By Rachel V. Katz

Shaking off the cold fashions of the past year, Spring 2001 promises to bring a warming trend.

Chalcedony is picked as one of the stones that will best complement the fashions this spring. 18K white gold, carved chalcedony, and pavé diamond jewelry, part of the Quatrefoil Cable Collection™ by David Yurman.

You might call it palettes with attitude.

Coming across the fashion runways, a dazzling splash of powerful pastels has exploded on the scene. Joined by bright neutrals and shimmering metallics, these Spring 2001 colors are breaking boundaries - and presenting exciting opportunities for jewelry designers.

“Color's going crazy, and I think it's very refreshing to see so many new colors out there,” said Dawn Petersen, editor of Fashioninformation.com. “The color is fantastic.”

Added consumer confidence and a resurgence of femininity, sans frills, have nourished the creativity of the fashion world. Shoppers are willing to spend more - and want to look like they spent it - encouraging an outpouring of beads, sequins, fringes, and other adornments. “The economy is so strong. Consumers are so confident,” said jewelry designer Rina Limor.

When Margaret Walch, director of the Color Association of the United States, looks at the varieties of color springing up, the first thing she notices is the absence of dark colors. “It is not a dark season,” she said. Pin that development, some suggest, on the ho-hum passing of the millennium.

“This is the first year in the 21st century, and for a while there was a lot of uncertainty,” she explained. Instead of the high-tech gray that dominated earlier, feeling has returned. “This is real color. We're more comfortable,” she added.

The colors for Spring 2001 can be grouped into a number of different themes, each reflecting a different mood.

 

The spring palette of colors for women, courtesy of the Color Association of the United States.

Bold bouquets. Pastels occupy center stage, but these are pastels with a punch. Instead of light pinks and purples, look for lush lilacs, rich spring greens, periwinkle, turquoise, and coral.

“We're not really seeing any of spring's usual colors,” said Elizabeth Florence, spokesperson for the Jewelry Information Center. “They're light, but they're saturated.”

Limor has noticed a lot of violet. “I see clothing filled with flowers and violets,” she said. “All these colors are going to be beautiful.”

Not only are designers using these colors on their own, but they are also mixing them in some rather unusual contrasts. Floral and geometric patterns feature turquoise and lilac or lime green with coral, and chocolate brown accents mix easily with yellow-green.

A growing number of younger buyers are embracing the color wave, showing a greater sense of daring in choosing their hues. “People really love it, especially the young people,” Limor said. “Color is very big.” Warmer shades. Next in line is an array of burning, warm reds, ochers, and oranges. The names suggest a new boldness: Mars red, bloodstone, and henna orange, for example, are just some of the offerings. Even neutrals are spicier, with shades of nutmeg, cocoa, toast, and cactus making the list. As with the pastels, many of these shades are blended together in unique contrasts.

These hues reflect a return to a warmer mind set, said Walch. “That is related to global warming and also a shift out of a cooler green-blue cycle to a warmer red-orange one,” she said.

Even the blues have moved up on the fashion thermometer, said Florence. “When we saw blue before, it was all about how people saw the millennium in terms of being hi-tech and cold,” she said. Now, icy blue has melted at the edges to become warmer and richer.

Sheen and shine. Many of the colors coming out have a distinct metallic cast. Obvious choices like shimmering gold and bronze feature prominently in forecasted fashions, but many other colors have taken on a pearly, opalesque sheen as well. Leather has been dipped in gold and pearlized. Halston, for example, has rolled out bronze leather, gold lace skirts and pants, and several items liberally decorated in gold sequins. Even Donna Karan's “new black” alternative, called caviar, had a unique shimmer.

Coral jewelry will be a hot item this spring, blending with richly-colored wardrobes. 18K gold necklace with carved coral and emerald beads and coral and diamond button earrings from Henry Dunay.

Sheer and diaphanous fabrics are also making waves, draped over shoulders or around waists. “There are a lot of sheer and layered fabrics,” Florence said.

What you're not likely to see much of, except in some creative combinations, is straight black. “It is not a black season,” said Walch. “The perennial black is still there, but I think you have to do a lot with it to make it interesting.” Fashion designers certainly are making efforts to do just that, adding stripes of other colors, splashes of neon, and tufts of colored fabric to catch an onlooker's attention.

