Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, September 12, 1993 TAG: 9403230009
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ROY H. CAMPBELL KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
It seems like just yesterday that Calvin Klein and Gloria Vanderbilt, along with such companies as Jordache and Sasson, turned the jeanswear business upside down by stitching designer tags on the fanny of a regular pair of jeans and charging $35 a pair.
Actually it was in about 1979 when the pricey jeans arrived on the fashion scene. Considering that Wrangler and Levi jeans were going for about $12 a pair, many people were outraged at the markup. That didn't stop the designer-jean lust from raging for several years. (In 1981, U.S. jeans sales peaked at 400 million sold for a record $6 billion in sales.)
The fever broke in the mid-1980s, and companies such as Guess? and Marithe & Francois Girbaud sprang up to suppy new stylish, but comfortable jeans. By 1988, a back-to-basics move began, making no-name jeans from the Gap and other stores popular.
Now, like Jason of ``Friday the 13th'' fame, designer jeans rise from the dead.
Calvin Klein, whose jean empire suffered financially by staying with a skin-tight fit when loose-fit denim was popular, has just introduced a line of men's and women's jeans called Calvin Klein CK. Donna Karan was right behind him with her collection of jeans for men and women called DKNY, short for Donna Karan New York. Ralph Lauren is launching a new collection under the RL label that will include jeans. Chanel, the most coveted designer label, introduced a line of denim this fall. All the designer logos are featured prominently on the rear.
Other designers with status jeans include Moschino, Mossimo, Gianni Versace, Jhane Barnes (Barnes Storm), Jean-Paul Gaultier, Wilke-Rodriguez, Valentino and Giorgio Armani, who started a line of jeans under the Armani AX label that sell from $50 to $95 a pair.
Designer jeans' labels multiplied very rapidly in the last two years, possibly because people grew bored with the staid offering of the Gap. After all, if clothes are supposed to be fun and interesting, how many times can you buy the same jeans?
Designer jeans offer various styles and status, to boot. Some are really expensive. Versace's printed jeans cost as much as $600. And, yes, they're still denim, but are printed with splashy geometric patterns.
But even as designer jeans command the spotlight again, the rank of name-brand jeans is swelling, too. They include jeans by Request, Cross Colours, Gitano, Bugle Boy, Pepe, Cherokee, Yes, Union Bay, Edwin, Gasoline, Faded Glory, Rezzy, John Henry and Diesel.
And don't forget the old standbys: Wrangler, Lee and Levi - the company that caught up with the loose-fit jean rage very late, but advertised as if it had invented the style.
\ With all the different brands, shopping for jeans is not easy. Especially when you consider all the different fits. There are loose fit, relaxed fit, baggy fit, skinny cowboy fit, classic fit, among others.
Then there are the silhouettes: flair, bell bottom, wide leg, European cut, straight leg, peg leg, etc.
No wonder so many people dread shopping for jeans. One friend told me she was reduced to tears after trying on 10 pairs of jeans, none of which fit. She said even the numbers (501, 550, etc.) began to run together.
She finally went to an Army supply store and picked up a pair of Lee brand jeans.
``It was easier,'' she said.
\ Jeanswear designers and manufacturers gather in South Beach, in Florida, this weekend for the International Jeanswear Show, a three-day event with 200 exhibitors and fashion shows and parties.
The first-time event includes an opening-night party by music producer Quincy Jones for his new music magazine, Vibe. Another major event will be Absolut Denim, an open-air party sponsored by Absolut vodka that will include a fashion show with 100 models, alligator-wrestling, kick-boxing and performances by local bands.
\ The fashion glitterati convened in New York's Central Park on Aug. 12 for Elle magazine's dinner celebrating the relaunch of the American edition.
Under a tent, the guests, including designers Nicole Miller, Isaac Mizrahi, Christian Francis Roth, Azzedine Alaia, Geoffrey Beene and jewelry designer David Yurman were entertained by Natalie Cole.
The invitation called for casual dress, but the 400 invited guests were from the world of fashion, and their version of casual included sheath gowns, designer suits and sheer ensembles. Supermodel Beverly Peele, several months pregnant, wore a long white flowing gown. Model Rashumba wore a printed micro-mini that she battled to keep from rising higher.
American Elle's redesign debuts with its September edition, the first under new editor Amy Gross, formerly of Mirabella. The magazine announced at the party that joining the current 18 different editions of Elle would be five new editions, with Elles debuting this year in Argentina, Chile, Singapore, Turkey and Mexico.
After dinner, Cole, backed by a full orchestra, sparked the crowd to toe-tapping and finger-snapping with her renditions of classics such as ``As Time Goes By'' and ``Unforgettable.'' Decked in a midnight-blue bugle-beaded pants suit, Cole also sang some jazz classics before closing with songs from her new album, ``Take a Look.''
by CNB