How To Look Chic This Autumn

Meher Castelino gets in the groove with this year's Autumn/Winter trends for men and women

There is a slight chill in the air and a convenient excuse for fashionistas to wear that extra layer of warm clothing and for designers and labels to launch their new range of winter wear. From stylish executive fabrics to trendy garments for men and women, Autumn/Winter 2005 promises the best for the male and female wardrobes.

Pour Homme

The Raymond Group goes au naturel. It has a fabric made from soya that has good moisture absorption power with a blend of super 100s wool and soya fibre. It also offers casein - a white spring fabric which is a blend of 120s wool and silk as well as the 21st century bamboo fabric, an anti-bacterial fabric blended with super 100s wool and fine polyester or linen.

Digjam's Boardroom Collection comprises brands like Super Italy, Little Italy Collection, Irish Charm, Silicon Valley, Cocktailz, and Milano Collection in the price range starting from Rs 950 to Rs 1,760 per metre. They come in rich colours like charcoal, midnight blue, black and grey with innovative techno touches in wool and blends in corporate patterns like pin and chalk stripes, stylish checks and herringbones.

OCM has fabrics that are great for coordinates; some with a slight stretch effect and others with cool touches in special blends of polywool which are again treated with anti-odour properties. The Tweed Collection has bold geometric designs while the Gold Collection in 100s Merino Wool is a good investment. Prices range from Rs 583 to Rs 2,846 per metre.

The Readymades

Park Avenue's Blazer Collection offers all three garments: blazers, trousers, and Egyptian Giza cotton shirts coordinated for easy selection. The blazers that come in shades of navy, burgundy, blue, olive and camel in two or three button, single-breasted styles, are in super 110s wool or blends of 60/40 wool polyester blends and priced between Rs 5,999 and Rs 8,999. Color-coordinated trousers come in grey, beige, black, blue and brown for Rs 1,399 to Rs 2,199 and shirts in pastel shade team up perfectly with the blazers for Rs 1,399.

Shirts from Contra Formals by Indigo Nation has some interesting detailing in fabrics like solid two-tone dobbies, self-dobby yarn, dyed-dobby in vibrant colours with contrast under collars, a four panel collar, saddle stitches for emphasis and contrast fabrics on the inside of collar and neckband. The trousers that team up with the shirts have slanted loops and slant back pocket welts. Prices range from Rs 899 to Rs 1,099.

Zodiac's look is stylish, very European and its new range of shirts is in two-ply cotton from Egypt, with handpicked mother of pearl buttons from the South Seas, and collar lining from Germany. Its Ravello collection of structured shirts is in combinations of satin weaves and intense colours. Turquoise, which has featured prominently this season, is the highlight of this collection. There are also shades of pink, blue, mint and yellow. Though basic colours still dominate most wardrobes globally, it is the bold colours that make a fashion statement.

Foreign brands are bringing in their Autumn/Winter ’05 collection for Indian men. While Mumbai and the south of India may not have real winter, the north is a perfect market for brands like Daks, Savile Row, Hugo Boss and Moschino.

Daks' Autumn/Winter ’05 line has rich textures and patterns with paisley for wools. The suits, that are cut on the same lines as last season's slim silhouette, come in stripes and checks in colours of black, rust and dark brown. The shirts are in bold coloured stripes in body-hugging shape. The overall Daks look has a dash of colour for suits and shirts to match.

Savile Row's collection stays true to its British reputation. The shirts priced between Rs 895 to Rs 1,140 have pastel colours in stripes and checks while the trousers costing Rs 1,150 to Rs 1,485 are in neutral shades of brown, navy, beige and black. Chinos are priced from Rs 975 to Rs 1,200 while the silk ties begin from Rs 695 to Rs 855 and come in shades of blue, yellow, pink, and lilac.

Hugo Boss, now available in three cities in India - Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore - offers two distinct collections for the season. The Boss Black label has classic business wear while Boss Orange has stylish garments in bold colours and interesting detailing. Suits in Boss Black are in pinstripes and checks in light fabrics in tones of black, dark gray, brown and blue. The silhouettes are semi-structured for jackets, which can go from formal to casual wear with ease.

Boss Orange is a mix of natural fabrics, some fitted silhouettes with detailing in the form of prints. For the rock star look, Boss blazers are unstructured which are ideal with jeans. Natural fabrics like cotton, wool, linen and silk in colours like camel, black, stone and rock are highlighted by bright shades of rust, orange, yellow, blue and aqua green. Casual T-shirts, hooded parkas, leather jackets and wool knitwear teamed with chinos make great outdoor wear. One of the best additions in the wardrobe for this season is the Boss wool/silk/cashmere blazer worn with cotton cashmere knit.

Designer Shahab Durazi, known for his impeccable tailoring and finish, has some smart options for men this season. With fabrics like rayon crepe, wool crepe and wool gabardine, Durazi has one and two button jackets with comfortable fit. He opts for a loose fit, the trousers however are slimmer to give the wearer a lean look. The jackets are with notched lapels in shades of dusty jade, taupe brown, dark green for some coordinated options for easy dressing.

Narendra Kumar Ahmed has a very trendy look for men. His collections favour bright tones for shirts with floral prints, multi-stripes and abstracts. Fabrics range from the popular linen to denim; slim fit for both suits as well as shirts and trousers with flat fronts. Ahmed gives a lot of embroidery in either geometric or floral appliqués. There will be a return of the double-breasted suit to keep the ever popular two-button single breast jacket company.

Savile Row	Digjam Collection
Park Avenue Blazer	DAKS
Narendra Kumar Ahmed	Shahab Durazi Men’s
IE Hugo Boss	OCM

Pour femme

The Autumn/Winter ’05 has a very definite look, which revolves around bright colours with lots of prints for casual wear. The women are given a more feminine corporate look which has moved away from the power dressing image of the 80s.

Moschino, the classy Italian label, offers the Moschino Mainline and The Moschino Cheap and Chic collection. The Mainline collection is ultra feminine in colours like black, navy, camel, military green and amethyst with prints on twill and wool. Embroidery plays an important part while matching footwear in suede and high held pumps give the perfect look. The stylishly cut jackets belted at the waist are teamed with mini-skirts.

On the designer front, the Linarika label by Lina Tipnis has two parallel lines. She opts for neutral colours like grey, mushroom, beige, cedar green, black and white. The fabrics are silks in dual tones, cool noiles, classic linens, and have been given some interesting surface texture treatments that revolve around crushed fabrics, thread pullouts and subtle laser cutting.

Tipnis also has bold graphics and floral prints with more dynamism with colours like acid blue, pink, and ochre with flashes of red. Stylish highlights appear on the garments in the form of anchor stitching and suede trimmings. The fabrics this time are voiles, cotton linen and Lycra blends which add a touch of freedom to traditional design.

Shahab Durazi has smart knee-length skirts with stitched in belted jackets in wool crepe rayon crepe with a hint of embroidery. The jackets can be teamed with either skirts or trousers which are slim, almost parallel, but with a subtle flaring at the hem which may not be very evident. The colours that make Durazi's garment interesting are simple basic tones like topaz, mauve, olive green and emerald with the very dependable black and white. Detailing is very simple with delicate quilting on skirts and jackets with tonal appliqué flowers on stark white jackets.

Multi-tasking clothes is what corporate men and women should select to give their business wardrobes many options without going in for too many garments. Some many-faceted jackets, trousers and skirts will take both sexes through several board meetings and in the evenings for those glamorous product launches.

Lina Tipnis Style	Lina Tipnis Style
Lina Tipnis Style	Lina Tipnis Style
Shahab Durazi Women’s