Beads are also playing a more prominent role in the lead-up to spring. Blouses, skirts, and dresses are sequined or feature beads as trim. Many see this transition from the reserved styles of the '90s to more flashy and confident designs out now as a reflection of the healthy economy. With money to burn, why not flaunt it with gold or extra baubles and beads?

The resurgence of beads comes as no surprise to Teresa Corallo Katz, a New York jewelry designer who has been using beads extensively in her work. “We saw the whole trend coming in years ago. We're really entrenched into the beads,” she said.

Many of these colors and combinations will translate well into gemstones. With coral shades dominating the color charts, expect to see more coral incorporated into jewelry designs to match the simmering reds and oranges coming out. Matching the punchy pastels will be a variety of gems, including citrine, tourmaline, and the glowing blue of tanzanite. And what could be better with metallic shades than classic yellow gold and iridescent stones?

Favorite picks will easily include peridot, blue topaz, labradorite, amethyst, and citrine, Florence predicted. Turquoise and coral will stand out, as will chalcedony and pink quartz. The pearly fabric styles will also encourage the use of milkier versions of some of these stones.

“We're planning to use a lot of colored diamonds and colored sapphires,” said Katz. She expects to use a lot of pink, violet, yellow, and brown. “The jewelry is very bold. I think fashion is finally catching up to us.”

Jade should benefit not only from the palette of complementary colors, but also from a resurgence of interest in Asian styles and refined stones, Walch said. Keep an eye out especially for “alien” jade, which has a brighter green cast. Coral and turquoise will blend naturally with many of the colors coming out.

Limor said pink quartz, frosted aquamarine, and peridot will feature prominently. With the colors coming out, she added, “Anything you wear is going to go well with aquamarine.”

Walch said she has noticed the pearly and iridescent styles spilling over into other accessories, like mother-of-pearl watch faces. “It won't be just jewelry,” she said.

Then there are the classics. Pearls, said many experts, are going to be particularly noticeable, matching both the bolder and softer variations of color coming out. “When I look at all these stones, they look like my mother's collection,” Walch said. “I intend to get out the ones she left me.”

Fashion is warming up to yellow gold again, as opposed to white metals, which have been popular in the past few years. 18K yellow gold, citrine, and diamond ring from Rina Limor for J.R. Gold Designs.

With classic gold coming back into fashion in fabric, look for yellow gold to catch up and perhaps surpass recent interest in the metal's white counterpart.

“People still love to wear white gold, but yellow gold is coming back,” said Limor, who speculated that jewelry made of gold would go well with the gold and bronze clothing fashions on the horizon. Interest in ethnic jewelry styles is also fostering new ventures into gold.

Many see a new sense of exhilaration in some of the more daring mixes and contrasts that invite jewelry designers to follow new paths. Turquoise and pearls, for example, have taken on a new partnership in some work, Florence said.

Designs will see a new, fresh edge. With a perceived return to femininity, expect to see jewelry that makes being feminine fun and refreshing. Plunging necklines and halter-tops will leave plenty of skin inviting adornment.

Earrings will continue to get longer, dangling down to shoulders and boasting hoops and hoops-on-hoops. This sense of movement could stretch over to other jewelry designs. Just as fringe is expected to enhance dresses and blouses, movable parts are likely to show up on other jewelry as well, including rings.

These designs will not be bulky, though. In keeping with the feminine trend, designers are planning to create lighter pieces that won't overpower the outfit and are appropriate for both casual day and more formal evening activities.

“It's light. People want to wear light things,” Limor said.

With belts featured prominently on the runways, Katz, who specializes in gem-laden clasps and buckles, said she is looking forward to fashioning more buckles this coming season. “I do think that all of our customers who order the buckles for bracelets will also go with the belt buckle,” she said.

As winter temporarily cools thoughts of color and warmth, designers will be sure to produce designs that will complement the flurry of color that is expected to explode into life come springtime.

“I think it's going to be a wonderful spring,” Limor said. “I'm very excited about the look and the bright colors.”