What’s hot in 2006

What’s hot this year? For fashionistas, the change of the season is always one of the major highlights of the year. It’s that time of the year again to make an excuse to spend on the season’s must-haves to spice up your wardrobe. And, beware! The new year brings a myriad of choices — too many that not one trend dominates the season. The season is more about exemplifying elegance, beauty and fun rather than a particular look. Then to make matters more confusing, there’s a tug-of-war between an excessive and humorous attitude and a rational and light one. Do we really need to choose? Actually, you need not. Dress how you feel. Make your mood dictate what to wear. After all, the message this season is more about this than the rules of fashion. Here are a few ideas to jumpstart your picking.

Designers take an optimistic and confident attitude for 2006. Materials inspired by the past like lace, embroidery and crochet shape the new collections.

It-Color Of The Season

White is the color of the season. Chanel, Lanvin, Valentino, Oscar de la Renta, Chloé, Fendi, Narciso Rodriguez, Balenciaga, Prada, Marc Jacobs, Proenza Schouler, Gucci and Rochas all used the none-color to define their collections. Again, femininity is key. The season’s most practical staple (you must already have at least one in your core wardrobe) is a white blouse. It goes well with just about everything. Offset the season’s it-color with black. Eyelets, lace and ruffles get an edgy look with black patent shoes, platforms, mod bags or shorts.

Other Shades

Chalky pastel shades make up the season’s soft and romantic color palette. The pretty watercolor tones are so girly. Airy blues, dusky pink, lime green and lilac give the light and feminine looks a boost. These shades work well with neutral-toned accessories.

On the opposite side, there’s also a clashing moment. Mix up clashing colors like royal blue and mustard. Hot colors add spice to the season. Fresh and lively coral pink, lemon yellow, fresh green, aqua, turquoise, cherry-red and electric blue are also cooled down with beige, sandy white, grey, blue and taupe. Hot pink gives a fun break to the season’s hues.

Metallics are the new mod neutrals. Glitzy gold, bronze, copper or silver is great to match with any color. Invest in a metallic bag. It will go a long way and beyond this season. Use it as if it is your everyday black bag. That’s how easy it is to match.

Make The Dress Top Of Your List

Dresses dominated the runways from long to short, printed, beaded, wrapped, pleated and ruffled. Capture the romantic feeling of the season with flirty and feminine styles as seen at Fendi, Valentino, Ungaro, Blumarine and Moschino. Look out for the two opposing shapes which ruled the collections — long and lean or loose and either with or without an empire waist. For the youthful look, there are the baby doll shapes of Chloé, Miu Miu, Alberta Ferretti and Anna Sui and the schoolgirls of Marc Jacobs and Chanel. Printed frocks from Etro, Roberto Cavalli, Hermès, Valentino and Dries Van Noten give exciting alternatives. Pair short dresses with stacked or wedge heels, a mini purse, bangles or long necklaces while flat sandals go well with long styles. Black is still a mainstay in lace and silk chiffon at Lanvin, Alberta Ferretti, Fendi, Chanel and Gaultier.

The Moment’s Separate Of Choice

Pants take center stage in slouchy and baggy styles, which look great rolled up, from Rochas to Missoni, or drainpipe-tight and cropped at the ankle or just above it, from Balenciaga to YSL, Alexander McQueen, Rochas, Chloé and Narciso Rodriguez. Chanel girls strutted the runway with slimfit denims. Wear platform pumps with both looks. Height is key to the moment’s separate of choice. Unusual proportions and unlikely pairings command the season’s trousers.

Suit Yourself

>No longer just belonging to the boardroom, the suit is a season essential. Pants suits from serious to sporty, sexy, work or formal made a scene. Versions to lust for were seen at Balenciaga, Giorgio Armani, Yves Saint Laurent, Rochas and Viktor & Rolf.

Flaunt Your Legs

The summer staple has been given extra mileage. Sophisticated looks turned up in straight just-above- the-knee Bermuda shorts at Gucci, Chanel, Bottega Veneta and Matthew Williamson or relaxed rolled-up versions as seen at Zac Posen, Miu Miu, Etro and Roberto Cavalli. Wear it with a jacket for a chic and grown-up look.

