Michael Kors: Spring 2012

"Afriluxe" is the term Michael Kors used to describe his Spring 2012 collection in show notes. It was a languid, very luxurious show that cited artisanal textures and raw textures as inspiration. Linen tunics and serapes, ponchos, sarongs, and caftans were styled with thick leather belts and strappy gladiator flat sandals. The season's most popular jacket, the anorak, was done here in silk. Colors were pulled from the earth — sand, olive, teak, and sienna made for a rich palette, and there was some tie-dye too. If the show didn't present any particularly new ideas, it did reinforce Kors's knack for making beautiful, luxurious things people want to own. His ideal clientele sat right in the front row: Zoe Saldana, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Mario Testino, Rachel Zoe, and Michael Douglas (sans Catherine Zeta-Jones) were on hand to watch the parade of caftans, ponchos, and snakeskin-trimmed dresses float seductively by.

• Trends: Tribal, safari, leather, anoraks, scarf dresses.
• Colors: Earth and sunset tones: ivory, olive, sienna, teak, sage, limestone.
• Key Piece: A white linen "wind coat" worn by Karolina Kurkova, the ponchos and caftans.
• Accessories: Incredible leather "Tanzania" messenger bag, strappy gladiator flat sandals, wide leather belts.
• Who Would Wear It: Classic, confident women like the ones we saw in the front row: Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Zoe Saldana.