Karl Lagerfeld

Once the preserve of the bikini-clad, the bare midriff has been getting plenty of exposure off the beach lately. Designers are giving a yawn to the bosom and legs, and instead have bellied up to the midriff as fashion's latest focal point.Among the myriad of designer offerings for summer, Ralph Lauren framed the navel between cropped vests and hip-riding sarongs, while Karl Lagerfeld of Chanel, shows some middle ground with bra-tops instead of blouses peeking out from under saucy little suits -- a look he carried over into his fall collection.

In early spring, they began sprouting -- several in jewelry collections, a couple on T-shirts, even a few on opaque pantyhose.But as summer approached, suddenly it seemed they wereverywhere: on Lycra leggings and on hot pants, on purses and tote bags, on barrettes and headbands, even on oversized sweaters and around the necklines of designer dresses.And spreading like crazy or not, we're not talking about weeds -we're talking daisies.That's right: Think "Laugh-In," think flower power, thinpsychedelic patterns.

PARIS -- Showing pretty clothes is not enough. Many of the designers presenting their fall and winter collections here in tents in the courtyard of the Louvre are trying to suggest other things: the end of the world, for instance, or simply the end of fashion. This premature fin-de-siecle blues is expressed in somber colors -- black is in first, second, and third place, followed distantly by wine and brown -- and the unfinished look, usually called deconstruction and marked by torn edges.

The French haute couture shows were predictably either very, very good or horrible. A little less predictable was the fact that the heroes of the showing season were both Italian.Gianni Versace of Milan and Valentino of Rome went to Paris with lustrous collections. Versace incorporated modern elements in distinguished-looking clothes, while Valentino achieved the requisite couture look in elegant clothes of quiet refinement.Christian Lacroix upheld the glory of the French with a wildly imaginative collection that brought him the only standing ovation and caused him to be pelted with flowers like an opera diva.

Get a leg upFor the past few seasons, women of style have limited their leg wear to black and cream. It has been black opaque pantyhose for fall and winter, while the warm months have found women wearing sheers -- either black or very pale creamy shades (but never white!). For the sizzling heat of summer, many have opted for bare legs or sheer neutrals that give the effect of a tanned leg.Come fall, that's going to change.Black, of course, is not going to go away. But the variety of colored and patterned hosiery and stockings may even tempt the most loyal fans of black to reach for something different.

Paris -- Some of the big fashion houses are setting off explosions that will be heard round the world with their spring ready-to-wear collections.The best designers here, like Christian Lacroix, mix practicality with imagination. He has toned down the creative blast that brought him to the head of the fashion column five years ago, but his clothes haven't lost their fizz.The colors still sizzle, and the patterns grab the eye with their mixtures of checks, stripes, heart shapes, ornate frills and flowers.

PARIS -- Emanuel Ungaro presented one of the prettiest, most seasonal shows of the week when he debuted his spring/summer collection at the Louvre.Perhaps the biggest news of the collection was that Ungaro's penchant for mixing prints was really restrained this time around. Instead, bright solids -- ranging from neon yellows, pinks and blues to muted pastels and earth tones -- dominated this showing of feminine dresses, suits and flowing, pajama-like pantsuits.Which isn't to say that Ungaro didn't make his print statement: Op-art patterns, primarily in black and white, in close-to-the body separates kicked off the show.

Long before Karl Lagerfeld stamped the double C logo on every Chanel bag, belt and button and the Vuitton fleur de lis became a knockoff cliche, a woman of discriminating style was known by the quality of her shoes and handbag. That meant perfectly crafted pumps and a structured purse of the finest leather. Those who could pay the price wore alligator -- the status turnout, a discreet message of belonging to the fashion sorority. The '30s, '40s and '50s were the dressy decades.Fashion evolved and we had the decades when plastic go-go boots, combat boots, sneakers and schlep totes became acceptable wear for a day in town.

Chicago--When a fashion director who travels around the world to ferret out fashion trends goes out on a limb and says, "The single most important piece to add to a fall wardrobe is . . . " you sit up and listen for the end of the sentence. Especially if you don't have to wait until fall to find the gem she's talking about.Pleated skirts are the items that Joan Kaner believes are the absolute essentials for pepping up a wardrobe. "I'm bullish about pleated skirts," says Ms. Kaner, senior vice president and fashion director for Neiman Marcus stores around the country, "because they change the whole silhouette with their movement, their mobility."

Here are a few raveled threads plucked from that highly charged evening at the Metropolitan Museum, put on by Vogue's Anna Wintour last week. (And, incidentally, did you know that the editor's rather controversial Chanel dress, described as looking a bit like ram's horns, was called "Storm"?) The big hit of the night, I'm told, was tennis ace Venus Williams in a bronze Carolina Herrera gown, wearing a Fred Leighton diadem upside down like a tennis band in her hair. She is being pronounced the best of the non-Hollywood A list.