Despite yesterday's biting cold, summer made a flashy appearance at the Merrion Hotel, Dublin, as Brown Thomas paraded its spring/summer 2005 collection.
Women of all shapes and degrees of paleness may take heart: with the eclectic mix of styles and materials: there is something for everyone, and many of the soft colours and floral patterns might suit light skin tones better than bronzed ones.
With femininity reigning supreme in this year's line-up, frocks, tops and even jackets were anything but severe, with ample ruching, lace, sequins and multilayered and tiered skirts skimming the female form.
Even items in Vivienne Westwood's trademark highly tailored collection displayed a soft touch, with a structured charcoal striped jacket enhanced with gentle dollops of fabric as pockets, and close-fitting white and black dresses sporting flattering folds at the bodice.
Joining florals in sorbet colours, safari and exotic themes also turned up in collections by Dolce and Gabbana and Roberto Cavalli. D&G used an unusual and effective black/blue/olive houndstooth tweed for an attractive jacket with Nehru collar, and the same material for a surprisingly swishy skirt, blended with lace insets folded into box pleats. After a black dress covered with bursts of embroidered, graphic flowers, Cavalli's long leg-hugging dress in burnt earth and dark brown stripes looked almost snakelike.
John Galliano's full-length bias-cut dresses also enveloped the figure in echoes of Vionnet's legendary designs. He too favoured generous ruching at the neck and skirt. Missoni's stripey knitwear made a delightful transition into summer with lightweight fabrics, the cloth cleverly cut and constructed to play with the bands of watermelon, banana and mint colours in the fabric.
Suede continues to be popular, turning up in jackets, sandals (such as Chloé's thong-like models), and belts - suede, leather or fabric, these tended to be wide and worn high to accentuate the waist.
The collection of Alice Temperley, a newcomer to Brown Thomas, featured ladylike dresses embellished with intricate embroidery, beading and sequins. A special highlight came in a light drawstring jacket and silver-grey dress in a frail sequined knit which looked like a dew-bedecked spiderweb draped across the body.
For a smarter look, Pucci and Diane von Furstenberg both offered clingy wrap and halter-neck dresses in muted graphics and floral designs.
Other designers featured included glam Gucci (with a first collection by Alessandra Facchinetti taking over from Tom Ford), funky Stella McCartney, elegant Prada and magical Matthew Williamson, with Hermes and Chanel notable - sadly - only by their absence. Perhaps the chill wind was just too much for them.