Shades of burgundy and jade, skirts and hemlines inspired by the designs of the 1960’s were among the trends on display at New York’s Fashion week, in February.

Among over 300 designers showing their Fall/Winter 2012 collections to media, celebrities and buyers, Vivienne Tam, Tory Burch, Diane von Furstenberg and Michael Kors featured pencil skirts, some with matching jackets and touches of the 60’s and 70’s with a cosmopolitan, urban flair such as the longer hemlines seen in maxi, circle and pleated skirts.

With the influence of the global economy on impulse buying, many designers are paying attention to detail and tailoring to fulfil the new trend in conscious decision making when building a wardrobe. Navy replaced black in some collections, but jades, deep green, plum and burgundy in fabrics ranging from fur and leather to silk and satins were more common as seen in Diane Von Furstenberg’s pink and berry sleeveless crepe dresses, frosted lime jacquard coat and scarlet pencil skirt.

Other designers featuring these rich colours and decorative fabrics included Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger and Narciso Rodriguez. Marc Jacobs, Christian Siriano and Karen Walker chose to feature metallic shades of green, gold and silver on brocades and jaquards.

Many designers mixed fabrics like jacquards and brocades and leather and fur, in an eclectic mix of layers, fabrics and textures although tweed and oversized plaid continued to be popular, along with buffalo check and blanket stripes.

The trend is definitely focussed towards tight tailoring and sophisticated palettes and silhouettes across the board.