Topnotch

Blouses from girly to masculine are the top choice of the season. Feminine takes on lace, full sleeves, peasant to mannish looks in classic tailored cuts, bow-tie or neck-tie accents and simple oxfords are wardrobe essentials of the season. Take a peek at Balenciaga, Fendi, Rochas, YSL, Rochas and Carolina Herrera for inspiration.

Define Your Waist

A corset-style belt worn with a ruffled bolero at Emanuel Ungaro, Alexander McQueen’s white suit nipped with an ornate belt, a printed full skirt dress cinched with an embroidered wide belt from Bottega Veneta and Fendi’s ruffled organza number with sequins accented with a patent leather belt define this look. It’s time to cinch yor waist. There’s no more excuse to avoid the gym this summer!

Urban Nautical

Ralph Lauren’s striped suit with a rope belt and layers of necklaces paired with a ruffled blouse gave a fresh version of the nautical look. Sailor pants, stripes and short shorts were seen at Narciso Rodriguez, Peter Som, Sportsmax, Nina Ricci, Proenza Schouler and Gucci.

Haute Handicrafts

Handicrafts never looked so mod. Usually seen in home projects, the most beautiful pieces of the season had intricate details done by hand from Fendi to Balenciaga, Proenza Schouler, Lanvin and YSL, to name a few.

Lace turned up in a number of collections. Standouts were Hermès, Alessandro Dell’Aqua, Fendi, Prada, Chanel, Balenciaga and Moschino.

Add color to your wardrobe with the season’s knits from wedge sandals to shrugs, camisoles, flats, dresses, bikini, bags and other accessories. Handcrafted pieces never looked so mod. Colorful Sixties-inspired knots were applied to everything.

Then, there are natural fabrics and fibers, from raffia to linen, cotton and burlap embellished knits, crocheted necklaces, earrings, bags, shoes, cardigans and dresses.

Must-Have Accessories

Now it’s time to have fun. This is the moment of accessories. The boldest accessories appeared in many collections. The new accessories add whimsy to serious, grown-up dressing. These statement pieces make an original contrast to the minimalist designs of the season. Again, the key is in the mix. Chic is defined as personal style rather than head-to-toe glam.

Bags come literally in all sizes, from mini to larger than life. Miniature versions are slung across the body. Then there are the large carryalls that can just about fit everything you need, including your gym paraphernalia! Exotic skins from crocodile to python and lizard continue to be the leather of choice for most designers but ostrich takes the lead among the pack as seen at Calvin Klein and Tod’s. Patent leather showed up everywhere from shoes to bags and belts, from Fendi to Lanvin, Prada and Gucci. A structured carryall is a wardrobe staple and an essential this season. Take your pick from the latest it-bags — Dior’s Gaucho, a double-saddle shoulder carryall or Fendi’s B bag in four styles: the double buckle in two sizes and the single buckle in shoulder and evening versions. There are 50 variations in straw, python, patent, embellished with embroidery and lace.

Shoes strutted the runways in platforms, wedges and stacked heels. Patent, wood and metallic styles make the strongest statements. Sandals are spruced up with cabochon stones in turquoise and orange as seen at Miu Miu and Louis Vuitton. On the other hand, gladiator sandals at Balenciaga were embellished with beach stones. Remember that the current look is chunky and thick.

Invest in a wide belt and the bigger the buckle, the better. The waist takes center stage again. Take reference to the collections of Fendi, YSL, Bottega Veneta and Alexander McQueen.

Long layered chain necklaces are the it-accessory of the season. Moonstone in its pale and milky features best complements the season’s light color palette, making it the stone of the moment. Accessories continue to be bold, from colorful charms to layers of chains and beads and investment pieces like Van Cleef and Arpels ruby and diamond brooch at Lanvin. Rose gold continues to be the metal of choice, from Gucci to De Grisogno and Harry Winston watches.

Shells appear in necklaces, hair accents. Then, add a little rope to get into the nautical feel of the season, from belts to necklaces.

