Go back to Arts & Features pageNEW YORK -- American designers showing their spring collections last week did not let up on this sexy glamor thing.
Does that mean we're all going to have to throw out our jeans? No -- only that we're being asked to wear them very much tighter, in hot pink satin, with stiletto heels.
Can you think of anything worse?
Designer Richard Tyler, who showed a lot of va va va voom clothes in his collection for Anne Klein and for his own signature line, wasn't too worried. "I think it's time for dressing up," he said. "People are sick of dressing down." They'd better be given all the '40s and '50s high-style duds that were coming down the catwalk. Here's a runway rundown of trends for next spring. Read and weep!
Retro is all the rage for next season. Isaac Mizrahi's collection was rooted in the '40s and '50s and the kind of grown-up glamor they epitomized, with outfits named for the screen goddess of yore -- including a daffodil mousse crepe fitted suit with gold stretch lame girdle-corset, for Claudette Colbert; and a pink tiny tattersall pantsuit with a white georgette blouse right out of "The Lady Eve," for Barbara Stanwyck.
Other designers followed suit -- including Mark Eisen, Randy Kemper (Hillary's favorite), Donna Karan, Marc Jacobs, Calvin Klein and Todd Oldham, who did Hollywood princesses in bright polka-dot housecoats over tap pants and sexy snake-print shirts over matching panties.
Halter tops and bras abounded, midriffs were on permanent display, skirts were tight and slit, head were wrapped in turbans or trailing Veronica Lake-like long locks, and blouses were sheer enough to get you into serious trouble.
Underwear as outerwear: This look has intensifed ever since Karl Lagerfeld started showing corsets last spring. Mizrahi opened his show with a group of variations including a full-length "girdletard." And Linda Allard showed corset dresses for Ellen Tracy.
Shine: Collections lit up with clothes in recognizable fabrics like shimmery satin or in new treatments that glimmered and glittered and brought the house down.
Todd Oldham did "sock it to ya" gold lame skirts. Marc Jacobs did sequin hot pants. Anna Sui showed glitter sweaters. Mizrahi came up with shiny shantung dresses and eye-popping white patent jackets. Linda Allard did shiny magenta and gold stretch satin T-shirts. Richard Tyler did pale blue capri length stretch twill pants for Anne Klein. Eisen did white sparkle crepe jackets, pink glazed silk slip dresses and black polished linen party dresses. Geoffrey Beene went for shiny paper taffeta dresses. Kemper did orange laminated hot pants and fitted dresses.
Phew!
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