Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 24, 1991                   TAG: 9103210279
SECTION: SPRING FASHION                    PAGE: E-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: By TRACIE FELLERS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

STREAK OF DARING SELLS IN MEN'S SPORTSWEAR

With brights and the new faded colors, out-of-the-ordinary print shirts and new takes on the traditional, menswear designers and manufacturers are responding to a customer who wants more than the basics.

Though the men's clothing industry is coming off a sluggish season, Southwest Virginia retailers say what's selling is what's new and different.

When times are tight financially and people cut back on spending, those in the clothing business tend to expect shoppers to think in terms of long-term investment, says Jeff Wendell, president of John Norman stores.

"But they're not," he says. "They've been buying the things that jump out at them, that get them enthused."

Dave McManaway, sportswear and furnishings buyer for the area's Davidsons stores, says men are looking for clothing that catches the eye, but that isn't "priced in the stratosphere."

Area fashion insiders agree on one item that's likely to attract a major share of men's attention this spring: the print shirt.

Prints are dominating men's shirts, says Mark Bright, young men's buyer for Roanoke's Leggett stores. Among them are paisley patterns, florals and theme prints that give the wearer something to talk about.

Striped shirts, such as those by designer Tommy Hilfiger, stand out in bright combinations of gold, navy, red, orange and cream.

Hilfiger also has fun with flower prints, as in a colorful shirt covered with tiny blossoms. Mixing that pattern with a pair of white-striped pale blue pants might seem extreme, but Hilfiger makes the match engaging.

Leggett customers have responded favorably to Hilfiger's clothing, Bright says.

"People love the name." The young designer is even "getting a share of Ralph Lauren's business now."

McManaway says silk and rayon print shirts - in what the fashion-savvy call "conversational themes" - are strong. The shirts depict anything from world postage stamps to animal prints to European street scenes, he says: "Pick a subject and you can find a print shirt that tells a story about it."

Prints add important detail to knit shirts as well, Wendell says. People are ready for "more interesting knits, like plaids and fancies in a knit shirt - not just solids. That's gonna to be real strong."

Some of John Norman's knit shirts for spring will feature windowpane plaids and abstract patterns, Wendell says.

Abstracts, geometrics, paisleys and medallions are just some of the prints that will show up on knit shirts at Davidsons this season, McManaway says.

But print shirts aren't the only things popping in men's sportswear.

Earth tones, including olives, mustards, browns and rusts, are still around in pants, shirts and shorts. And faded colors, which have a "washed or dusty appearance," are fresh for spring, McManaway says.

Ralph Lauren's traditional basic, the Polo shirt, now comes in a variety of these subdued colors: dusty red, faded navy, faded cactus green and faded gunmetal, a subtle gray shade.

"I think it's nice and fresh and different, and the colors come up beautifully in a T-shirt fabric, too," McManaway says.

Becky Garland, sportswear buyer for Davidsons Outdoors, sees similar "washed-down" colors in a selection of B.D. Baggies shorts and shirts.

But overall, outerwear remains "very bright," she says. Neons, however, are less prominent than in the past. Outerwear manufacturers, including Columbia and Woolrich, have crafted jackets for spring that use neons as accents - "on the collar or zipper or inside or in the pocket," Garland says.

One outfit at Davidsons Outdoors that has received good reaction from customers is a packet ensemble from Woolrich, Garland says. The nylon jacket and pants - in vibrant color combinations of jade, blueberry and melon - can be stuffed into a small sack that closes with a drawstring.

"I think it's such a practical idea," Garland says.

And several sportsmen have already agreed, she says. "I had one man in Lynchburg say, `Get that for me, honey, I can throw it in my golf bag.' "