More Transparent Attempts at Conveying Sheer Style

The idea of a sheer skirt worn over pants, which even Giorgio Armani has tried in the past, showed up in the Dries Van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester and Commes des Garcons shows. It seems to be a sartorial situation the hard-drinking Maryann Thorpe of the sitcom “Cybill” could find herself in. What, did you put your trousers on in the morning, forget you already got dressed, and wrap a skirt on? Ditto carrying two purses, which is how the models at Christian Dior were sent out on the runway. As Maryann might say, “Where’s my purse? Where’s my purse?”

*

Trend Briefing: Sheer shirts, skirts and dresses. . . . Every skirt length--mini, above the knee, below the knee, calf length and ankle length--presented in a variety of ways. . . . Ankle-strapped shoes and sandals, and more delicate Mary Jane variations: one of the prettiest, a Mary Jane-mule hybrid by Ann Demeulemeester.

*

Accessories We Can Do Without: Cigarettes in holders as a symbol of sophistication, at Christian Dior. . . . Toy guns with James Bond evening dresses at Lolita Lempicka.

*

Model Watch: Whoever made the observation that super-models are freaks of nature was chewing on a mouthful of sour fruit. But these genetically gifted women do make mistakes. To wit, Nadja Auermann, who initially made a splash in Paris as a Teutonic blond, is now barely noticeable as a bottle brunette. . . . Linda Evangelista seems to have been caught mid-switch, sporting a short bob that’s blonde in front and on top, brown in the back.

*

Celeb Sightings: Roman Polanski was front and center at Lolita Lempicka, where his actress wife, Emmanuelle Seigner, closed the show as a radiant bride. . . . Speaking of radiant brides, in the year of the business tycoon as household name, Ron Perelman and new wife Patricia Duff, in the crowd at Commes des Garcons, qualify as celebrities, don’t they?