Feminine dressing for Fall 2000 turns up the heat, trading in frills and pastels for swanky, sophisticated pieces that might inspire a modern-day Cole Porter lyric.
There are lots of things to love about this season. The color palette–reds, blacks, camels and purples–is gorgeous, rich and easily incorporated into your current wardrobe. And the shapes and colors make it easy to update your look, says Gregg Andrews, fashion director for Nordstom Central States stores. Something as simple as an oversize scarf worn with a sleeveless sweater or top seems completely fresh and spot-on stylewise.
Quite a few of the most-wanted pieces seemed to sneak up on us this year. When fedoras were shown on the runway last spring, for example, they were dismissed as showy and costume-like. Now they seem sophisticated and sleek.
Likewise with fabric flowers. Paris designer Sonia Rykiel has used pin-on flowers to accent her collections for as long as she has been designing, but it took Sarah Jessica Parker wearing the botanical accents both on and off “Sex and the City” to spark a craze for all things floral. Skeptical at first, women soon embraced the flowers as flirty and fun. They now can be found in every material from dark denim to gold leather.
Tweed emerged early as the preferred fabric of fall, evoking memories of cold-weather days and traveling suits of the ’40s. The most-wanted tweeds have a rich, nubby texture on a background of simple black, the hue we are so happy to welcome back.
Tweed also is the perfect background for saucy fish-nets. The open-weave legwear first re-emerged last spring, and is about to reach critical mass as the perfect counterpart to heavier fabrics and ladylike pumps. Layering fish-nets over other hose is a fun update. Options include putting fish-nets over colored opaque tights or colored sheer hose.
These are the pieces of the moment, and every woman can easily make them her own. Girlie dressing was fun, but being a grown-up may be even better.
