Wednesday, November 20, 2002
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Wednesday, November 20, 2002 |
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Hot fashion for girls this cool season By Curt Hagedorn If you remember your treasured Frye boots, fringed suede bag and patchwork denim hat, and have a young girl between the ages of 6 and 15 years old on your holiday list, this is your lucky year. Everything you wore during your own junior high or high school days is as fashionable as frosted lipstick. If your gift has some combination of "retro," "bohemian" or "athletic" style, in fabrics like denim, corduroy, velour or suede, it should be a Holiday 2002 hit. According to Judy Gordon, "Today Show" style editor and founder of www.trendreport.com, girl's fashion is following the same '70s trend as women's clothing. Dina Khalid of Macy's West in San Francisco, Calif., agrees, "Girls are following their idols in television and music." In addition to must-haves such as flare jeans, hip-hugging cords and outerwear, Macy's will be featuring an array of unique and not too expensive accessories to transform a girl's look for hitting the books after the holidays. Handbags patterned after Disney Channel's 'tween heroine "Lizzie Maguire" are a lesson in boho chic from $14-$16. Younger girls will love still-important mini-backpacks in fashionable denim and corduroy, adorned with "Dora the Explorer," "Powerpuff Girls" and "SpongeBob Squarepants," or athletic themes like "Varsity," "Soccer" and "Cheerleader" from $12-$18. To go with those bags, a selection of belts with chunky buckles, fringe and embroidery in faux suede and denim from $15-$18 all by Global Village. Macy's also heralds the return of "Best Friend Necklaces" (half a necklace each for a girl and her very best friend, in traditional hearts, flowers, circles and other pop designs) and charm jewelry. A top gift from Macy's is "Charm-it's" bracelet at $5 or matching necklace at $7 for adding up to 30 individual charms (at $3-$5 each.) Go wild and buy all 30 for a spectacular presentation (each charm has its own individual clasp for hours of mixing and matching), or solve your gift-giving problem for the next few years by giving charms as the occasion requires. A new charm for every "A" could cure the post-holiday blues through sheer motivation. Although you might not see Wal-Mart as the cutting edge of fashion, a relationship with Seventeen Magazine is keeping the mega-chain's finger on the pulse of girls of all ages. Wal-Mart's fashion experts are banking on entertainment powerhouses Mary Kate and Ashley Olson this Christmas. Sarah Clark of an Ark., Wal-Mart declares that "no young girl should be without her newest Mary-Kate and Ashley accessories to go with her great Mary-Kate and Ashley apparel." Also on Wal-Mart shelves will be hats in trend-right patchwork denim and suede in the hottest new shapes with matching bags and backpacks in fringed patchwork denim and suede, as well as faux leather ($5.96 to $9.96.) Expect to find other up-to-the-minute looks in outerwear, athletic wear, boots and shoes. Wal-Mart is also stocking the latest in retro-fashionable back-to-school technology. Remember that do-everything Texas Instruments calculator that was the latest back in 1973? The now essential TI-83 calculator ($94.88) or TI-89 graphing calculator ($149.97), can both slip right into that Mary Kate and Ashley bag, proving girls can make an impression in more ways than one. Target is attracting older girls to their fashion departments by combining flashy advertising and the products to back it up. Brie Heath of Target in Minneapolis, Minn., suggests a total look: Mossimo's leather blazer/jackets with '70s-style nipped waist, patch pockets and notch collar ($89) which will remind you of when you absolutely refused to wear that "big coat" your mother bought you, while coordinating shearling gloves, hats and scarves still keep the chill away. Add a pair of knee-high Eloise patchwork tall boots from Xhilaration ($24.99), and you've got an outerwear ensemble you used to call cool, but they call hot. Target is also promoting the charm jewelry revival an Add-a-Link bracelet and charms can spell out a name, or sparkle with faux stones the basic bracelet in silver for $7.99 with silver charms selling for $4.99 each. Fashion specialty stores are another great hunting ground for unique accessories with up-to-the-minute style. Check out The Gap for basics and then some. Mix glitter jean skirts ($34.50) and sparkle denim flares ($39.50) just some of the trendy embellished denim you'll find in specialty stores over the holidays with a "Carnaby Street"-style suede patch hat ($16.50) and cord and jean Sherpa jackets and vests ($38-$48). Pair a classic Sherpa pea coat ($58) with a '70s pom pom ($14.50) scarf. Also at the Gap: retro velour jogging hooded sweatshirt and pants ($34.50 and $29.50), and the revival of Mary Janes (34.50) and ankle boots (44.50) in colorful NuBuck. d Curt Hagedorn is a New York-based freelance writer. |
