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Dress Code

4/24/08

2:20 PM

Boyfriend Jackets Signify Girl Power

From left: Lanvin, Diane Von Furstenberg, and Bill Blass.Photo: imaxtree

Guys, hide your jackets — your innocent ladies just might start stealing them, because boyfriend jackets are shaping up to be hot for fall. They manned up the fall runways of Diane Von Furstenberg, Nina Ricci, and Lanvin, and Peter Som explained that he showed some in his Bill Blass collection for a very simple, awesome reason: Girl power is back. The Wall Street Journal reports this:
Designer Peter Som says he was thinking of Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama — "women who are at the forefront of change" — when he designed his fall collection of tuxedo-like pantsuits for the Bill Blass label. "For so long, it's been all about the baby-doll look, the infantilizing of women," he says. "But now there's a sense of empowerment that is trickling down to fashion and how women want to be perceived."

Diane Von Furstenberg, who showed belted, oversize jackets on her fall runway, suggests that women may be subconsciously seeking "a little more authority" as they watch powerful women take the stage in politics.

So women are trading fitted jackets for roomy jackets, and men are trading roomy jeans for fitted jeans. In terms of comfort, the role-reversal thing is certainly working in the ladies' favor. Enjoy those man girdles, gentlemen.

The Boyfriend Jacket Comes on Strong [WSJ]
Related: Man Girdles Are All the Rage

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Edited by Amy Odell

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