CAROLINA HERRERA

It was another sumptuous collection for Carolina Herrera, who sent out one marvelous dress after another. If there were pants in this show, they passed without notice. Flattering dresses – for smart, stylish ladies of any age – took center stage. A repeated print of a woman diving into a pool (it was dubbed “swimming lady”) was screened onto a number of pieces, from a sheer, red, flowing gown to a blue halter-top hostess-y dress. A simple dress made of a brown bustier, blue sash, and ivory faille ball-gown skirt displayed Ms. Herrera’s peaceful sense of color. An ivory-and-brown printed dress was modest but alluring with a deep scoop neck and a small rim of fabric trim edging the neckline in a stand-up fringe. In a backstage interview, Ms. Herrera said that she had looked to fabrics from the interior designs of the 1940s for inspiration.

Luxury was in no short supply. Several dresses featured straps or belts of large semi-precious stones. A short mosaic dress was draped with small strands of glittering rhinestones. And the final look, definitely a choice for a fearless bride, had overlapping thin panels in ivory, white, and vanilla pen-edged with metal beading. Ms. Herrera is known for her contemporary sense of elegance, but this collection had a stunning blend of casual and glam, youth and maturity, style and substance.

CYNTHIA STEFFE

Cynthia Steffe’s spring collection was an unusual mix of bohemia and glitz – as if Georgia O’Keefe and Zsa Zsa Gabor held a joint cocktail party. In a palette of pinks and greens contrasted with yellows and flower prints, the collection had casual flair. A pretty poppy and sunflower print was used for a long, flowing dress. Tank tops and little shirts in light fabrics were topped with jeweled necklines. Rolled-up shorts were shown with wearable tops and cropped jackets. Two dazzling coats – one in sand with string embroidery, another in jeweled tweed – were perfect for making a grand entrance. Several pieces in heavy army-green – skirts, coat, and a shrunken jacket – had a surplus-store-meets-indie-designer feel. Throughout the collection, tassels dangled from the models’ necks and waists, and gold anklets adorned their ankles. The last dress was a stunning Daryl Hannah-like number: a fuschia halter gown in chiffon with a low back that plunged almost to the derriere. Though there were plenty of satisfying pieces here, there was little holding them all together.

BILL BLASS

Michael Vollbracht’s collection for Bill Blass ranged widely, from prim looks – a white eyelet sheath dress or a white cotton pique suit – to colorful, sexy styles – a ruffled evening dress in floral silk chiffon, for example. Bill Blass ladies can choose to be restrained or let loose with this collection. On the careful side was a simple navy silk slip dress. A bit more daring but still pretty was a pink seersucker halter dress with an organdy skirt decorated with flower appliques. On the wild side, there was a long slinky evening dress with small velour dots in various colors, a flowing blue dress with an oversized “Matisse” print in ivory, and a flowing, multicolored evening dress in silk chiffon. Though the suits and daytime styles in this collection seemed meant for a woman who sits on a corporate board, the flowing, sheer numbers were tailor-made for her romantic, holiday-in-the Caribbean fantasy.

SEBASTIAN PONS

Time and space are always important factors in Sebastian Pons’s work. That means that each season the designer features a wild mix of ethnic and historical influences. After exploring ancient Greece and 16th-century Spain in previous collections, the Majorcan designer fast-forwarded to the 20th century for his Spring 2005 line. Mr. Pons sent out an innovative melange of styles ranging from Western Americana, to pre-Castro Cuba, to 1950s Majorca. Fitted embroidered cotton gowns with ruffles around the neck and hemline were sexy, fun, and feminine, while flirty gingham mini-gowns were fresh and cheeky. Mr. Pons showed his tailoring expertise in skinny linen suits and short-sleeved pleated gowns that had the sculptural quality of early Balenciaga. Some long denim bustier dresses and slinky lace slips missed the mark, however, and ended up dangerously close to tacky. Although this show was slightly uneven, it is always a joy to see this talented and inventive designer at work.

