful pink-and-blue striped blazer, a piped rose sundress and several bright yellow knits that will be just the thing for a summer weekend in Malibu. Bartley's accessories also hit the mark: The outrageous combination of Pocahontas leather socks, pink cowgirl boots, wide-brim floppy hats, multicolored woven belts with streamers (courtesy of Katie Hillier), dangling fur tails and feather embellishments somehow managed to make perfect sense.
If the audience's gaze occasionally strayed off the runway, don't blame Bartley. The sight of Venus and Serena Williams in the front row, the next day after their historic U.S. Open match, proved too much for most to resist.
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