BY DESIGN : Style: ’94 Year in Review : A NEW ‘DO OR DIE?

We thought it was curtains for the on-again/off-again bangs until April or so, when the First Lady, having gone through hoity-toity (from left) and hausfrau phases, grew fringe again. But a few months and a thorough feathering later, she bared her forehead once more. Helmet hair, yes, but with only half the lacquer of Republican ‘dos.

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Margaret Thatcher? Donna Reed? Olympic Gymnast? Morgan Fairchild? Arianna Huffington?

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Whether onstage or in court to defend himself on a murder charge, Snoop Doggy Dogg has shown tremendous range. The rapper carried off braids, an Afro, a ponytail and a head full of resplendent ringlets. Will he replace Helena Bonham-Carter in the next Merchant-Ivory film?

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Braided Finger-Waved Hendrixed Ponytailed Sausage-Curled

STYLE MAKERS...WHO WE ADORE

Sophia Loren (above, because she’s drop-dead gorgeous in “Ready to Wear” and in person.)

Naomi Campbell (because every photographer we know says she has the perfect body.)

John Travolta (because he was unforgettable in “Saturday Night Fever” and he’s unforgettable in “Pulp Fiction”).

Dennis Rodman (because we like jocks with rocker-green hair).

Tom Jones (because we don’t think he’s too old to wear a chartreuse mesh top).

Kato Kaelin (because he’s one blond who’s having more fun).

STYLE MAKERS...WHO HAVE LET US DOWN

Anna Nicole Smith (above, because she went from voluptuous to voracious, which includes her appetite for money).

Madonna (because she didn’t cause any fashion furors).

“Pre-a-Porter” (because the title was changed to “Ready to Wear” and because we waited so long for so little.

GET OUTTA HERE!

* Perfume by dead people or houses that no longer exist. * First-person stories about the Wonderbra. * The New Femininity. * Airbrushed ads for wrinkle creams. * Goatees. * French pedicures. * Thigh-highs. * Genius used as an adjective. * Dressing like your Barbie doll. * Three-digit prices on shoes lined in vinyl. * “The New Neutral” applied to colors that are anything but. * Combat boots. * Stilettos. * Mary Janes on grown women.

DETAILS

Most Dubious Accessories

- Prescriptives’ holster-style makeup belt (made for makeup artists who applied the war paint at the spring shows in New York, but great for the woman who can never find her lipstick.) - Blond lap dogs carried by blond babes. - Baby barrettes on 40-year-olds. - Black nylon backpacks that cost $600. Out of Print - French Glamour - W Europe

New on the Nepotism Newsstand

- Swing (Ralph Lauren’s son David launched a monthly guide for Gen Xers in October). - Mouth2Mouth (Angela Janklow Harrington, daughter of literary agent Mort, launched mag for fast-lane teens in April.)

Changing Partners

- Richard Tyler (parts company with Anne Klein Co., citing irreconcilable differences). - Gabrielle Forte (Giorgio Armani’s right-hand woman defects to Calvin Klein’s right-hand side). - Todd Oldham (New York-based Texan signs on as creative consultant to German fashion house Escada). - David Dart (1994 California Designer of the Year sells his company, Force One, to Kellwood Co. - Randolph Duke (Fab swimwear/sportswear designer rises from the ashes of his defunct signature line to work on Kenar’s design team).

WHAT WORKED AND WHAT DIDN’T

They’ve Got The Look

The Year’s Best Make-Over: Ricki Lake (because she went from “Hairspray” heavyweight, above, to talk-show tigress, below) (photos)

Virtually Make-Over Proof: Michael Jackson Michael Milken Michael Bolton

ARRIVALS

Barneys New York (lands in Beverly Hills, March, 1994) Chagals (Charles Gallay folds on Melrose, opens new store in Sunset Plaza). Ermenegildo Zegna (Italian menswear store opens in South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa).

DEPARTURES

Franco Moschino (above, the irreverent Italian designer, who made ball gowns from trash bags, died of cancer in September). Madame Alix Gres (she of the intricately draped gowns died in ‘93, but it wasn’t announced till ‘94). Aida Grey (empress of emollients died in Los Angeles in April). Sister Parish (proponent of the lived-in English-cottage look and designer for the Kennedy family died in September). Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (former First Lady and style-setter par excellence died in May). I. Magnin (the 118-year-old California institution announced its closure in November. Madeline Gallay (she closed her Sunset Plaza store just as the neighborhood started to boom again).