Cool Nordic or hot-blooded Latin: those are the types of women dress designer Richard Lewis has in mind this season. His ideals, seen modelled at his show in the Solomon Gallery, are big and middle-aged. (Well, quite big and in their 40s.) They are called Siggy (German) and Scorpio (Afro-American). It was bound to cause a stir. The collection was called "Ice and Fire" but it wasn't very dramatic. Ice was in sapphire blues; fire in rich claret. And black crossed the divide. Fire also got the final number, a scarlet-beaded tube. Hot stuff, very sexy. Apart from this, the clothes are typically Lewis: very simple, exquisitely cut, with the fabrics given full play. It was only the colours that created the elements.
Daytime dressing means skinny, boucle wool coats and dresses, the coats unlined and edged in braid, the dresses closely fitted and knee length - soft, easy dressing this. Or there are tight boucle jackets worn with tight, wool jersey trousers. Claret comes over as a strong seasonal colour, but grey is creeping back. There is no sign of "power dressing" here.
All the clothes are made to measure in a variety of colours. Jackets and dresses are from £320-£390, trousers and skirts from £120-£140.
Then there was a dash of Dynasty, and some borrowing from Hollywood's heyday from Penneys. The chain store was in confident mood about their autumn ranges, which were launched in the Herbert Park Hotel. And they had reason to be. They promised a lot, and delivered. This was good, discreet dressing with touches of glamour.
For such inexpensive clothes there is a marvellous determination to keep abreast with everything and get fashion out there on the streets. Anyone can cut a dash, but this is not to say everything is gorgeous. Need a working suit? It's here. It could be a black pinstripe (jacket £40, trousers, £22) or a beige rib, or something brighter like a red or vivid green, short-skirted suit (skirt £14, jacket £35). There are lots of different colours.
`The Power of A Woman', is how Penneys put it. But this wasn't obvious power, just clothes for wearing in the many lives that women lead.