His Last Show Is No Blass From the Past

Bill Blass made his on-again, off-again retirement official Thursday, calling his morning fashion show “my swan song.”

“This was my official farewell,” said the 77-year-old designer after his show. He plans to sell his $700-million-a-year company but will still be involved with some of the firm’s 40 licenses.

“I can breathe a sigh of relief. I’ve been doing this for 60 years--and I’m not gonna miss it,” he said. In fact, when told that his show might not go on because of bad weather, he was “even more relieved.”

But the show did go on--and Blass’ last hurrah was met with a rousing standing ovation. His collection was filled with color and simple elegance. Crepe column dresses were brought to life with horizontal color bands of pink, yellow and blue. A pink faille gown with black lace bodice and a slight train floated on the runway. A taupe plaid suit was worn with hot pants instead of trousers. Blass also didn’t stay away from black, combining it with white on ruffled slip dresses and on one-shoulder column gowns.

Of his retirement, Blass, who suffered a stroke in December, said backstage: “I need some time off--like a couple of years. I’d like to write a book.”

Perhaps an insider’s look at fashion? “Maybe,” he said. “Just maybe.”