Fashion Week spring 2010: Elie Tahari

Here’s a  Fashion Wire Daily report on the Elie Tahari spring 2010 show.

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If you really want to get a handle on what American women might be wearing next spring then a good place to start is with Elie Tahari, whose latest crisp and clean collection suggested that practical elegance will be a fashion buzz term of 2010.

Tahari has never been a super directional designer, but when it comes to interpreting affordable chic, he has an extremely good track record. His latest ideas were largely inspired by North Africa, so Saharan hues dominated in this collection, presented in his mid town Manhattan headquarters on Thursday, the first official day of the eight-day New York runway season.

“I was seeing Morocco, its desert colors, its romance,” Tahari explained to FWD as a swarm of retailers and editors swung by to see the presentation. Unveiled on a sandy colored catwalk, the collection was all about natty American sportswear, with lots of cool, clever and approachable looks that did not demand too much nerve for women to wear.

His best ideas were low-slung trousers, cut with forgiving curves but never too much attitude, great little linen shorts paired with super light boucle bolero jackets, and jodhpur style pants with fabric belts, shown with crisp cotton tanks. Finished with lots of gold, in liquid looking tunics or splashed on to T-shirts and ruffle shirts, and complimented with cork high heels and purses, this was a smooth statement of plausible style.