VEST-DRESSED : As a Topper or Alone, This All-Around Accessory Is Out From Under Wraps

Not since the ‘70s when Diane Keaton wore them in “Annie Hall” have vests been so visible. They have come out of hiding from underneath jackets. They’ve left three-piece suits far behind, to stand alone as the must-have item for fall. Once stuffy, the latest vests have an air of easy chic.

They’re being worn with T-shirts, blouses or nothing at all on top, and jeans, pleated pants or almost anything on the bottom.

Designers are creating vests from all kinds of outrageous materials. There are sexy vests of crushed black velvet--for men. There are vests made of fine silks, leathers, faux furs, imitation crocodile skin and sheer chiffons.

If that weren’t enough, designers are sprucing up vests with antique buttons, beads, zippers, fringe and studs.

Would-be biker babes will want Anne Klein’s black leather bomber-style vest with a ribbed collar and zipper front. It’s the heavy metal look gone uptown.

This season, vests have been pulled and pushed into every conceivable shape, from long and loose to short and shapely.

For women, there are form-fitting vests by John Murrough with faux pinto fur or printed suede in front and Lycra in back so they mold to the body. They look best when worn without a top underneath, says Colleen Espinosa, general manager and buyer for Mykonos in Orange and Newport Beach.

“Some vests are almost like little evening tops,” Espinosa says. When paired with a little velvet skirt, Mykonos’s sheer vest of royal blue voile is a fresh change from a silk blouse.

Men’s vests have come a long way from staid glen plaids and pin-stripes.

A bestseller at Cignal in MainPlace/Santa Ana comes festooned with Marilyn Monroe’s mug shot in black and white or bright color washes a la Andy Warhol. Abstract, ethnic and Aztec prints in earth colors like berry, orange and gold are popular with young men, too ($35-$60). (There is also a Cignal in South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa.)

“Vests are a great male accessory, and men don’t have too many great accessories,” says Paul Duran, assistant manager of Cignal. “Vests are so bold.”

And versatile.

Men are wearing vests with casual or dressy slacks, jeans, even shorts.

They’ll also wear the vest alone as a shirt, sometimes tucking it into their pants and adding a jacket.

Thanks to the new designs vests can express almost any personal style, from romantic to rugged.

Men who want to wear their concern for the environment on their, er, chest, can don Moschino’s black vest with “Handle With Care” woven in small letters beside tiny globes, available at Bernini Sport in South Coast Plaza.

Flamboyant types can choose a vest by Versace with embroidered multicolored medallions and black jet jewel buttons ($525), his leopard print wool vest ($495) or a black velvet vest with an ostrich print and zipper front by Le Garage ($245).

At Rosenthal-Truitt in South Coast Plaza, men’s vests range in style from traditional-looking vests of camel hair in navy or forest green with lapels, to a fashion-forward vest of crushed velvet in gold with a tan floral print ($155-$175).

“It’s a little reminiscent of the ‘70s, but it’s really hip,” says Tim Kehrer, sales associate with Rosenthal-Truitt.

For women, vintage-looking vests by Somewhere in Time have rosettes, antique buttons and chains on the pockets for an old-fashioned look, available at Nordstrom in Brea Mall, MainPlace and South Coast Plaza.

“We have vests in almost every department, in all styles and price points,” says Dana Walker, assistant fashion coordinator for Nordstrom in Orange County.

Their top-of-the-line vest for men is a mustard and olive suede vest by Joseph Abboud that’s meant to be worn over a jacket ($685). For women, it’s the Anne Klein black leather vest ($535). Other styles include juniors’ vests with Navajo prints and Western detailing (starting at $25).

Why the fashion furor over vests?

Walker suggests it’s a spin-off from the influx of menswear-inspired clothing. Women have borrowed men’s suits and ties this season, so it’s only natural they should also want vests.

As for men, the move into vests is part of a continuing trend toward relaxed silhouettes.

“The whole momentum behind the vest is that the clothing market is moving to looser lines,” says Charlie Chung, merchandiser for Politix in Fashion Island, Newport Beach.

These are not the uptight four-button vests favored by bankers.

At Politix, there are vests that zip up to the neck with knit collars and funky vertical stripes that resemble bowling shirts without sleeves--something Kramer might favor on TV’s “Seinfeld.”

There are loose-fitting vests fashioned from patchwork materials and quilted cotton, or more fitted vests of flamboyant tie prints in brights or black and white graphics.

The Harley Davidson-inspired vests in black leather with zipper trims are just the thing for trolling Orange County’s nightclubs, Chung says.

“They can wear them with a white T-shirt when they go to a club, or without the shirt--if they have the body,” Chung says.