Giddyup, fashion fans: The western look is galloping into stores near you, as are tartans and plaids, layers of pailletes and the seventies by way of the forties. While some of this season’s trends might be intimidating, have no fear. If there’s a theme for autumn 2011, it’s the premise – and promise – that anything goes.
Forever plaid
Tartans, plaids and checks are perennial cool-weather favourites and this season is no exception. Marc by Marc Jacobs, for instance, is proffering chic tartan trousers, while Jean Paul Gaultier has a pencil plaid in his line. There is also a swell of plaid-on-plaid, made possible by different fabric weights. “This isn’t your typical Ralph Lauren plaid,” says Khajak Keledjian, co-founder of the popular U.S. fashion retailer Intermix, which just opened its first international location in Toronto last week. “It feels newer and more interesting.” HOW TO WEAR IT: Combine gauzy printed blouses with blanket-weight tartan knits. Keledjian has also been seeing a lot of tartan trim (“it [offers] great colour against a solid”) as well as bleeding plaids.
Clashing patterns
Count Joe Zee, Elle magazine’s creative director and star of the TV series All on the Line, a fan of mixing prints. “I just love all of these fun, crazy random patterns [together]!” he declares. A counterpoint to last spring’s abundance of stolid solids, the collision of disparate patterns can be intimidating at first. But fear not, Zee advises: The look isn’t nearly as advanced-level as it seems. “I kind of like it when the effect is slightly off,” he says, encouraging experimentation. HOW TO WEAR IT: Anything goes. “When you think some patterns don’t mix, it’s actually better, as there’s a little bit of a carefree-ness about it.”
Polka dots
How come so many designers are seeing spots this season? At Stella McCartney, polka dots appeared on undulating sheer panels, while Marc Jacobs played with a number of versions, including huge, comic-book-esque varieties and smaller, sexier circles. Even Alber Elbaz tried his hand at them – his are quarter-sized – with a dotty one-shoulder dress. “I have no idea where these ideas came from,” Zee says. “For all I know, Marc and Stella could be logging onto the same street-style blog and getting inspired by the same girls wearing polka dots. I don’t think there’s a science to it.” HOW TO WEAR IT: Pair up polka-dotted pants or blouses with complementary solids or mix contrasting dot designs for ultimate wow effect.
White collars
There is no intended subtext here, although a few seasons of blue-collar chambray might have been enough to swing the pendulum back toward sharper, crisper white. The impact comes from the yin-yang juxtaposition of a snow-white collar against a black coatdress or French maid-cum-foot soldier uniform à la Louis Vuitton. Squint just so and the Miu Miu collars resemble fangs. HOW TO WEAR IT: If you’re going to invest in one statement piece this season, a white-collsared jacket, suit, cotdress or coat is a good bet. Few other focal points can manage to be as simultaneously refined and risqué, prim yet provocative.
Graphic lines
Compare it to Mondrian or Frank Stella or Ellsworth Kelly if you wish. The bottom line is that there’s a lot of high-definition grid work happening. It goes in all directions – diagonal at Celine and Diane Von Furstenberg, boxy at Prada and squiggly in the hands of Christopher Kane. No matter its incarnation, however, it plays up all the right angles. HOW TO WEAR IT: Zee, who helps wayward fashion labels get back on track in All on the Line, says there’s no prescribed rule of thumb when assembling this look. “I like rules that are broken,” he says.
Marigold rush
Source: The Globe and Mail
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