In an obvious nod to his days spent as a club kid in New York City during the 1980s, Marc Jacobs showcased neon on both his namesake runway and at Louis Vuitton. Michael Kors followed suit with coats and oversized fur hats in a highlighter-approved palette, as did Narciso Rodriguez, Preen and Matthew Williamson. Band of Outsiders’ Scott Sternberg, on the other hand, relegated his use of neon to below the ankle. He complemented his Boy for Band of Outsiders spring look book, featuring comedian Sarah Silverman, with custom Manolo Blahnik neon patent-leather pumps.
L to R: Getty Images; AP
Exaggerated shoulders that went way beyond basic pads were seen on numerous runways at Fall 2009 Fashion Week, including at Stella McCartney, Givenchy, YSL, Jonathan Saunders, and Alexander McQueen. The look was epitomized at Balmain, whose big-shouldered bandleader jacket is a must-have for spring. The style, which connotes strength and power during these tumultuous times, has already been seen on a slew of Vogue editors, as well as child star-cum-fashion designer Ashley Olsen in recent weeks.
L to R: Everett Collection; Getty Images
Believe it or not crop tops (also called ‘half shirts’ and ‘belly tops’) are popping up on catwalks and magazine covers. Henry Holland included a bare midriff on his London Fashion Week runway (naked torsos also appeared at Alexander Wang and Rachel Roy). And the trend has already translated to newsstands: The April 2009 issue of Nylon magazine features Lindsay Lohan clad in a white half shirt, bare midriff front and center.
L to R: AP; Getty Images
William Rast, Charles Anastase and Topshop Unique all showcased acid-wash denim on their Fall 2009 runways. And both Nicole Richie and Kate Bosworth have already been spotted sporting bleached-out denim. Not to mention model/designer Erin Wasson included an acid-wash vest in her Spring 2009 collection for RVCA, which just hit stores last week.
L to R: Everett Collection; Getty Images
Double-breasted suit jackets first gained popularity in the 1930s, but the style returned as the power suit of choice in the 1980s. Valentino, the designer canonized in the recently released documentary, Valentino: The Last Emperor, has long been a fan. Fellow designer Zac Posen wore a double-breasted blazer to the New York premiere of the film. And, in addition to popping up on fall runways, trendsetting brands like Opening Ceremony and Boy by Band of Outsiders, have already introduced double-breasted blazers for women for spring.
Getty Images
Harem pants, the loose-fitting-up-top, tapered-at-the-ankle-trousers that MC Hammer made famous in the ‘80s, are back. At Paris Fashion Week, Chloe showed a high-waisted, pleated pair with ties at the ankles for extra tapering, while John Galliano debuted silk versions at Dior. Significantly cheaper cotton harem pants are already on sale at Urban Outfitters and High Street shop New Look. As for the red carpet: at the aforementioned Valentino documentary premiere, designer Rachel Roy sported shiny gold harems, while The City star Olivia Palermo wore black harems to shoe designer Brian Atwood’s party for his new look book featuring Rene Russo last week.
L to R: Everett Collection; Getty Images
Fall 2009 presentations from Marc Jacobs, Sonia Rykiel and Gucci were all about Boy George-approved makeup. The former Culture Club front man’s iconic accentuated cheekbones and dramatic, brightly painted eyes and lips were also channeled at Topshop Unique, Diesel Black Gold, and Alexander McQueen, reports Style.com, which first made note of this season’s dominant makeup trend of turning “ Slavic teenagers into Gorgeous Georges”.
L to R: AP; Getty Images
Fall runways included many of Madonna’s favorite fabrics circa Like A Virgin: lace (which helped contribute to one of the most dominant trends on the runways: see-through clothes). The luxurious fabric made appearances on Louis Vuitton’s first look, at Balenciaga in the form of a bandeau tops worn under blazers, as well as at Erdem as embellishment on cocktail dresses. Stella McCartney also used full panels of lace, providing a peek-a-boo effect on a number of slip dresses.
L to R: AP; Getty Images
Few frocks are bound to be as ever-present this year as the jumpsuit. Kate Moss sported a skintight black jumpsuit to the Chanel Fall 2009 show in Paris this month (where Karl Lagerfeld debuted a black-and-white tribal inspired version for fall), Cameron Diaz wore a silk, belted jumpsuit on Jimmy Fallon’s show just a few days prior, and Matthew Williamson included a jumpsuit in his soon-to-debut capsule collection for H&M. Topshop is currently featuring more than a dozen varieties. Not to mention, Bernie Madoff is going to be sporting the style, tinted the color of tangerines, for countless days to come.
Getty Images
