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LAUREN'S
ENDURING FASHION STYLE
NEW
YORK – Some designers will tell you what their inspiration
is; Ralph Lauren actually takes you there. To stage his spring
show, Lauren pitched an enormous muslin-draped tent, filled
with white cushions, huge candles and twinkling crystal
chandeliers, in the lush walled gardens of the Cooper-Hewitt
Museum. Entering the building, the audience was met with trays
of champagne, while the smell of tuberose and the strains of
Erik Satie wafted through the evening air.
If that wasn’t enough to induce a romantic swoon, the
clothes would have done the trick. Lauren loves the womanly
silhouette of the fin-de-siècle, with its nipped waist and
curving hips. For spring he chose to highlight that silhouette
with regal fabrics like damask, jacquard and silk moiré, made
into curvy jackets, bustiers and vests, and shown with creamy
linen or silk trousers or light, pretty skirts. There were
great leather pieces, gilded or printed with a wallpaper
floral, and beautiful, skin-baring silk chiffon dresses. While
Lauren makes no secret of his love for the past, he’s also
resolutely modern: For evening, he showed a beaded top with a
floor-length bustle skirt made from very distressed blue
denim.
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WANG'S
SPRING SHOW
NEW
YORK – Eveningwear is a tough proposition; all too often,
it falls into clichés of over-the-top glitz and heavy-duty
ornament. But it doesn’t have to be that way, as Vera
Wang’s beautiful spring show proved.
Gone were the Edwardian references of Wang’s dramatic,
all-black fall collection. Spring’s silhouettes are simple
and completely modern: knee-length straight shifts and
skirts, tailored trousers and, of course, long gowns. Using
a restrained palette of black, taupe and white (with just an
occasional shock of vivid color like violet or red to jolt
the eye) and luxurious fabrics like silk jersey, chiffon and
tulle, Wang created outfits that were simultaneously elegant
and youthful, hip and intelligent. She paired a simple black
knit top with a whimsical skirt made from tiers of rough,
ruffled ivory silk tulle, ran a line of asymmetrical ruching
down the front of a strapless black cocktail dress and mixed
in careful details like hand-smocking, crochet and
occasional short bursts of cascading ruffles.
There was minimal embellishment, used to maximum impact. A
scattering of pea-size glittering glass beads looked like
dewdrops against a black pleated chiffon shift, and a pretty
red floral chiffon gown had thin streams of lace tracing its
seams. Wang added a few lovely daytime pieces, like a white
leather coat, a cream organza skirt with a touch of ruching
at the side and black wool trousers with white stitching.
But her real success with this collection was injecting new
life into the night.
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Back to Basics - Black
They
say black is back but did it ever go away? It has been the
standard classic since before the pilgrims made it popular,
and now, "sister" colors like navy blue, cranberry,
and even chocolate brown have become staples in wardrobe. But,
the one challenge with these dark colored favorites has always
been how to clean them without dulling or fading.
The "In" colors seem to come and go. One
year it might be turquoise. The next year, pink is hot. But
one color that is always present on the runways, year after
year, is black. No matter what color is called the
"New" black, black has always been a staple of the
fashion industry. "Black is so important because it never goes
away. It's the eternal anchor in every woman's wardrobe. No
matter what color comes in or goes out, black is always there
as a foil to brights, to pastels, to neutrals, whatever. Black
is eternal."
"Actually
the fact that black is back in fashion is really a trend that
was set by the consumers. Designers pretend they are dictating
blacks in and outs but consumers never ever get over their
love of black."
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