Fashion's most relatable new trends arrive early

By: ASSOCIATED PRESS | The Associated Press
Published: January 08, 2012

You'll find a drop-waist dress when you set off on your first shopping spree of the new year, and you probably already can find a flouncy ruffle attached to a chic, trim jacket or sheath in stores.

But for all the talk about fast fashion, few looks move directly from the runway to the real world without some tweaks and adjustments.

Designers, manufacturers and retailers use the months between splashy previews and on-sale dates to harness big ideas and turn them into the garments they hope people will find appealing and flattering, and motivate them to buy.

"People want fashion with a little 'f.' They're not ready yet — or interested in — fashion with the big 'F,' " says Catherine Moellering, executive vice president of the Tobe Report, a fashion and retail trend consultancy. Those same consumers, though, would be fully underwhelmed if the Marc Jacobs, Miuccia Pradas and Karl Lagerfelds of the world trotted down the catwalk in practical, utilitarian clothes.

The runway is for big ideas that need to be translated into actual trends, agrees Joanna Coles, editor-in-chief of Marie Claire.

Maybe all it will take is lining sheer clothes with an additional layer or stretching the hem of a miniskirt. Sometimes it's a cost decision, and pricey pearls will be swapped for paillettes. There is a middle ground to meet, experts say.

Thinking back to Raf Simons' Jil Sander show in October, Coles says the stark white looks were so exaggerated you couldn't help but think of chic nurses. When she went into the label's showroom a few days later, however, she saw the commercial appeal of the clean, optic separates, especially the button-down shirts.

It was the same thing with Prada's over-the-top 1950s theme. Styled as if they were pin-up girls in Hollywood's heyday, the models looked like they were in costumes, but when she saw those pleated skirts and lace coats up close, she saw them becoming an instant hit to refresh springtime wardrobes after many months of winter doldrums.