Long on Style : Jackets for Spring, 1990, Will Have a Slender Silhouette for Both Day and Night

The short skirts, wide pants and sleek little dresses of last summer will look quite all right next spring. But jackets are another story. They’ve undergone the most striking changes in all of Spring, 1990, fashion. And recent runway shows in Paris, Milan and New York prove that the new shapes, proportions and fabrics are unlike those of the past.

Last year’s slightly boxy, man-tailored jackets do lend themselves to an easy update. Wear them over bare bra tops and miniskirts to be young and daring. Or put them with long, sweeping skirts for a fanciful, romantic effect.

But among the latest jackets, the leading choice is the fingertip-length version, often fitted through the waist and flared at the hem. In New York, Calvin Klein called it the riding jacket and combined it with narrow pants. In Paris, Karl Lagerfeld featured a similar rendition, curvier than most and worn over skirts only an inch or so longer. In Milan, Romeo Gigli paired elongated jackets in spice-colored silks with ankle-length pants to wear for evening.

More-conservative dressers might prefer the new long-over-long proportion. Emmanuel Ungaro in Paris offered a particularly pretty arrangement--long, awning-stripe jackets over garden-print, ankle-length skirts. For a younger look, long jackets top very, very short skirts such as those by New Yorker Charlotte Neuville, who gave pizazz to a white wool suit when she teamed the streamlined jacket with a knife-pleated mini. In Paris, Claude Montana focused on a practical solution, substituting shorts for miniskirts.

The elongated jacket is a fresh look for spring, but it’s not the only choice. Alternatives are boleros, Eisenhower jackets and cocoon shapes, often embellished with gold embroidery, beadwork or even jewel-like baubles. Gigli likes the richly embroidered cocoon worn with pants in day or evening fabrics. Oscar de la Renta prefers shimmering, tapestry evening jackets above taffeta ball-gown skirts.

Among more casual wear, ethnic themes enhance some styles. For added interest, most designers are presenting jackets with skirts or pants in unmatched but complementary fabrics. In Milan, Giorgio Armani mixed tapestry-like fabrics. New Yorkers Adrienne Vittadini and Isaac Mizrahi mixed plaids.

Elongated jackets are fitted at the waist and flared at the hem.

Ethnic-looking jackets are colorful covers for new midriff-baring bra tops.

Unlikely fabric combinations: tapestry over pleated plaid, polka dots atop stripes. florals with diagonals.

Fingertip-length jackets cover dramatically abbreviated skirts, shorts or skimmer dresses.