At last, stores are stocking up on a fashion trend with more virtues than vices. Among the few garments that don`t discriminate against sex, age or body type, vests are the diplomats of the design world.
They look great on men and women. They can be worn gracefully by any generation. And, unlike many trends-minis, stretch pants or midriff tops-vests flatter any frame, be it tall and lean or short and . . . well, not so lean.
”A vest gives an outfit a more finished look-almost like a blazer. But you get a lot more individuality out of a vest,” Michael Newell, a Chicago designer, says, explaining that vests can be made from a greater variety of patterns and fabrics than a sport jacket. They can also exhibit unique touches such as shawl collars, slits on the sides and unusual buttons.
Norma Kamali, a New York women`s designer, says she considers the vest a perfect accessory because of its incredible capacity to balance. ”A vest can take something wild and out of control and normalize it, or it can spice up a more traditional look,” she says.
Vests certainly can spark a medley of moods. Want a romantic look? Pick out a Byzantine, a embroidered-look style with medieval appeal. Trying to strike a conservative note? A gray flannel pinstripe waistcoat adds extra credibility. Lost your appetite? Check out ”The Breakfast Club” vest by designer Nicole Miller. The coffee, orange juice, eggs and cereal motif will prime tired taste buds.
”Vests give you a lot of fashion for a little money,” says Kal Ruttenstein, senior vice president of fashion at Bloomingdale`s.
Indeed, vests provide panache for as little as $24. Or, for those who refuse to believe chic can be cheap, there`s plenty to pick from on the designer racks. Like Anne Klein leather vests that sell for $535. Or silk styles from Hermes at $1,175. Each.
Wearing a vest is almost as limitless as the number of designs available. For men, it goes with everything from T-shirts to tuxes. For women, the newest way to wear a vest is over-yes, that`s over, not under, folks-a blazer like Calvin Klein and Donna Karan showed in their 1992 fall runway collections.
”It may sound odd (wearing vests over blazers), but (it) looks really fresh,” says Gina Tovar, fashion director at Nordstrom in Oak Brook. Does that mean you need to buy a larger size vest? Not really, says Tovar, explaining that the over-vest look is not a tailored one. ”Calvin Klein showed ribbed sweater vests over jackets and Donna Karan showed outerwear-inspired vests that were already oversized.”
Another contemporary twist on the traditional vest is the backless-sideless ”scarf/vest” by Chicago designer Lorae Russo. A suede scarf that hangs around the neck, it has two pockets at the bottom of the ”vest” front and can button up neatly to pull together the vest look.
More reasons to cheer
And the toast goes on:
– To function: Shy about those sheer looks? Throw a menswear vest over a chiffon bodysuit, advises Tovar. You`ve covered two trends and yourself at the same time.
– To obsessions: For those with an itch to accumulate, vests are a great excuse to start another collection.”They`re like hats,” says Colby McWilliams, men`s fashion director of Neiman Marcus stores. His colleague, Derrill Osborn, a vice president at Neiman, admits to owning some 150 vests.
Is there a downside to vests? Well, if there is, we haven`t discovered it.
