Getting Down to Details

In an uncommon consensus, most New York designers are thinking along the same lines for spring. Donna Karan, Anne Klein, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and others divide their collections into similar parts: long skirts and short, pantsuits, transparent sportswear and lingerie looks for evening. But within this master plan there are finer points to consider.

Most designers see the long skirt as an off-duty option, an alternative to jeans or leggings. Long, full shapes worn unbuttoned to expose short shorts are a novelty for casual evenings and weekends.

Calvin Klein perfected the most believable versions of the long skirt. His are body-contoured, with a slit in front to let a woman move naturally. In all except Klein’s collection, short skirts that bare the knees and flare at the hem are still the first choice for the office.

The transparent separates in every spring line make sense as accessories, not basics. And the best of them do not offer the peep show the word transparent suggests. Designers mix see-through with solid; a sheer coat tops a solid sheath by Randolph Duke, a transparent bomber jacket covers a solid tank top in the same ocean-blue color, by Ralph Lauren.

Pantsuits look newest when softly shaped with jackets that nip the waist and pants that are cut wider than expected, some as wide as bell-bottoms. Donna Karan features the look in pale gray menswear fabrics. Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren show narrow suits in warm pastel colors.

The lingerie look lives on, but with more femininity and frills. Boned, cone-shaped and corseted options seem aggressive in contrast. The most appropriate of the new slip dresses, bustiers and bra tops are lacy but not flimsy or flyaway. They offer substance, not just style.