Remember that girls just want to have fun. Balance your look with some whimsy. This is the key to making your look current. Take Alessandro Dell’Aqua’s belt with a red lip-shaped buckle or Chanel’s playful take on its quilted bag with patchwork for an updated look. Also oversized plastic shades add more fun to the season.

Best Looks

Many collections from Prada to Lanvin, Chloé, Calvin Klein, Rochas, Marc Jacobs and Narciso Rodriguez made reference to the minimalist '90s. Even the master of excess John Galliano and the dress-to-be-noticed Donatella Versace embraced this trend. Their collections for Christian Dior and Versace were a surprise in minimal nude tones. Clean, lean and utility chic are back in style.

Cutting-edge construction made Balenciaga’s Baroque-inspired, paisley patterned suits so fresh and new. A delicately embroidered, layered silk organdy jacket in white was so mod and beautiful. Embellishments were key to his sharp silhouettes, from layers of fabric with embroidered distressed details to drapes and ruffles. It’s the ability of Nicolas Guesquiere to create something new out of old things that makes his collections highly coveted by every fashionista.

Lanvin, after Alber Elbaz took over the reign as the house designer, has been every fashionista’s fave for many seasons. This time, he hit the mark again by creating traditional yet hip minimal cuts with flowers or paillettes as added details. Neckties and patent leather sky-high heavy heels and thick soles added a mod twist to the look. This fierce platform is perhaps one of the key pieces that define the season.

Prada’s experimental mixes from wood and seashell bead embroideries to ribbed tights and patent platforms dictate the season’s delicate yet polished look. Loose and soft styles in crisp white, neutral colors and textures in crumpled khakis, washed silks and natural linen dominated the runway. Distressed lace and beadwork, a touch of crochet and needlepoint added innovative details to Prada’s girly and simple look. It’s about finding grandma’s old things and pairing them with mod details like hot pink patent lace-ups.

Fendi also took the minimal lead and concentrated on detailed work and key accent pieces like one of the season’s musts, a wide patent leather belt with a gigantic buckle that cinched dresses and skirts high in the waist or low on the hips. Laser-cut plastic-lace skirts and jackets, white blouses with cap sleeves and pleated chiffon numbers spelled a well-defined, graphic and romantic collection. Thanks to the collaboration of Sylvia Fendi and Karl Lagerfeld, Fendi is back in the most wanted list.

Baby doll at Chloé echoed the romantic minimalism of the season. Clean and simple lines were decorated with beads and teeny-weeny buttons, pin-tuck pleated and appliquéd white daisies and lace. Then for a more edgy-feminine "I want to be noticed" look, there’s a fab disco fever sequined number with a beaded neckline, while other pieces are styled with killer accessories like red wedgies. The Chloé girl wants soft unstructured pieces teamed with tight jeans or mod accessories for an edgy appeal.

Proenza Schouler’s arts and crafts embellishments and competing textures made heads turn. While Jean Paul Gaultier made a Greek goddess toga dress in blood orange, Hermès’ signature hue so mod with ankle-strapped platforms.

Romance was in the air at Rochas. Opt for a light silk slip to get into this mood. Edwardian references were also prevalent in the collection. Maxi dressses spelled comfort. Olivier Theyskens took inspiration from Claude Monet’s Impressionist paintings, like his cobalt blue gown with embroidered flowers at the hem that recalled the ballroom drama of the past. The girls were skinny and statuesque in soft silhouettes.

Make the season’s look your own. Make your imagination run wild. Your look can go from edgy rocker chic to subtle romantic chic. Remember to start with a clean and simple line like a classic dress. Start with something straightforward and add your personal style with a bold detail. The season’s pickings are perfect for mixing with neutral colors and last season’s color — black. Always remember that you should only start adding trendy pieces to your closet once your core wardrobe is complete. Concentrate and invest in quality classic pieces and essentials first. Only then do you add fun pieces to spice up your look.

Have fun!

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Photos from elle.com and vogue.com, Send queries and suggestions to jo@joyceoorena.com