Amy Winehouse wouldn't have been Alfred Hitchcock's type. He liked his ladies blond first and prim second. But Michael Kors didn't let that stop him from mashing up the two influences at his Fall show. After the lights dimmed and the photographers were finally done snapping pics of fashionably late celebrities Natasha Richardson, Sigourney Weaver, Debra Messing, and Ellen Pompeo, out came Kors' heroines: hyper-polished Kim Novak types with teased updos that stopped several inches short of the Winehouse stratosphere. They wore sheaths in a lilac and olive floral, balmacaans, and camel suits with a new longer, narrow skirt. They flung sable coats over their cashmere sweaters and cropped ocelot-print pants, or slipped mink stoles over tweedy jackets and glen plaid skirts. And they carried frame bags in the crooks of their elbows. Come cocktail hour, their options ranged from a strapless dress in gold matelassé to a silvery princess frock embellished with a bow. And for really gala evenings, there were column gowns with Watteau backs.
Was it retro? Well, yes. And it looked familiar, too: The era has been plumbed to its depths. But it never felt too costumey. And it helped that he reined in his natural exuberance when it came to accessories. Well schooled as Kors is in the early sixties and the ways of Hollywood, maybe he should ditch Project Runway for a part on Mad Men?
