Power pants are back
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Think Hepburn or Hutton. The dramatic, new silhouette narrows the waist and lengthens legs.
WHEN was the last time you stepped into a pair of proper trousers, ladies? With jeans and dresses dominating our closets these last few years, pants have been getting a bad reputation -- and for good reason. Black slacks were once so ubiquitous as office wear, we might as well have been wearing hospital scrubs.
With the waning popularity of premium denim (begone, $200 jeans!) and the shift toward dressier, more powerful silhouettes, a pants revolution is fast upon us -- and we're not talking your mom's tapered, elastic-waisted slacks.
Think Hepburn or Hutton, Dietrich or Hall (as in Annie). The new silhouette is dramatic and wide -- slouchy around the middle or slightly high on the waist (not costume-y high). When done well, you'll narrow your waist and lengthen your legs.
Call it the power pant, and get ready to see versions of it everywhere: Designers, including Proenza Schouler and Alexander Wang, showed glam versions of the look on New York's runways.
L.A. fashion designer Arianna Pistilli, a former accessories designer for Trina Turk, so believes in the versatility of trousers that this month she's launching a collection based around them called Parker & Barrow (the surnames of Bonnie and Clyde). She tips us off on how to work the new silhouette -- without looking like a working stiff.
Nix the flare
Pant legs should flow seamlessly from waist to floor, Pistilli says, and move like liquid around your pretty little feet. "Look for a smooth break at the knee," she says, "not an obvious flare -- that's dated."
Keep it long
The new trousers aren't just for tall girls but the vertically challenged as well. "A higher rise helps shorter girls," Pistilli says. "It increases the length of waist."
Menswear
It's tempting to think you should always offset menswear-inspired trousers with feminine tops and sweaters. But if you're going for that legendary look, "any object . . . made for men is your ideal pairing," Pistilli says -- "vests, button-downs, ribbed undershirts, long and thin cardigans, tuxedo shirts. They're things that aren't archetypally feminine, but when you carry off a menswear look, it's very Katharine Hepburn."
Shoe scene
