Archive for September, 2005
Key Takeaways: Diane von Furstenberg deftly combined colors and patterns in her flirty, pretty, and sometimes even preppy collection for Spring 2006. Geometric and botanical patterns were balanced in a set of well-styled outfits that ranged from black and white to tropical colored. Flirty sundresses, sportswear separates (loved her cardigan in green), and slinky evening dresses—DVF showed them all. We applaud this collection not only for its fresh feeling, but also for its wearability.
Color Palette: A number of looks were styled in black and white. Others combined tropical colors: Yellow, Brown, Coral, and Green. Some interesting color combinations:
Coral + White, Coral + Green, Yellow + Brown.
Silhouettes: Full, swinging skirts and voluminous tulip skirt shapes; Trenchcoats; A-line and empire waist styles; Fitted bodices. Both draped and tailored looks.
Accessories Report: Printed tote bags worn under the arm.
What’s Wearable: Just about everything—especially the flirty sundresses.
What’s Not Wearable: Voluminous tulip skirt shapes on dresses, some of the more shapeless dresses (rather unflattering on anything other than a model’s figure).
Our Favorite Dress: We love how this dress elegantly bridges the gap between the embellishment of seasons past with the minimalism of fashions to come.
September 12th, 2005
Key Takeaways: Luca Orlandi embraced print and embellishment for his Caribbean-inspired collection, perhaps too much. With a few of the looks, the mixing and matching of patterns was overwhelming. However, Orlandi also showed a number of 60s inspired (at least in terms of silhouette) sundresses that seemed much more wearable.
Color Palette: White, beige, and brown along with bursts of color: yellows, greens, reds, purples, blues, oranges, etc. Bright colors, reminiscent of a tropical vacation.
Silhouettes: Voluminous skirts and pants, plunging necklines, tulip skirts (seen in previous Luca Luca collections), boxy jackets, sweaters with pushed up sleeves, rounded Peter Pan collars, sweet sundresses, and an emphasis on a higher waistline.
Accessories Report: More belts (at the natural waistline), and chunky necklaces and oversized bags. Not much new here.
What’s Wearable: Pretty sundresses in innocent 1960s shapes.
What’s Not Wearable: Multiple prints in the same outfit. Even the most seasoned of designers have trouble balancing prints in a single look. Don’t try this one at home!
September 12th, 2005
Key Takeaways: Ladylike separates and dresses in neutral colors. Doo Ri Chung mixed materials, pairing shimmery with matte, and brought structured and drapey silhouettes into harmony. Our take? It’s not the kind of collection that will Wow fashion editors. However, we loved it for it’s unashamed wearability.
Color Palette: Neutral. Lots of Gold, Tan, Blush and White.
Silhouettes: Pencil-thin skirts, Wide-legged pants, Empire waistlines, Trapeze dresses, Trenchcoats.
What’s Wearable: Most everything. We Loved Doo Ri’s dresses, in particular.
What’s Not Wearable: Some of the pieces, though tame for the runway, were still too voluminous for streetwear. Also, beware of silk charmeuse and other shiny fabrics, as they accentuate any bulges and make the wearer look larger.
September 12th, 2005
Key Takeaways: As usual, John Varvatos gave us a fresh take on some classic garment classifications: sport shirts, motorcycle jackets, trenchcoats, cardigans, and even one-piece jumpers (don’t try that one at home!). Always mindful of the details, Varvatos’ key statements for the season included zipper detailing, rolled up and pushed up (or tsuzjed up, as Carson Kressley would say) sleeves, and a possible return to ombre.
Color Palette: Browns, Tan, Shades of White, Yellow, Orange, Light Blue. Great color combo: Yellow + Light Blue.
Silhouettes: Classic looks. Vests and Ties are back, with button down shirts with rolled up sleeves. Cardigans and pullover sweaters. The Trenchcoat also made an appearance, along with a variety of single (2 and 3 button) breasted and double breasted jackets. Rolled up sleeves are big on Varvatos’ agenda.
Accessories Report: Ombre scarves, Sneakers with big laces, Slip-on Shoes, and Caps.
What’s Wearable: Just about everything. We especially like the motorcycle jackets.
What’s Not Wearable: Mid-calf length shorts, and exceedingly long blazers. They distort even a model’s figure. Also steer clear of the one-piece jumpers. Somewhat interesting in a fashion spread in Vogue, but they’ll elicit thoughts of “what Are you wearing?†in Real Life.
Most Directional Look: Vest + Tie + Sport Shirt with rolled up sleeves.
September 11th, 2005
Key Takeaways: Grown up innocence, for lack of a better term. United Bamboo juxtaposed little girl type detailing: scalloped detailing at the waist, rounded Peter Pan collars, button-ups, and patch-type pockets with hardware: sinuous body hugging zippers, buckles, and snaps.
Color Palette: Black, grey, and white, with yellows and blues. Touches of purple, orange. Great color combination: yellow + orange.
