Spring 2006 Trend: Horizontal Stripes

Horizontal Stripes at Tuleh, Carolina Herrera, and Ralph Lauren.

Photo Credit: NY Metro

Trend Importance Factor: Medium High.

Wearability Factor: Medium High.

How to Wear It: Horizontal stripes are showing up on the runways as a remnant of Spring 2005's Nautical trend. Avoid wide horizontal stripes that cut your body into sections, making you look shorter and/or wider than you actually are. For maximum figure flattery, opt for thin horizontal striping. Excellent for visual interest, and the small scale of the print doesn't actually make you look any wider.

Where in Trend Lifecycle: Like Neutral Colors, the Nautical influence behind the Horizontal Stripe trend is more of a classic than a true trend. Horizontal stripes have been big on the fashion scene for a couple of years now--think of Sarah Jessica Parker's Carrie Bradshaw in "An American Girl in Paris."