Li r - i r i’
H.’Je«»
V.
Grashorn Outlook Tua» , Morch 30. 1982 Sondy Po»t, Thur»., April I, 1982 — 9
■ ■M W M M B fc?.*
Dress returns as success uniform'
The dress is back in the
business world.
Leading fashion design
ers contend that the profes
sional woman no longer
needs to adopt the dress
code of her male counter
parts in order to be taken
seriously — thus the dress
has reappeared as the
‘‘success u n ifo rm " for
women
While the options are
plentiful, with designers of
fering virtually every sil
houette, hem length, sleeve
style and neckline, the
dress is also termed more
flattering and more eco
nomical.
“A dress is a wonderful
tool for any woman/' says
Jerry Silverman, executive
director of the newly orga
nized A m eric an Dress
Council and formerly head
of his own dress company.
Dresses are much more
flattering than pants. The
long lines of a dress flatter
any shape whether it’s tail
and lanky or short and
stout.
“If half the women in
this country got a back
view of themselves in
pants, they d be wearing
dresses all the time. F ur
thermore,’’ he added, “the
dress is more flexible than
a three-piece suit and
much more economical at
this time of rising costs/’
There are many reasons
for this return to dresses,
according to the American
Dress Council The most
obvious is the change in
life sty le and attitudes.
Dresses and skirts in gen
eral were once cast aside
by young women in the 60s
as a sign of independence
The trend in the '70s
toward menswear tailored
shirts, vests, blazers and
pantsuits followed shortly
on the heels of this move
m ent away from tradition
al feminine attire.
"B ut those days are
over,” according to Silver-
man. “I t ’s the 80s and
women have found their
place in the sun. They are
individuals They need not
copy men anymore Statis
tically and historically,
American women turn to
dresses whenever they feel
secure. T y p ic a lly , the
chemise dress, the easy-to-
wear garment, is the first
to be accepted/’
The chemise, now called
the float, is indeed back.
Such famous name design
ers as Adele Simpson, Mor-
+
ton Myles, Nippon, Bill
Blass, Don Sayres and
Kasper include the newest
in t e r p r e t a t io n of the
chemise — a billowing
float or the straight-line
sack in their spring collec
tions
M ensw ear
t a ilo r e d
dresses featuring tartans,
paisleys and other haber
dashery details and the re-
emergence of sexy cock
tail-length dresses also are
strong in the fashion pic
ture.
With designers now cre
ating timeless dresses that
can go from day to night
time wear with only the
change of a few accesso
ries (omitting the blazer
after 5), dress buying offers
m ore choices for less
money
"American women have
gotten out of the habit of
w earing dresses," says
Silverman. “We are deter
mined to reverse the trend
by showing that for com
fort, style and convenience
there is nothing like wear
ing a dress
Say yes to a dress, is
our slogan.'*
For those who would
make their basic wardrobe
for spring "a dress season"
or at least add a few dress
es to their pants and suit
wardrobe, Silverman has
the following suggestions
for successful dressing.
1. Depending on your
budget, have from three to
six basic dresses Silk is
one of the best fabrics be
cause it goes easily from
daytime to evening and
can be worn year-round.
2. Select dresses with
simple lines and colors
that are easy to accessor
ize. But don't be afraid to
experiment with bold pat
terns and bright colors.
With care they are as easy
to accessorize as more con
servative ones
3. Blazers and unstruc
tured jackets are your best
accessories Have at least
one for summer and one
for winter — preferably in
neutral colors. Then, if you
can. add one or two bright
jackets that will mix and
match with your wardrobe
4. Belts are a must Col
lect a bundle of them from
the varieties available.
5. Embroidered sweaters
and cardigans are back
again. They look good over
dresses — a conservative
one for the office, an em
broidered one for evening.
6. Scarves also are mar-
‘ oh«lp
«»» you.
Ä3cSX
velous with dresses De
signer scarves or those
from India add to a dress
Some sari scarves also
look great tied around the
waist.
7 Shawls also are attrac
tive, not only for keeping
warm, but for accessoriz
ing with a flair For day
time, tie them over your
shoulders For evening, tie
one around your waist
Woo, shawls are worn over
blazers or over bare shoul
ders.
8 Skirts and tunics also
can do much to enhance
your wardrobe
9 Shoes and handbags
can make a big difference
in your total look. Boots or
pumps and a leather shoul
der strap bag look very
professional with a dress.
For evening, switch to san
dals, a metallic bag, and
you re ready for dancing
e '
UM. hicks co.
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