Fashion 87 : Paris Previews Curvy Spring

As Paris designers get ready to unveil their spring collections next week, the accent is on curvy clothes in short shapes.

Claude Montana previews his line with a coatdress that rounds at the shoulders, nips in at the waist, then flares to a short, very full skirt. He uses cotton drill, a fabric with body, to help accent the sculptural silhouette.

Karl Lagerfeld builds the curves right into a suit with egg-shape shoulders, fitted waistline and bell-shape hips. Touches of lingerie lace peek out at the neckline. The suit’s short, tight skirt leaves plenty of legroom.

In an unmatched suit, Lagerfeld teams a boldly striped jacket with a short black skirt. There is a hint of lace at the hemline as if to suggest a glimpse of a pretty slip.

For Chanel, Lagerfeld adds fullness and drape to an abbreviated jacket by way of rounded shoulders and dolman sleeves. The matched skirt with top-stitch seams is fuller at the hips but tapers to a narrow finish.

Valentino’s preferred shape for spring is a lean, long-over-short, proportioned suit, belted at the hips. Bold lapels are a witty touch that compete for attention with the thigh-high skirt.

Like Montana, Sonia Rykiel previews her new collection with a dress, as if to say it is her favorite look for spring. Rykiel shows the briefest, body-clinger style, which dips at the neckline and wraps around the torso. She pairs it with a swing-back cardigan coat. Both coat and dress have a demurely ruffled hemline.

Jean Paul Gaultier, the comic wit of Paris fashion, has styled skirts for men and old-fashioned ladies’ foundations as outerwear for working women in recent collections. Now he is previewing his answer to the baby boomer’s dilemma of domestic versus career goals by topping a pin-stripe pantsuit with a bib-apron, sheer as a negligee. Apparently he intends the outfit for men as well as women.

For sophisticated fashion details, the more “serious” Paris designers are showing wrist-length gloves, bracelets in sculptural shapes and unadorned, high-heel pumps. Light-tone hosiery highlights the leg show.