IT'S JUST DAYS AWAY FROM SPRING AND the dressing is about to be easy, ladies.
Sure, warmer months mean fewer clothes to pull on each morning, but spring's ease of dressing comes from more than just that.
Designers and retailers are making self-adornment simple by declaring one key piece the center of the season: The dress.
"So many think a dress is for a special occasion and it's really not," says Gregg Andrews, fashion director for Nordstrom's eastern region. "This season, I think women are going to discover the ease of one-piece dressing. And the great thing about the dress is there's so many different styles: the shirt dress, the wrap dress, some of the fuller trapeze-shaped dresses. There's draping and ruching on dresses that is almost goddess-inspired. A woman could own an entire wardrobe of dresses. She could have a dress for every day of the week."
On the runways in New York last September -- when designers first revealed their visions for spring -- it was clear the dress would be big, and experts were thrilled even then about it.
"I think dresses are fabulous," says Amy Cafazzo, style expert for Marshalls. "You can get up in the morning, you can throw one on. It takes minimal thought when my brain hasn't had coffee yet."
At nearly every runway show, there was a different kind of dress revealed: mod 1960s short dresses, empire-waist dresses, T-shirt dresses, shift dresses, sundresses, baby doll dresses and loose, unstructured, comfortable jersey knit dresses.
"Dresses came in every possible permutation to fit every age group, every budget and most people style's," says Avril Graham, executive fashion and beauty editor at Harpers Bazaar magazine, of the variety that emerged during last year's fashion shows. "So don't be nervous that there's only one style and you have to fit into it."
Graham says many dresses --such as those at Karl Lagerfeld, Derek Lam and TSE -- appeared on the runway in "the season's must-have color: white."
White is indeed the ultimate neutral and there are three great ways to wear it. Pair it with black. Pair it with a bright, 80s-inspired color. Or wear it all-over in a sleek monochromatic outfit.
"White is just super hot for spring," says Cafazzo, of Marshalls.
Black and white looks the most chic, but wearing a crisp navy -- a nautical look -- also is a clean, fresh approach to the color.
