Fall and winter fashions

[Ria's note: I patched this story together from various wire news reports - that's why my name isn't on it, because there's no original reporting. In fact, I had very little clue what I was writing about. I didn't even see pictures until after I wrote the piece (with a few exceptions of the dresses described in the story. Basically this piece is mildly shameful and that's why I'm posting it].

THE NEWS

Fashion in Mexico for the fall and winter seasons is likely to be a contradicting mix of playful trims, flashy fabrics and somber tones, with black, gray and deep blues dominating sleek, smooth silhouettes and short-length dresses.

More than 25 designers brought their latest collections to Mexico City for five days last week as part of this year's Mercedes-Benz Fashion show, which took place from under tents outside a Polanco shopping center.

Expect to see cool palettes and feminine cuts in stores later this year. Designers filled the runways with subdued tones accented with shimmering and hand-stitched details or asymmetrical trims and folds. A delicate, youthful elegance was also a common trend among designers.

Mexican designer Mauro Babún's collection "Alma deGOYAdO presented varying shades of gray with fabrics like cashmere and gabardine, inspired by the dark, expressionist works of Spanish painter Francisco de Goya.

The collection also included pieces in denim and leather, complete with artisan touches such as stain and wash treatments, as Babún played with the garments' geometric and symmetric forms.

Draping added a smooth blend of elegance with comfort to the collection. écessories provided the final touch to Babún's pieces. There were leather gloves, baguette wallets and giant purses, which have dominated the Mexican fashion scene since last season.

Designers Jesús Ibarra and Bertholdo brought an abundance of black to the runway, opening their "Claroscuro" ("Chiaroscuro") collection with a black bridal gown made of tulle and bordered with irregularly shaped crystals. The gown proved a pretext for the designer duo's wedding announcement.

The dark collection included wool and velvet jackets, circling skirts and Capri and cigarette pants. Necklines ranged from strapless, halter and imperial cut from fabrics such as silk chiffon, leather and silk with acetate rayon.

Carlo Demichelis returned to darker tones in his fall-winter collection, characterized by blacks and grays.

The designer's line included jackets, tight-fitting Lycra, short skirts and cigarette pants. He showed blouses with high necks made from transparent lace or knit fabrics; a series of dresses with unique waistlines brought youthful, feminine and elegant touches.

The collection dared to deviate slightly from the predominately dark color scheme, choosing khaki and marine blue for coats and gabardines, or long, loose-fitting outerwear.

PLAYFUL TOUCHES

Colombian designer Pepa Pombo brought lightness and playfulness to the runway, alternating between ebonies and grays with colors like sand, turquoise, warm chocolate and lilac.

His "érobatique" collection of bolero jackets and dresses were cropped, and short-length and distinguished with Pombo's bows, pleats and folds.

A Pombo dress shown Thursday fell just above the knees with shimmering gold silk layered in gold lace, the bodice fitted tightly with the bottom flowing naturally.

A steel gray number gathered ruffled pink petals at the scooped neckline, the bottom trimmed in pink as well.

Mexican designer Alana Savoir kept a youthful, casual look with short dresses and leggings.

Savoir, who recently created a special design for the 50th anniversary of Barbie dolls, offered a line based on a "bohemian, artistic" life from the world's biggest cities that she defined as "chic-artistic, but uncomplicated."

Macario JimAcnez said his flirty, sophisticated collection was "very small" but yet "very representative." Garments included short dresses with rounded edges. The designer created a dress for Mexico's first lady Margari-ta Zavala for a recent visit to the United Kingdom.

One piece in the JimAcnez's collection included a short, strapless dress in shiny black with fabric gathered at the waist. An equally elegant floor-length dress tiered layers of sheer beige fabric, the neckline open and the shoulders lightly covered with a translucent square of fabric.

Mexican designer Pedro Loredo continued this season's common thread of adding personal, unique touches to his collection of menswear, formal gowns and winter coats. His line incorporated sequins and intricate hand-stitched embroideries along with chaquiras - indigenous craftwork using jade, turquoise and slate.

Loredo in the 1960's elevated Mexican fashion to the international style scene with collections influenced by pre-Hispanic handiwork and patterns.

Other designers who presented at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion show included Gustavo Matto, Alberto Rodríguez, Macario JimAcnez, HAcctor Terrones, Armando Mafud, Malafacha, Gustavo Helguera and Grypho, among others.