Models wear spring 2010 fashion by Marc Jacobs during Fashion Week in New York. His line was dominated by one of spring’s biggest trends: muted and blurred floral prints.
The message was clear enough - fashion was preparing us for battle.
But for spring 2010, designers seem to be asking instead: Who wants a hug?
Designers at New York Fashion Week had a new tactic to woo back wary customers: flowers. Those lovely symbols of spring renewal were among the trends that have emerged during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.
But that doesn't mean everything was roses - the floral patterns looked like flowers after the rain, a little worse for wear. Muted florals were blurred like they had been caught in a downpour. The sense was one of transition: Spring is coming, but not undaunted.
Retailers should be satisfied with the pops of color, something they want to draw customers into stores. Yet the colors aren't so bright they require sunglasses - designers are aware of the gloomy context, too.
Marc Jacobs moved fashion toward femininity, even if the other designers who previewed spring collections aren't quite there yet.
His show didn't take a completely new direction from the look of the season, which was already a little softer than fall's warrior. Jacobs just pushed the needle a little farther with lots of ruffles, pearls and even bloomers.
At Adam, the soothing cream-and-beige palette was jazzed up just a bit with copper discs and seashells, and the heart of the Lacoste collection were easy, breezy apres-beach styles.
There were also several vibrant and optimistic looks: Lacoste sent models out for a finale in bright, sunshine yellow, from sunglasses to slip-on flats. Georges Chakra presented a series of candy-colored dresses.
Elsewhere, it's been the bandage look that has been popular - at Herve Leger, of course, where it is the signature item - but also at Carolina Herrera, Alexander Wang, Lela Rose, Nicole Miller and in Victoria Beckham's new collection.
Slashes and cutouts came along with the bandages, adding a little sex appeal at Derek Lam, Rachel Roy and Zac Posen, among other runways.
The slashes show some skin, but not so much that it couldn't be office-appropriate when placed on a shoulder or back.
Abs also will be on full display for spring. There were bra tops at Charlotte Ronson and a cropped men's style shirt at Cynthia Steffe. There were sophisticated slashes of midriff at Yigal Azrouel and belly-flashing rock star style at Gwen Stefani's LAMB.
This might seem no small indignity for the average woman, who's suffered through an unflattering '80s renaissance of harem pants, shoulder pads and leggings in recent seasons. Also making a comeback for spring: acid-wash jeans, shown at Charlotte Ronson and LAMB.
Rest assured, there are plenty of belly-covering styles on the runways, too. But the best accessory for spring might be an ab roller.
BCBG: It's all about dresses for BCBG Max Azria: There was a nary a pair of pants on the runway. But there was enough variety in the silhouettes to make it feel like a comprehensive lineup of clothes for the new season, with styles ranging from a loosely tacked white T-shirt to a mesh, abstract, floral-print bandage gown. A gray jersey dress with handkerchief hem had subtle quilting on the straps, and a patch of printed fabric on a light taupe asymmetrical dress was reminiscent of python skin. All the dresses were paired with teetering, leather wrap-up sandals that were toned down and made more sophisticated than the gladiator style popular last summer.
CAROLINA HERRERA: Carolina Herrera showed transporting clothes with exotic rope and raffia details. There were many textured fabrics, offered in a natural color palette that ranged from redwood brown to light stone. The occasional use of amber, rose and caramel were made to match the "waning light cast at the end of a summer's day," Herrera said. Her inspiration was baskets, she explained. That translated well into a strapless gown with a woven bodice and a quartz-colored dress that looks like a checkerboard of organza.
CHRISTIAN SIRIANO: Designers from "Project Runway" have come and gone - sadly, mostly gone. But Christian Siriano has shown he plans to stay. The collection was a lush take on Mediterranean travel, concluding with three intricate ball gowns that elicited spontaneous applause. Some of Siriano's most striking pieces were made from a fabric print created using an aerial photograph of the Italian coast line - "flipped, modified, repeated and saturated with Volcanic and Oceanic colors," as Siriano described in his notes. The result was a richly intricate pattern that looked almost animalistic rendered in reds and orange and like a deep ocean cartography in blues.
CYNTHIA ROWLEY: Cynthia Rowley's spring collection featured "abandoned ballroom"-themed outfits:?an ivory tank dress with a shredded canvas belt and a neckline dotted with "bleeding" black paint, a slashed-ribbon dress made of a similar ivory canvas, and a nubby double-breasted linen jacket with matte-sequin evening tap pants. Two duos of peplum tops that protrude from the hip, paired with too-pouffy evening shorts and silk trousers, were just too much fabric. Instead of cutesy, precious flowers, the prints here were blurred like they were caught in the rain.
DKNY: Donna Karan called her collection a "city garden party." In this urban setting the florals aren't all pretty and perfect, though. She favors prints for spring that are either a casual doodle or an exploding sequined peony. The show kicked off with a black-and-white scribble-blossom skirt suit that was trim and fitted, one of several professional looks offered in this line that normally caters to a young woman's time off. Some of the best suits were tailored blazers with shorts and, don't be scared, bright pink bike shorts that she called "Smoothies" underneath.
DIANE VON FURSTENBERG: Diane von Furstenberg followed her successful formula of mixing high-fashion concepts with relatable pieces: This spring, the theme is queen of the desert. What will there be a clamor for? Perhaps the green macrame dress, or the gold bomber jacket. There's also the tie-waist, draped lavender tiger chiffon dress and her standby wrap dress, this time offered in an orange print. The sunset colors, including burnt yellow, orange and purple, as well as greens and blues, are in line with the dominant palette so far this Fashion Week, and the runway had the requisite not-too-perfect florals.
JASON WU: What first lady Michelle Obama would wear was on the minds of the crowd, but Jason Wu seemed to have a different woman in mind: someone who could get away with feathers and very short skirts. Not that there weren't outfits for Mrs. Obama, who famously wore Wu's designs to the inaugural ball and on several other occasions. There were tweed pants- and skirt-suits that were ladylike but not dated or stiff. But the outfits that really caught the eye on the mirrored runway were the bright red faille dress with sculpted fabric in flower shapes at the neckline, and modern tweed "staple-stitch" sheath dresses with flashes of yellow and hot pink.
MARC JACOBS: Marc Jacobs reminded style-watchers why he is called a bellwether with his very feminine clothes, which is probably what other designers will present two seasons from now. There were frou-frou ruffles and pearl embellishment, yet his muse was still a woman with an edge. For store racks, he offered wearable jackets that had a hint of military influence and suits that could be the wave of the future, with a stream of ruffles down the jacket that continued on the skirt or trousers.
ZAC POSEN: Zac Posen had increasingly focused on dramatic, over-the-top clothes. His 2010 spring collection was a complete switching of gears, with adorable, see-through, candy-colored raincoats setting the tone of an upbeat, youthful collection. Posen hit on the floral trend with a gladiola-print gown with an open back, and a series of finale gowns with sequin flower appliques. He also used the trick of using cutouts to create sexy silhouettes without showing too much skin.
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