Silhouettes: Unexaggerated volume, empire waistlines, high-waisted pants, double-breasted jackets, trapeze dresses.
Accessories Report: Looks like topsiders are back.
What’s Wearable: High-waisted pants (great for the long waisted/people with short legs), empire waistlines (almost universally flattering), and double-breasted jacket styles (for the tall). Peter Pan collars are a maybe, depending on how you wear them. The rounded collar, for example, is Adorable on a tailored princess line coat.
What’s Not Wearable: Scalloped detailing at the waist, which looked excessively cartoonish. Looking like you walked out of a Disney movie is generally not a positive fashion statement. The body-hugging zipper detailing was also a look that should be seen Only on the Runway.
We Love this Color Combination: Yellow + Orange.
September 11th, 2005
Key Takeaways: For the debut of Imitation of Christ’s denim line, Tara Subkoff went Dark Americana. The IOC show mixed innocent pieces like jumpers and little girl sundresses with come hither High red heels, racy lace-up detailing, and bondage-style handcuffs. As the show progressed, the clothes lightened up, first with distressed denim looks. The show finished with a ballet of retro-style chiffon dresses.
Color Palette: (Denim) blue, white, red, and black.
Silhouettes: T-shirts and jeans, with heels. Little girl styles: jumpers and sundresses. Retro-style chiffon dresses. Cropped pants: short shorts, mid-calf length pants, and ankle-length pants.
Accessories Report: Fedora hats, Slouchy boots (continuing trend), High heels.
What’s Wearable: Most everything. T-shirts and jeans—very white bread. The sundresses are adorable. The chiffon dresses are also party-able.
What’s Not Wearable: We’re a no-go on the mid-calf length shorts. Some of the distressed denim is a bit extreme. Also, leave the handcuffs at home.
September 11th, 2005
Key Takeaways: Reminds us of a crisp day out on the water in New England. Boating shoes, flip flops, shorts…very East Coast preppy. Of note was the emphasis on patterned fabric, rather than striped fabrics.
Color Palette: Mostly muted, with white, shades of cream, grey, and some black. Splashes of color included light blue with lime green, mustard yellow and blue, and orange.
Silhouettes: Rolled up sleeves, shorts of all lengths, from short shorts to knee-length to mid-calf. Blazers and bomber jackets. Straight legged pants.
Accessories Report: Boating shoes, flip flops, D-ring belts, Fedora hats, and oversized sunglasses that had an almost Prada ad-like feel.
What’s Wearable: Most everything, including the knee length shorts, rolled up sleeves, straight legged pants, and the standard blazer-sport shirt-trouser combination.
What’s Not Wearable: Just say no to short-shorts. Mid-calf length shorts also tend to be unflattering.
September 10th, 2005
Key Takeaways: The collection struck us as a modern take on Old Hollywood, with classic garments ranging from high-waisted wide legged trousers (channeling Katharine Hepburn, perhaps) for women to bomber jackets for men. Kenneth Cole chose the waist as the focal point for this collection, featuring a wide selection of belts, and a distinctively high waistline.
Color Palette: Muted for the most part, with shades of brown and grey. Yellow was also seen in abundance, along with shades of blue. Greens, purples, and red were sprinkled in as well.
Silhouettes: High waistlines, tailored looks mixed with loose fitting garments.
Accessories Report: Oversized squarish sunglasses, bags with hardware detailing, trapezoid-shaped bags, Belts!
What’s Wearable: Most looks, especially the high waisted trouser (for those of us that are longwaisted) and knee-length shorts (perfect for even petite proportions).
What’s Not Wearable: The blazer + shorts combo that started off the show is a no-go for most folks, especially for work. The short-shorts for men is also probably something to shy away from.
September 10th, 2005
Key Takeaways: Overtly feminine with a Pretty vibe. Riffs on a few of the trends from the past couple of seasons, such as cropped jackets and full skirts. White and gold were seen in abundance.
Color Palette: Purples and Yellows, Pale Blue, Turquoise, White, Gold.
Silhouettes: Empire waistlines, halter necklines, cropped jackets, gathered skirts.
What’s Wearable: Turquoise + Purple color combo, the flattering empire waistline (perfect for those with boyish figures, petite women, and those with a small bust or large tummy).
What’s Not Wearable : The skirts gathered at the bottom. It’ll only work if you’re shaped like a runway model.
September 10th, 2005
Style Intelligence Report is pleased to present the Fashion Week Notebook!
Vicariously (and thanks to the amazing photographic coverage of the fashion shows by New York Metro and Style.com), we’re reporting on the fashion trends that you’ll be seeing come Spring 2006.
True to our mission of providing an intelligent look at fashion trends, we’ll be analyzing the fashion shows for trends—in silhouette, color, and garment classifications. And because of our strong belief in Real Style for Real People, we’ll be sorting out the runway-only looks from the wearable ones to give you insight into what you will actually want to be wearing come spring.
Ideas? Suggestions? Leave us a comment, or email us at styleintelligence@gmail.com.
September 10th, 2005
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