By Lubna Abdel-Aziz If you feel a hint of sparkling freshness in the air, that is because the autumn season is already here, even if your barometer does not know it. Its feeble soft breezes try to chase away the summer heat, and as they gain strength and vigour they fill us with a renewed buoyancy and vitality to replace the listless languor of long summer days. While fashion capitals are presently busy gazing into their crystal balls for next year's trends, we are more concerned with what we shall be wearing next month, when cool weather comes knocking. Summer's popular Boho (Bohemian) look, considered passé by the fashion gurus, is still popular among the young crowds and it may be a while before it is really passé on the streets. An easy transition from Boho is the Ethnic style which remains a strong fashion trend, taking us from dark Africa's shores to the steppes of Russia. Le "Russe" is the favourite winter 2005/6 look with all the embroidery of the Slavonic peasants, the ornaments of the marching Cossacks and the opulence of the Imperial Czars. The season pays homage to Russian heritage as is seen at Roberto Cavalli and Dolce & Gabbana. This leads us to the military look which has been popular this summer, but graduated to a "must have" for fall. The military jacket is the item of choice drawing inspiration from military coats of Hussar officer's dress uniforms. Its cording, colourful piping, Russian/soutache braid, double-row brass or metallic buttons, cuffs and epaulettes, is also seen on coats of every length from ankle to knee. From Milan, Paris, New York and London the coat appears to be the favourite item of many designers, fur-trimmed on necks, sleeves and hemlines. There are a dozen silhouettes emerging from Couture Houses for autumn/winter 2005/6. While the Russian and military look are prominent, the most dominant is the classy English lady-like look that has been turning heads for decades. Those unforgettable visions of perfectly groomed stars of the 1950s and 1960s are the look to strive for. Imagine the regal Grace Kelly, the immaculate Audrey Hepburn, the inspiring Kim Novak, not to mention fashion icon, Jacqueline Kennedy. Accessories played a major part to complete their look then, as they do now. Prim and properly suited in neat white gloves, handbags, high heeled pumps, superbly tailored short fitted jackets, and pencil thin or voluminous skirts, this upper crust British elegance is the look to die for. Gone is the vulgar show of bare flesh. This demure classy elegance is perfect for any hour of the day, every day. Alternate with a simple knit twin set, pearl necklace, or riding equestrian gear. Comb your hair in a sleek chignon and a nostalgic touch of Kelly is immediately created. To help this look along, is the return of the "little black dress". Black, I am happy to say, is back, not that it ever went away. As "king of fashion" once again, the dominant colour of the season comes dressed in various textures and hues that make it look thoroughly modern, thoroughly new. The return of the little black dress prompts some serious reflection on its status. What is the drama behind the colour black? Why is it such a fashion favourite? Who invented it and what is the secret behind its endurance? Fashionable "black" appeared as far back as the 14th century, when it was worn by the fashion conscious rather than the religious or mourning. It is at once understated, sophisticated, divine and sensuous, yet seductive and flattering for both sexes. When Coco Chanel's famous design of the little black dress was dubbed by Vogue magazine as "Fashion's Model T" (as in the Model T Ford automobile) in 1926, Mademoiselle claimed it as her own. The little black dress appealed to the new era of women who became busier and needed to be chic and stylish without much fuss. The stock market crash of 1929 solidified the status of the LBD which fit right into the austreness of the era. In the 1940s and 1950s no well-dressed woman was without one or two of those black, delicious garbs. Legend has it that the famous couturier Paul Poiret who could not adapt to the new look of Chanel's Jazzy age, once asked Mademoiselle Coco, attired in her little black dress: "For whom are you in mourning Mademoiselle?" Her cool reply was "For you Monsieur!" The craze reached a peak when Audrey Hepburn had her Breakfast at Tiffany's in her enchanting Givenchy creation. A touch of white gave it even more cool on Miss Hepburn at the races in My Fair Lady, and on Catherine Deneuve in her Yves Saint Laurent design in Belle de Jour. With 42 shades to boast about, black is ageless, and black is back. It is flattering, elegant, and always, always, reliably chic. Black on white is big at Chanel, Valentino and Givenchy. There are other colours on Fashion's palette, dark and vibrant, deep berry claret, bordeaux and burgundy, midnight blue to midnight black, jewel ink tones in purple, mustard, green, aubergine, burnt orange, peacock blue and creamy champagne. Fabrics are rich in deeply coloured velvets, shearling, and corduroy. Panne velvet is in, so is suede and leather, plaids and tweeds all contrasted with fluffy fur, real or faux. The autumn look is eclectic, with many global influences and black figures strongly in sumptuous silks, gauze, taffeta, as well as denim, tweed and cashmere. "Victoriana" and "Edwardiana" emphasise the lady- like image combining elements that recreate the importance of the hourglass shaping and waist definition. The high-necked blouses with ornate deep cuffs and lace inserts is a popular Gothic look. Another 1950s--1960s trend, is the full velvet skirt adding opulence and drama to the classy lady of the season with her tiny well-cinched waist, fulsome collar and enlarged sleeve. Look out for the return of the sleeve -- beret sleeves, angel sleeves and leg o'mutton sleeves -- give volume to the Victorian trend. Fur hats are the rage, elongated toques with Cossack overtones as seen at Jean Paul Gaultier. Other novel hats are the "Baker boy" and "news boy" hats, berets, knit hats with tassels or pom- poms, and Russian babushka head scarves. Hopefully the weather will cooperate. If trousers are your thing, make sure they are narrower to fit into your new knee-high boots in crocodile or shearling with laces, stud eyelets, cuffs or fur tops. All sorts of boots will make it hard to choose, flat boots, leather boots, wedge boots, metallic boots in chocolate, bronze, copper, or pewter tones. Shoes are also versatile in tweed, velvet or suede. Platforms are back adding height and style to the silhouette. In hair, the tousled Boho look gives way to smooth, smart sleek chignons or neat asymmetric bobs, echoing the screen siren looks of the 1920s. The make-up is pale, to complement the ladies of the season, with glossy lips and smoky eyes. For the gentlemen who ventured to read this far, a reward is due in some fashion morsels. The cardigan is making a comeback in tan, worn with jeans or dress pants. The argyle wool sweater, re-surfacing every season, is coolest in greys and the perfect fall jacket is the velvet blazer in burgundy, black or navy -- what else! The trend for purple is for those with boundless panache. Exit the brazen bare mid-riff, the flagrant "hang-it-all-out" cleavage, the immodest minimal micro-mini. Enter the polish and grace of the Victorian lady in all her elegance and charm, perhaps in a "little black dress" so tasteful, so refined, fully aware that true sensuality and allure come from within. Our clothes not only reveal who we are, but how we wish others to view us. A lady would never be caught looking simply fashionable, but simply perfect .
