The menswear look, a style this tailoring-minded city put on the fashion map in the `70s, made a big comeback here for fall. But, this time around, Italian designers put the emphasis on the curvily body-conscious rather than the shapelessly androgynous. In their version of the season`s masculine-feminine trend, women come out on top.
-The message: Mix it, match it and, when in doubt, wear pants.
-The looks: `Forties-flavored, long, fitted menswear-inspired jackets;
narrow or easy cuffed pants; slim, knee-length to mid-calf skirts; animal prints on anything; long, even maxi, coats; tuxedo-style evening wear.
-Hottest lines: Dolce and Gabbana; Giorgio Armani; Complice.
-Coming on strong: Gucci, Genny, Rifat Ozbek.
-Hot items: Pinstriped pantsuits; leather jeans and jackets; vests;
quilted and printed bomber jackets and parkas; velvet-collared riding jackets; Western-style detailing and fringe; French-cuffed white shirts; short, lace-up boots; platform high heels; large, structured handbags; wide belts, berets.
-Key colors: Shades of charcoal gray, black, navy, coffee and olive green in solids and tweeds, pinstripes, checks and plaids.
-Makeup and hair: Matte faces with penciled eyebrows, deep-colored lips and soft, natural hair.
-Best idea: Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana`s masculine, pinstriped pantsuits with a feminine frosting of tiny, embroidered mirrors.
-Worst idea: Karl Lagerfeld for Fendi`s pairing of hobble skirts with 6-inch platform shoes.
-Kinkiest concept: Gianni Versace devoting a collection to black leather straps-and dog-collar looks and other bondage-inspired fare.
