Fashion
What would Audrey wear?
WENDY BIRD
Fall 2007 |
“The variety of textures and transitional clothing give women so many choices. No matter what her shape, a woman can look fantastic in this fall’s clothes.”
She considers many of the clothes’ classic lines to be similar to what actress Audrey Hepburn would have worn in the 1950s and 1960s.
According to New York Magazine, a publication that continually keeps its finger on the pulse of the fashion industry, women have every reason to get excited about the clothes on the market this fall. Fall’s shapes are far narrower than spring’s bubbles and trapezes. Designers lead the slim charge with belted coats and tailored dresses.
“This fall truly marks the return of the dress,” Mazzucca said.
“You’ll find dresses in soft knits and turtle necks. They offer soft drapes that complement a woman’s figure.”
In keeping with the slimmer sihouette, Morris Dabous, owner of the Hollywood Shoppe in downtown Sudbury, says the majority of dresses are black.
However, the garments also appear in olive green, teal, red and copper — rich jewel tones that will celebrate the classic colours of fall.
“This fall we’re seeing a lot of item-driven pieces: a novelty jacket or top that can be dressed up or down, a basic white cotton stretch shirt that can be highlighted by a sweater vest, and versatile dresses that can easily move from the office to an evening out on the town,” said Dabous.
Tweed can be hard to pull off—it tends toward bulky, frumpy, and way too Royal family. But this year, designers are bringing back tweed patterns that are classic, not dowdy. Houndstooth and herringbone patterns are making an appearance as part of the fall’s salute to texture, Mazzucca said.
Likewise corduroy fabrics will add to the tactile nature of this season’s fashions. And from a visual standpoint, animal prints such as snakeskin and leopard also surface.
This fall’s sweaters show that cozy can still look sleek, something that Dabous sees as a big trend.
“There are plenty of longer tunic sweaters this fall,” he said. He carries many items from German designer Gerry Weber, who has incorporated a variety of sleek sweaters into his fashion line up, from vests to coats to tunics.
Pants are back, and in a big, big way. Fashion runways have been overrun with a variety of different pant styles, something that Mazzucca said she has brought into her store.
“Women will see different pants — from slim legs to soft drapes. They have some great choices this fall,” she said.
Dabous agreed, and added that skirts will also mirror this trend by showing up in different lengths and styles, including short flip skirts, panel skirts and boot skirts.
With a nod to the 1980s, some of this season’s fashions will be highlighted by zippers, along with other embellishments. Zippers can be found on coats, not just as a means to keep it closed, but as ornamentation on pockets and sleeves. Likewise with this season’s belts, they won’t be used to just hold up a pair of pants.
“Belts will be worn lower on the hips. They will be truly used as a fashion accessory,” Dabous said.
The belts are studded with metallic accents such as chain. Mazzucca noted that patent leathers will also surface as an acces-
sory, particularly contrasting colours like red, black and ivory.
The platform shoe trend remains, but it’s subtler. But that doesn’t mean footwear will take a lesser role.
“With all the great skirts and pants that we have this fall, the boot business is going to be very strong,” Dabous said.
