NEW YORK, Jan. 29, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- As New York Fashion Week approaches (2/6/04-2/13/04), 'fashionistas' should expect to see the return of an old fur favorite on designer runways. Blue fox, a long-haired fur that was popular in the 70's and 80's, is back -- the result of new working techniques that have made this dense, lush fur lighter and more versatile than ever before.
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In fact, all foxes -- silver fox, blue frost as well as blue fox have returned to popularity as jackets and coats this season because they can be made lighter without compromising their natural beauty. For example, applying blue or silver fox to chiffon or tulle reduces the weight of the garment and extends its wearability beyond the coldest days of winter. Also, a new technique developed by Saga Furs of Scandinavia called "airgallon" actually reduces the weight of each pelt by half. Steve Gold, Saga's North American Director, remarks: "Almost everything we're seeing made for next fall is a new concept for long-haired fur use. The reason is simple -- with fur more popular than ever before, designers are now totally intrigued with long haired furs. This season the fur of choice is fox."
Designers such as Nicole Miller, Carolina Herrera, Carmen Marc Valvo, Zang Toi and Badgley Mischka have used blue fox for both accessories and full garments.
Short cropped jackets are reminiscent of the blue fox 'chubbies' of yesteryear and Nicole Miller has turned out some very modern, young jacket looks. Carolina Herrera has employed the Saga airgallon technique for her fox creations as has Carmen Marc Valvo who uses the technique for his fox stole creations. Airgallon makes foxes lighter because it calls for the punching of repetitive holes in the fox pelt making the pelt more 'airy' and also lighter. Chaiken has also created several blue fox stoles with this technique while Badgley Mischka has crafted fox on chiffon - their resulting garments are virtually seasonless because they are so light.
Other looks that will be noticed on Fall runways are Cynthia Rowley's blue fox muffs, Michael Kors' cross fox in a tile technique for men and Cynthia Steffe's blue fox capelets.
Several up and coming designers are also using Saga techniques --included are: Jeffrey Chow, Derek Lam, James Coviello, and Behnaz Sarafpour.
The inspiration for blue fox can be traced to Saga's 'Fur Vision' program which was held in New York City this past October. Over 200 design firms visited that exhibition where they had the opportunity of learning about the newest working techniques for blue fox as well as mink.