ADIDAS BY STELLA McCARTNEY

At the press showing for Stella McCartney’s athletic apparel collection for Adidas, every precaution was taken to make sure that nobody failed to notice that the clothes were about sports, not fashion. Members of the press were shuttled into the rather cramped David Barton gym where panting models did endless repetitions in the featured gear. (“I’ve been on this machine for 30 minutes now,” one bicep-pumping girl told a curious bystander.) “I wanted to create athletic clothes that were stylish and high-tech at the same time,” said the designer. “Women’s exercise clothing is generally a lot less cool than the men’s stuff. All the female athletes I worked with told me that they felt that wasn’t fair.” Ms. McCartney set out to change that with her performance-oriented, luxurious, and very sexy line. The collection is divided into four categories: running, workout, cover-ups, and swimwear. The clothes will be carried at approximately 100 Adidas stores around the world starting in February. While the clothes will not be sold at Stella McCartney stores, her boutiques will feature special-edition items. “I used to be embarrassed about my gym clothes,” said Ms. Mc-Cartney. “I created this collection so I and other women can feel good about ourselves.”

SASS & BIDE

Over the past few years, the label Sass & Bide, by Australian design duo Sarah-Jane Clarke and Heidi Middleton, has achieved icon status on the designers’ home turf. At their New York Fashion Week debut, Ms. Clarke and Ms. Middleton showed the exuberant mix of vintage glam and rock ‘n’ roll that make their clothes a favorite of Aussie party girls. And judging by the sequin trimmed chiffon mini-togas, asymmetrical kimono tops, and super-skinny jeans, it seems likely that this label will be showing up on Paris Hilton and her friends come March. Most of the collection stuck to what could be described as the “Hollywood starlet look,” meaning short skirts, lots of sparkle, tight trousers, and flowing, semi-transparent tops. Beaded strips of fabrics were laced around torsos, hips, and shoulders; handkerchief hemlines floated mid-thigh, and sequins and studs glimmered on dresses, jeans, and jackets. Although we’ve already seen this look in countless music videos and red-carpet appearances, the garments came alive when the beaming Ms. Clarke and Ms. Middleton took their bow. The handholding friends and business partners sported samples of their collection put together in a relaxed and colorful mix that looked sassy and charming. Sass & Bide may not reinvent the fashion wheel, but they do know that girls just want to have fun.

LACOSTE

Lacoste designer Christophe Lemaire showed a Spring 2005 collection that was simple, fresh, and easy. Since taking charge of the label in 2001, the French designer has made Lacoste a must-have sportswear label for international hipster youth. The opening of the show paid homage to the brand’s past with white, preppy V-neck sweaters, mini shirt-dresses, and slacks that looked straight out of the tennis courts of 1930s Deauville. Mr. Lemaire then moved the collection into contemporary martial-arts styles with low-cut drawstring pants, and touched upon the 1980s with acid-colored windbreakers, Bermuda shorts, oversized striped T-shirts, and sleeveless dresses with low elastic waistbands in stripes and polka dots. For the finale, Mr. Lemaire cited the giddy 1960s musicals of Jacques Demy as his inspiration for the candy-colored line-up of mini-dress es, sleeveless polo shirts, and pants. Clearly, this crocodile still has bite.

MATTHEW EARNEST

The American fashion scene is particularly vibrant at the moment, with a host of young designers that are reminiscent of Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs with their flair for mixing retro-friendly bohemian and preppy styles. Matthew Earnest is one of them, and the line he showed for spring was pretty, polished, and slightly whimsical. Mr. Earnest’s muses for the collection were the distressed Ivy League girls played by Barbara Hershey in “Beaches” and Katie Holmes in “The Ice Storm.” Pieces like beautifully cut jersey dresses with contrasting piping, sexy and delicate silk and chiffon blouses, and quilted A-line skirts that sat low on the hip were delightful, as were soft jersey tops with Navajo bead details. Mr. Earnest also showed some sexy looks, such as cutout bodysuits paired with short shorts. But some of the dressier efforts, such as awkward cropped wool jackets and slightly sagging chiffon gowns lacked the easy charm of the other garments. Mr. Earnest is still a fledging talent, however, and if he continues to evolve his fresh and preppy aesthetic, Messrs. Jacobs and Kors may find they have a real competitor.

