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A Short List For Business Fashionistas

Great Lengths

This season marks the first return of the longer slim skirt since Carolyn Bessette made it popular in the '90s. There's a new focus, too, on the '50s-style below-the-knee full skirt--designers couldn't help but note them in the recent exhibit and auction of Grace Kelly's dresses and memorabilia at Sotheby's.

"There's really been a shift in silhouettes away from short baby-doll dresses and miniskirts toward longer, below-the-knee hemlines," says Michael Fink, vice president and women's fashion director for Saks Fifth Avenue. "It represents a real maturing of the market, which over the past year in particular is beginning to celebrate women instead of little girls."

Black and White

In today's rush-rush world, the classic pairing of black and white is a shortcut to chic. "Historically, black-and-white is a safe bet for retailers," says Gregg Andrews, a fashion director at Nordstrom.

"But this season, it's a good alternative to all the color on the runways. People are instinctively attracted to color, but do women really want to wear it seven days a week? They appreciate that option of having a crisp, clean, always-sharp black-and-white outfit in their wardrobes."

The current crop of graphic black-and-white prints owes much to the Op Art patterns of the '60s. "Part of the appeal of such prints now is that if they'd been done in color, it would have been a bit much," says Andrews. "It's easier to adopt a bold print into your wardrobe when it's in basic black-and-white."

The freshest looks: sharp-edged geometrics or prints with a painterly feel, as though brush-stroked onto the fabric.

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Color Splash

"This season, it's color that's creating the newness in fashion," says Nordstrom's Andrews. "In past collections, designers played with embellishment. Then they played with volume and shape. Now we're seeing a lot of experimentation with color." Silk, satin and layers of sheer chiffon, vibrant street-inspired patterns and fabulous floral prints are all part of the mix.

Though color has been evolving on the runways for the past seven years or so, it last hit with a vengeance in the '80s--usually jewel tones set off by black or white. This time around, designers are exploring eye-grabbing combos of bright solids in a single outfit. And don't forget color blocking, another trend that's been revived from the '60s.

Khaki and Brights

"Bringing a color back to a natural or neutral tone feels very fresh and happening," says Neiman Marcus Senior Vice President and Fashion Director Ken Downing. "It also allows the customer to be the editor of her own wardrobe. If you don't want to go all out with the bold colors of the moment, you've got the option of, say, pairing one of the season's many great khaki safari jackets with a turquoise or hot pink blouse."

When we think of bright colors in the past, says Andrews, "we've seen it teamed with black or white. With neutrals like khaki, there's interplay between hard and soft shades that's both sophisticated and unexpected."

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Neutrals

What woman's wardrobe hasn't always had neutrals as part of its basics? But now, "what makes them look new is the variety of textures out there," says Nordstrom's Andrews, "whether it's a crisp, dry hand, a subtle sheen or an open-knit weave."

Look for tone-on-tone shades of stone, beige, ivory, khaki and especially gray, frequently dressed up with a hint of metallic sheen. "Gray is the key neutral of the season," says Roseanne Morrison, fashion director for the Donneger Group.

"In the past, it's been used more for a menswear point of view, but the recent flood of beautiful silks, chiffons, organzas and other sheer fabrics in gray has opened up a whole new dimension to the palette."

"We're seeing women becoming more concerned about making long-term investments in their wardrobe," says Morrison. "A neutral palette tends to satisfy that."