You do not want to mess with Barbara Bui s fierce lady. The French designer s look is always cool, but this season it was also aggressive. "A sensual, powerful woman," was how Bui summed it up. A blue python pattern lorded over the collection, printed on a scuba-fabric skirtsuit, a collarless overcoat (made of a lightweight cotton mesh), and a pair of pointy, square-heel boots that looked like the perfect weapon to kick a person clear across the street.
Nothing evokes power more than a well-fitting suit, and there were plenty available: a classic black jacket and pant was given a sharp-shouldered edge, while a gray heather version was worn with a double-collar button-up. The collar-on-collar idea wasn t the only example of deceptive layering: A white cuff peeked out at the wrists of a chambray shirt. Even baby blue taffeta looks tough cut into a puffy bomber. But the real indication that this woman is ready for urban battle was the giant quilted parrot appliqué, done in Miami Vice colors and laid over everything from a leather sweatshirt to the inside of a jacket. It requires confidence to spare to pull off something that awesomely flashy.
