Prêt-à-Porter: Fade to Grey

Socks and hosiery seem to be heading in an artful direction, grey-ward. Take a look at these new offerings from some avant-garde designers. Each uses faint grey, in coordination with other colors and patterns, to create highly stylized and inventive legwear.

(clockwise starting from left, all via forwardforward.com: a great mix of polished and street-wear in tights from Wunderkind; tie-dye leggings from Future Classics are a retro statement with a modern slant; socks from Tsumori Chisato are printed with a whimsical grey moonscape)

Prêt-à-Porter: Long Live Summer

When fall arrives each year, I always feel a little resigned in spirit.  Resigned to dim-colored clothing, and to growing increasingly (with the onset of colder weather) bulkier in shape as I pile on the layers.  Putting the happy, light summer dresses away feels like putting away the happier, sunnier me 'til spring.  But it's not all depressing, I suppose.  Fall and winter also mean greater structure.  Dress shirts and sleek pants and boxy coats.  Minimalism and black and white can be a welcome break from the flirtiness of summer dressing.

(above: a look from the Alberta Ferreti Spring 2010 collection, paired with navy wide-leg pants from Barneys New York and a Lutz &Patmos cream-colored cardigan. Pictures via style.com and barneys.com)

But this fall, I'm just not ready to let go of summer quite yet.  So here's a suggestion, even for those who have to dress for the office every day.  Why not prolong summer by wearing warm weather pieces all throughout the fall (and maybe the winter, too, if you love summer like I do)?  Float innumerable light layers on top of each other: a bare, wispy blouse over a bare, wispy dress over another wispy dress, capped by a thick sweater or a suit jacket in the office.  When it's particularly cold, I slip on a close-fitting turtleneck as a base layer or add pants under the dresses.  Another idea: Tuck the ends of a gossamer scarf into the waist of your dark pencil skirt to combine a little feminine with the conservative.  Instantly, you've got a multicolored look with personality that's ready for work.  I also have a lot of fun wrapping delicate scarves around my torso to create a silky, strapless top under a jacket or cardigan.  And finally, summer tunics and caftans can have an interesting life in autumn either paired with a coat of similar length and dark tights (for an elongating look), or belted and brought up short as a loose blouse with great volume.  Wear them with a pair of trousers or a long skirt, and you'll have the perfect mix of summer and fall.

(above: a look from the A.F. Vandervorst Spring 2010 Collection, paired with a fitted brown jersey skirt from Rick Owens Lilies and a camel-colored wrap coat from The Row. Images via style.com and barneys.com)

Prêt-à-Porter: Avian Beauty

An odd and interesting sighting at Bloomingdales the other day: a woman in a print ad whose eyes looked ready to take flight. They were delicately delineated in bright, colorful featherlike lashes, which were so whimsically birdlike that they drew me in. I spent the next twenty minutes at the Shu Uemura makeup station, looking at the advertised "Tokyo Lash Bar." Sitting in little plastic cases were carefully crafted normal-looking false lashes next to lashes that could never in anyone's imagination be considered anything less than psychedelic costuming for the eyes! Neon colors in feathery sweeps and round layered swoops lay at rest in their boxes, waiting to come to life, i suppose, as soon as a bold wearer comes ready to experiment (and plunk down the money--prices range from under $20 to near $80). I wouldn't normally have the nerve to go near them, but since Halloween is nearly here, perhaps the brown feather lashes.

Prêt-à-Porter: The Bigger, the Tougher, the Better

For years, costume jewelry has tended towards the extravagant. Remember a couple of years back, when brooches were all the rage? Huge suckers, plastered with kick-ass imitation gems and faux gold touches. I don't think big, statement jewelry has ever gone away. But now it seems to be bigger than ever, and with a tougher, street-influenced vibe (as though daring us to denounce its wearer for showiness). It's a little hard to imagine who--besides the 20-something rocker-chic set--might be able to work this look into their typical ensemble. But the prospect of seeing young office professionals and stay-at-home moms give it a try makes me a little giddy with excitement. (Street) fashion for all!

(top grouping/left to right: earrings by Fallon and a choker by Bottega Veneta

bottom grouping / left to right: necklace by Bottega Veneta and a necklace by Burberry)

Prêt-à-Porter: Cozy Architecture for the Body

Fall's officially here, and it's almost time to break out all the cozy sweaters that we've put away since springtime! Feels sort of painful, though, to see the bright cheerful colors of summer replaced by drab greys, browns and blacks. Not only that, but it always seems like cool-weather clothing mopes about in the same basic shapes: you've got your crewneck, your turtleneck, your cardigan, your heavier cardigan, and on and on. If it weren't for one beacon of creativity in all this monotony, it'd be easy to sink into sweatery ubiquity. That beacon is Tom Scott. A knitter and crocheter since he was a small tyke, Scott invents the most interesting draped and architectural shapes in knitwear I've ever seen—and it's all extremely wearable (and uplifting). If you can imagine it, he's likely done it. The materials he uses are exquisitely soft and fine, so you'll pay a pretty penny. But if you're willing to save up for it, owning a beautiful and rare piece of knit artwear that you'll reach for time and again, and supporting the artistic efforts of independent-minded small designers, is worth the investment.

(photos via tomscottnyc.com)

Prêt-à-Porter: The Modern Bette Davis Look

A few weeks ago, I caught two Bette Davis films, Dark Victory and Now, Voyager. I have to admit, I've never been a Bette Davis fan in the remotest. But in these two old movies, incredibly, the whole range of womanhood flows out from her: tenderness, forcefulness, wisdom, fear, love, loneliness and, of course, passion. All of it tempered with her unusual forthrightness and independent strength. She's magnificent. The acting is great. But I have to admit that the clothing is equally fantastic.

























In beautifully chic, close-fitting silhouettes and dark, rich gowns (by costume designer Orry Kelly) that draped in sophisticated fashion across her form, Davis was the height of restrained glamour. That's something that never goes out of style. I actually think a Bette Davis of today would have plenty of good options to pick from. Donna Karan's 2009 fall/winter collection (elegant draped jersey pieces in black or a bold primary color), to begin with. Fluidity undergirded by assertive elegance.
























Right: Donna Karan 2009 Fall Collection via style.com

A deceptively simple, silk Bottega Veneta sheath, like the ones designer Tomas Maier sent down the runway for fall, would be perfect. Some of his dresses--with their polish and luxe sensuality--are signature Bette.
























Right: Bottega Veneta 2009 Collection via style.com

And finally and most definitely, a modern Bette would look to Paris-based, Australian designer Martin Grant for strong new classics that give old stand-bys (like the skirt suit or the little black dress) a subtle kick in the pants. I can already see his exquisite voluminous blouse on her...























Right: Martin Grant 2009 Fall Collection via style.com

Prêt-à-Porter: Runway Fashion

Being a stewardess used to have some cachet and it showed in the uniforms designed for them. Whether it be the beautiful (or sometimes zany) textiles or stylish shapes, there used to be a fashionable risk-taking involved that was inspired by a new form of transportation. Balenciaga's recent uniform designs for Air Tahiti Nui raised a bit of a furor initially, but the end result was a little bland and disappointing. In any case, if you want to live out the glory days of airline fashion, pop over to uniformfreak.com and check out the hundreds upon hundreds of uniforms lovingly collected and catalogued on this website.

(left to right: United Airlines/USA, Allegheny Airlines/USA, Delta Airlines/USA)

Air Alps/Austria

(clockwise from left: Egytair / Egypt, Allegheny Airlines/ USA,

Privitair / Switzerland, CSA Czech Airlines / Czech Republic)

(All individual photos via uniformfreak.com)