Color Palette:  Creams and tans, accented by stark black and white.

Silhouettes:  Loose and drapey, and ruled by controlled volume.  Skirts, often featuring a bubble hem, dominated the collection–both mini and knee-length.  Pants and shorts were high waisted and cut with a generous leg.  Sleeves were equally voluminous, with kimono and pouf styles.  Of note was Doo Ri’s looser emphasis on the waist than other designers for Spring 2008.

Accessories Report:  Minimal jewelry adorned the models.

What’s Wearable:  Favorites include (1) a floor-length silk charmeuse gown with elegant, almost Narciso-circa-2003-like seaming on the torso, (2) a hip-length belted trenchcoat, and (3) high waisted pants–great for long-waisted women everywhere.

What’s Not Wearable:  Watch the "power" shoulderline on some of the jackets–there’s enough room there for a shoulder pad party.

Color Palette:  Neutrals with splashes of color: green, orange, and metallics.

Silhouettes:  Controlled volume was the key to this collection.  While silhouettes toyed with the concept of volume, they did so in a restrained way, keeping only one part (e.g. the sleeves, the pant legs) big. The minidress and mini skirt featured prominently, as did high-waisted shorts and pants. 

Accessories Report:  The belt at the natural waistline, cloche-style hats, oversized round sunglasses, and lace-up sneakers and boots.

What’s Wearable: The gowns.  Of note was (1) a flowy woven-pattern floor-length gown with a halter neckline, and (2) a draped grecian-inspired metallic floor-length gown.  Simply gorgeous.

What’s Not Wearable:  Large all-over geometric prints are tough to pull off, especially if you’re petite.

Color Palette:  Upon a palette of blacks, whites, tans, and greys, the collection reached out to golden olive, a primal red, and metallics–gold leaf and a green tinged silver.  Small geometric prints worked to create a tribal feel to the collection.

Silhouettes:  The military-tinged Proenza Schouler silhouette centers on the waistline and the legs.  Short skirts, high heels, and the belt placed at the natural waistline combine to create the illusion of two-mile-long legs.  Key classifications included: the short short skirt, the vest, the poufy skirt, the kimono sleeve, the oversized collar, and the belt.

Accessories Report:  Round oversized sunglasses, belts sitting at the nautral waist, and cavalry hats from milliner Albertus Swanepoel.

What’s Wearable:  The vest-over-vest layering is great for short-waisted women, as it visually elongates the torso.  And the belt at the waistline works wonders for women with boyish figures, as it helps to create that waistline.

What’s Not Wearable:  Short short skirts are tough for those with less-than-perfect legs.  And be careful with the gold leaf garments.  They’re beautiful, yes, but oh-so-hard to wear–for your figure and your pocketbook. 

Previous Proenza Schouler Fashion Week Coverage from Omiru:
Fall 2007 Fashion Week Runway Review: Proenza Schouler
Spring 2007 Fashion Week Runway Review: Proenza Schouler
Fall 2006 Fashion Week Runway Review: Proenza Schouler
Spring 2006 Fashion Week Runway Review: Proenza Schouler

Color Palette:  Felt more like Fall than Spring, with blacks, browns, and olives accented by royal blue, dusky pink, and bronze.

Silhouettes:  Silhouettes were cut loose, though the volume was often anchored at one point on the dress–be it the waistline or the shoulder.  Draping and pleating, along with the dropped waistline, befit the ancient Roman theme of the collection.  Classifications included tunics, bubble hemmed tops, column dresses, and drapey togas.

Accessories Report:  Ornate, blocky tiled necklaces adorned the models’ necks.

What’s Wearable:  The best pieces in the collection were, as expected, Vera’s eveningwear.  Of note was a beautifully draped chiffon floor-length gown, black in front, and a yellow-olive in back.

What’s Not Wearable:  Be careful with all-over metallics and satins–as they’re unforgiving on the figure.