TREND I-SPY

There's been a tendency recently in ready-to-wear to both reveal and conceal: cold-shoulders on a long-sleeved high-necked dress for instance. Or think about Angelina Jolie at the recent Oscars wearing a sober black gown with a provocative split-up-to-there slit.  It has also spawned a fascination with net-like fabrics from several of the designers. Some have given it an athletic spin, while others favor something more attuned to the Helmut Newton-esque dominatrix that seemingly lurks inside so many of us. Here are a few examples. It all began a year ago with the Jil Sander hat with a  facial net.  I love it because it manages to be a sporty beanie AND a vintage 1940s lady-like creation all in one.  In this Vogue.com photograph, model Hanne Gaby Odiele successfully negotiates eating an ice cream cone whilst wearing it. Here is the marvelously iconic Anna Dello Russo in a pale blue version of the same hat. From Dolce & Gabbana SS12 Fo...

I promise I'll stop soon with the all-things-Middleton obsession but not before I show the photos of Kate, ahem, The Duchess of Cambridge, with her husband and brother-in-law, just beyond adorable looking ... 

In a rather bland runway season for Fall 2011, one non-shoe or handbag accessory has been ubiquitous. The wide-brimmed portrait or picture hat has symbolized many fashion eras, most recently the 1970s. Iconic fashion figures from Bianca Jagger and Angelica Huston to Cher and Lauren Hutton have been photographed wearing one.There is something wonderfully ladylike and yet bohemian about these hats. For Fall designers used a wide range of sophisticated colors from cloudy pink and nude to deep teal, purple and ochre Marc by Marc Jacobs, Fall 2011 Christian Dior, Fall 2011 Chris Benz, Fall 2011   Gucci, Fall 2011