San Francisco Fashion Week

It's telling that San Francisco-based designer Kelly Barry started out as an environmental science major at the University of Colorado. Her Kelly B clothing line, featured at San Francisco Fashion Week, is made entirely from organic cotton and other organic fibers. (To learn more about organic cotton, read here.)

Kelly B's comfy, casual knits mix a trendy '80s vibe with playful nautical accents. Black capri leggings are lined with brass buttons, while anchor embroidery adorns the back pockets of a miniskirt. To see some of the highlights from her Spring/Summer 2007 runway collection, read more

The third annual San Francisco Fashion Week wrapped on Saturday night, ending five days' worth of sleekly produced yet refreshingly humble runway shows from some of the Bay Area's top up-and-coming designers. While the San Francisco event is a far cry from the exclusive haute couture of New York Fashion Week, the evenings' shows highlighted a distinctly artsy, West Coast glam and plenty of trends to keep an eye on in the coming months. Over the next few days on Fabsugar, I'll be highlighting my picks for the most promising collections; until then, here are some of the prevailing themes from the runways:

• Bubble everything. The cutesy gathered look isn't just for knee-length skirts anymore. SF's runways featured everything from bubble shorts to bubble miniskirts to poufy camisoles.
• Strong 1940s influences. Tie-front satin blouses, side-swept hair, and high-buttoned tops evoke a sexy cinematic look.
• Unexpected color combinations. Mint green with burgundy and butter yellow with tobacco brown make for refreshingly novel springtime palettes.
• Brass buttons and gold accents. Hold on to your Fall gold hues; you might just get to reuse them this spring, paired with bright pastels.