Laissez-faire flair

Fashion week.

Last update: September 7, 2008 - 11:54 PM

In a time of relative political and economic uncertainty, we should all just relax and enjoy the clothes. That laid-back, laissez-faire attitude has been pervasive in the spring 2009 styles presented in the first three days of Fashion Week.

NEW YORK - Lela Rose, famous for designing Jenna Bush's bridesmaids' dresses, was inspired by African tribal wear. With bold colors and silhouettes, she added some sporty buckle details to sleeves and flat, oversized bows on dresses and blouses.

The DKNY show on Sunday had a party-like atmosphere to celebrate the label's 20th anniversary with a city-scape backdrop and booming '80s soundtrack. The bold, vibrant collection featured lots of black with punches of neon green, neon pink and deep blue. Winona Ryder, Nicole Richie and Christina Ricci sat in the front row. When designer Donna Karan came out at the end, she was herding a line of brightly dressed schoolchildren down the runway -- future customers, perhaps?

For Tracy Reese, feminine is always in, and this season she used subtle pastels and Monet-like floral-prints to tell the "story of a garden fantasy and the evolution of spring."

Paying tribute to fashion editor Diana Vreeland, Diane von Furstenberg chilled out with a "Rock Goddess" theme. The modern Bohemian collection was part disco, part hippie chick. Every model was crowned with flower-covered headbands -- the effect was that even as she was feeling a little groovy, Furstenberg's women are still strong, proud and regal. Her celebrity roster also rocked -- it included Eva Longoria Parker, Uma Thurman, Venus Williams and Anderson Cooper.

SARA GLASSMAN

SPECIAL TO THE STAR TRIBUNE