Will You Borrow From The Boys?
The tomboy trend continues apace for Spring. You saw it in the plethora of pantsuits, and it surfaced in some of the active sports references to linebackers and latter-day Jacques Cousteaus. But the crisp white men’s shirt will always be the easiest (and, for us, coolest) way to get the look. Giambattista Valli topped a [...]
Are You Prepared To Go Bare?
Bras, corsets, tap pants, and briefs were exposed all over the Spring runways, with unexpected designers like Akris‘ Albert Kriemler joining lingerie lovers such as Jean Paul Gaultier and John Galliano at the panty party. No doubt about it, innerwear as outerwear is one of the season’s top trends. But does the look work off [...]
Time To Hang Up The LBD?
Whatever would Christian Dior make of Spring’s festive attire? The couturier’s advice on cocktail dresses, recorded in his The Little Dictionary of Fashion in 1954, was to “choose a dark color, preferably black if it suits you.” While there was no dearth of little black dresses this season, the most mouthwatering additions to the drinks [...]
Overalls—Do They Work For You?
Come spring, the jumpsuit will be facing some tough competition from overalls. The utilitarian standbys got a makeover on the catwalks, with Ralph Lauren leading the way. The designer showed both beat-up denim versions and a glam satin style for after-dark, and he wasn’t the only one to sex up the look from its pedestrian [...]
Will You Wear Spring’s Bodysuits?
Back in the mid-eighties, Donna Karan launched her simple dressing system, Seven Easy Pieces, and made black stretch-jersey bodysuits (along with leggings and strong-shouldered jackets) part of the modern woman’s uniform. That’s Paulina Porizkova and assorted other runway lovelies modeling the look for Spring 1986. Lately, the one-piece has been revived by Dov Charney’s American [...]
Utility vs. Fantasy: Which Side Are You On?
Call it optimism or call it escapism, but Spring 2010 is the season of the ruffled party dress: usually short, often chiffon, and almost always nude (we refer to both the color and the prevalence of sheer fabrics). Marc Jacobs—who else?—kicked the trend into high gear with his parade of ballet nymphs in New York. [...]
Two-For-One Dresses—Gimmicky or Genius?
Designers produced plenty of surreal fashion for Fall—Dolce & Gabbana’s glove hat, anyone? The most wearable take on the wackiness trend just might be the split-personality dress, seen, for starters, at Aquilano.Rimondi, Josh Goot, and Versace. Depending on your vantage point, the woman in Alexandre Herchcovitch’s little number is dolled up in sequins, or playing [...]
What Would Molly Ringwald Do?
The news that director John Hughes had died brought to mind some of the indelible images from his films Sixteen Candles, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and (our all-time fave) The Breakfast Club. And that in turn made us nostalgic for our own 1980’s school days. A quick study of the Fall shows turned up plenty [...]
Tracking The Kate Moss Effect At The Resort Collections
The notion that Kate Moss sparks trends is hardly new—see pirate boots, cutoffs, vintage dresses on the red carpet, etc. And it seems the supermodel’s innate style is more compelling than ever for designers as well as consumers. Case in point: the Gloria Swanson-channeling look she dreamed up with Marc Jacobs to wear to the [...]
The Rise And Rise Of The Little Sequined Dress
Celebrities (see Beyoncé, Rihanna, Michael Jackson, et al.) may be the only people who can afford Balmain, but the French house has helped ignite a passion for little sequined dresses that seems to be recession-proof. Crystalline creations from Thakoon, 3.1 Phillip Lim, and Emilio Pucci sparkled defiantly on the red carpet at the Met ball, [...]

