So here’s the deal – traditionally, cuffs on shirts are seen as a men’s fashion statement. It makes most people think of a suit and tie. But this season, women are going for it. And they are going for it with style. Cuffs, a tight-buttoned wrap around the wrist, most typically comes from a button up shirt. But women are grabbing sexy blouses, or full-length dresses, and having a tight cuff. It brings a dose of sophistication and confidence to any outfit. Designers are playing with the strong style. Yves Saint Laurent, a French fashion house and one of the most premier in the industry, crafted several cuff designs this season. First, with a beautiful black, sheer mesh blouse with delicately embellished polka dots. The blouse carries an opaque cuff and collar. Second, the designer crafted a silk, loose, animal print mini dress with three quarter length cuff sleeves. In contrast, the Venezuelan classic designer, Carolina Herrera, designed a black and white silk, lace print blouse with black cuffs and collar to highlight the femininity. Fashion house, The Row, established by actress twins Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, designed a cream full button up shift silk dress with vintage collar and traditional cuff sleeves. Oscar de la Renta, world-renowned Dominican Republic fashion designer and protégé of icon Cristobal Balenciaga, crafted an ultimate feminine cuff gown. His creation is a flowy, silk chiffon green patterned dress with large embellished white flowers. The dress has a two-tiered circle skirt with long cuffed sleeves and a crew neck top. As per usual, the celebrity scene is picking up the style. Recent squeeze of John Mayer, and fashion whimsical singer Katy Perry, wore a plunge v-neck full length Gucci gown with red and grey flowers at the bottom hem and shear sleeves with a dark black cuff. Jessica Alba went to dinner in a dark pattered Valentino dress with a silk bow around her neck, and dark navy cuffs. She paired with black pointed mid-height heels. Television actress Ginnifer Goodwin wore a plunging keyhole cuffed blouse with a metallic feather pencil skirt. While Anne Hathaway, a knock-out in the third installment of the Batman trilogy as Cat Woman, played true to her fashion icon role in a haute couture Valentino full length patterned dress with oversized blouse sleeves and scalloped high neck collar. To pull off the cuffed look, the most important is to contrast the typically masculine style with femininity. This means using feminine patterns like florals, using softer fabrics like silk or chiffons, or pairing with sky-high heels. That’s the fashion scoop for this week. Got a thought? Trend? Style you hate? Send it my way.
