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The Jewish Chronicle

On trend and on time for New Year

August 27, 2010 10:17
Blue tweed, belted jacket and skirt,both Oasis

ByJan Shure, Jan Shure

2 min read

There is a new fashion mood this autumn and it doesn't shout - it whispers. It offers a new minimalism, but with distinctly luxe touches like fur and leather, and it marks a return to a low-key, polished elegance. It is about clothes that are grown-up but often with a twist - either literally, as in clever knots of fabric at Yves St Laurent, Burberry Prorsum and Elie Tahari; or metaphorically, like ribbed tights with brogues or 40s-style platforms to sharpen something that might, otherwise, slip into soporific dullness.

This stealth chic is lusciously and desirably wearable - as well as appropriate for everyone over 25. All of which is terrific news for every woman planning to make a new purchase for the New Year, since the shops are crammed with suits and dresses which combine being perfect for synagogue with being a worthwhile investment for autumn.

This new mood reinvents classics for the 21st century. For instance, it takes a garment as basic as a crisp white shirt and turns back its sleeves and pairs it with a black or conker-brown leather pencil skirt, thus transforming the two pieces into something greater than the sum of their parts. Or it takes a simple, half-sleeve shift dress, preferably in navy, charcoal or a Celine-influenced shade of latté, adds a narrow belt, opaque or ribbed tights and clunky ankle boots, and turns a simple garment into the definitive autumn 2010, go-anywhere (even to shul) piece.

It takes the retro trend that currently embraces everything 40s, 50s and 60s - heavily influenced, of course, by Mad Men and the industry's continuing fascination with its three favourite fashion icons, Grace, Audrey and Jackie 0 - and reworks it in a way that looks inventive and fresh, but not like fancy dress. It allows the adoption of some sharp cutting, a hint of braid and a few brass buttons in a nod to the military trend, but eschews epaulettes and fringing, which would makes us look like we had gone AWOL from Sandhurst.