Fashion Ticker: Monique Lhuillier

ISLAND CHIC A designer who launched her career with a line of ultrafeminine wedding dresses, Monique Lhuillier, knows how to make a woman look — and feel — like a princess. For her spring/summer 2009 collection under the tents at Bryant Park yesterday, Ms. Lhuillier maintained this approach, showing fluid, soft daytime halter dresses and structured ball gowns. The looks were undeniably pretty, and inspired, according the show notes, by a trip to the tropics. There were pieces for day as well, cast primarily in colors that were meant to evoke the sun, water, sky, and sand. With their draped bodices, billowing skirts, and sheer fabrics — mostly in the form of barely-there organza, tulle, and chiffon, the evening gowns achieved a sexy feel. And in a fashion typical of Ms. Lhuillier, the lush fabrics were enhanced along the sleeves, hem, neck, and waistline with a range of embellishments, such as copper and bronze beading and jeweled embroidery.