Lotus Notes: My Fair Lady

Oscar de la Renta Fall 09

Lanvin Fall 09

These days when it comes to matters sartorial, where have all the manners gone?

If you take a walk around Sydney, you’ll see a hell of a lot of undies – under sheer cream dresses, there are navy g-strings; beneath bum-grazing hemlines are polka dot boy shorts, visible with every step. Then there is the bright orange skin, after too many fake-tan applications; the bondage dresses (which lets be honest, only look good on a size zero, Herve Leger wearing model); and the of-the-minute, but ill fitting, sky-high heels that look tacky and ridiculous – even more so when teamed with the bondage dress and Oompa Loompa tinted skin tone.

Stripped of any originality, it seems sexed-up just ain’t what it used to be. Somewhere it became seriously vulgar, kind of gross to look at and just plain embarrassing. There’s nothing wrong with wearing a thigh-skimming dress, but ladies, when did we forget how to sit on a park bench without flashing our various bits to the world? When did acting like a lady, with a bit of class, become uncool?

If the recent run of Fall shows is anything to go by, fashion has a new-found sense of propriety and once you’ve mastered it, I bet you’ll never look back. It’s a look that was lauded not only by the establishment – Oscar De La Renta, Chanel, Lanvin – but also the new guard: Phillip Lim, Loewe, Proenza Schouler, Jason Wu…

But this interest in pretty doesn’t have to be boring – au contraire. Think prim leading ladies, with sex appeal. It’s a way of dressing that speaks of cardigans showing off a wasp waist with cinched belts. It’s delicate, sheer blouses worn over a beautiful lace bra. It’s pumps that add an exquisite arch to the foot.

As Calvin Klein’s Franciso Costa once put it “there’s a subtlety to this look. And with beautiful hair…wonderful shoes…you’re done”