HEATHERETTE

School is in session at Heatherette. Traver Rains and Richie Rich’s Spring 2005 collection brought back memories of fantasy footballers and pom-pom girls with its “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School” theme, as announcements from the “principal” came in over loudspeakers.

For the first time, the fun-loving club kids staged their show under the tents at Bryant Park and booked some of the biggest models around: Devon Aoki, Elizabeth Jagger, Kimberly Stewart (daughter of Rod), Omahyra Mota (who drew the loudest applause), and Naomi Campbell (the grand finale). Paris Hilton waved at her sister Nicky as she toddled down the confetti-strewn catwalk, gripping her hemline to avoid exposing her underwear.

The presentation boasted more looks than Heatherette has put together in the past, and some were exquisite. A bolero jacket crafted entirely of fabric flowers was shown over a lime, fringed flapper minidress, creating a lovely, broad-shouldered, slim-hipped line while the petals framed the model’s face to terrific effect. A cowrie-shell bikini tied with rosy streamers brought to mind decades-old Azzedine Alaia pieces of raffia and seashells. A miniscule man’s version of the swimsuit (tied with green ribbons rather than pink) was odd, however. There were other misses as well, such as a sleeveless, backless purple jumpsuit with a black tuxedo shawl collar and a white eyeless cummerbund tied at the back with a bow. Pastel prints of Pierrot and psychedelic graphics complemented the candy-sweet lucky charms draping off belts and straw beach bags – even some of the models’ faces were decorated with paillettes.

ESTEBAN CORTAZAR

Esteban Cortazar’s take on Spring 2005 was flirty and feminine, with a preponderance of chiffon, ruffles, and dusky pastel hues. The Colombian-born wunderkind’s latest collection would certainly be appropriate dress in his hometown of Miami, but the clothes’ sophisticated chic would look equally right in Capri, Saint Tropez, Lyford Cay, or anywhere you can get a serious tan – the nearly nude peaches, roses, and beiges of many pieces would not be kind to pale skin. There was also a flood of sunny yellow on the runway, often a difficult shade to pull off, but Mr. Cortazar solved that problem by showing lovely white wide-collared, tie-front blouses with yellow flamenco-ruffled and sequined pants, skirts, and hot pants. A yellow cotton fabric striped vertically with sequins moved beautifully and had a markedly fine texture and weight. Used in a self-belted shirtdress and tops, it emphasized the clothes’ casual elegance. A structured white trench and a short white jacket, both with yellow piping, seemed a bit out of place with the dominant fluid looks. Likewise, dressing in suede in the tropics may work better on the runway than in real life. Gauzy calico-print chiffons worked as halter dresses, but on some models, empire waists created the illusion that they were a bit bottom-heavy – one shudders to imagine how they would look grazing the hips of mere mortals. Best bets: the sheer hot-pink and white caftan with a button front and the slim trousers with flyweight ruffles down the outer seam from the hip to the ankle.

JEFFREY CHOW

Tribal design? Though Jeffrey Chow’s show program promised an ethnic-inspired collection (pointing to African style),the only element that qualified as “transcontinental” was the geometric embroidery that embellished the base of a few skirts, shirt cuffs, and the occasional collar and pants. But overall the “Masai” look succeeded, in the same way that Polo’s Native American touches do – the African ethnic details were a decent, if unoriginal, way to play down the formality of, say, a white organza skirt paired with an off-white ruffle blouse made of voile. The looks that made you want to whip out your credit card, however, were those that defined pretty in unexpected ways, both for casual and formal looks. There was certainly nothing tribal about them. For the casual look, the winner was a bright orange-red knit tank paired with a sheer short-sleeved tuxedo undershirt and a jade-toned silk charmeuse skirt. A beautiful straight-from-the-reworked-urban-attic khaki lace tank and matching skirt were jaw-droppingly beautiful (and wearable).The perfect dinner-date attire.