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"Oh, how quickly we change our minds in fashion. Last season, we were declaring print fatigue and embracing a neutral palette of clean, minimal lines (hello, C\u00E9line!). Six months later, we seem to have developed an allergy to anything that isn't drowning in pops of pattern.\n\nWhen the models at Prada came marching down the runway in head-totoe prints that looked like they'd been ripped off the walls of a 1960s David Hicks\u2013designed room (Google Hicks, an interior designer legendary for his color-clashing geometrics), two things immediately came to my mind. Brilliant! Miuccia Prada strikes again was the first. Then: How on earth could anyone wear this much color and trippy pattern with a straight face in the real\u2014subwayhopping, school-bus-taking\u2014world?\n\nThat said, I've never been one to turn away from a challenge. So I begin by scouring the shows: Prada and Miu Miu are the obvious starting point. Other standouts include Marni, Topshop Unique, Carven, Dolce &amp;amp; Gabbana, and Jonathan Saunders (who studied textile design and created fantastical prints for Alexander McQueen before striking out on his own). I recruit my assistant, Media, to be my test-driving partner in crime. In addition to having parents who showed great premonition in naming her, Media is tall and willowy and could make a burlap sack look chic. She is also one of the only people I know who could fit into the Miu Miu pantsuit that was worn by Karlie Kloss on the runway.\n\nfacebook dialogPinterest\n\nThe Miu Miu outfits arrive at the office in a flurry of anticipation. Media and I unpack and immediately try them on. Mine is seven pieces, not including the snakeskin boots. There's a geo-pattern jacket with a capelet outer layer, a matching vest, a shirt in one print, a tie in another, and a dickey in yet another (in case you haven't added it up yet, layering is also a major trend for fall). This is just the top half. Thankfully, the bottom\u2014a skirt and belt\u2014doesn't require a math degree to calculate. It takes several attempts to figure out how to put it all together, and in the process I decide to nix the dickey and tie and swap the runway boots for Rag &amp;amp; Bone tapestry heels, but once I'm finally dressed, I'm surprised at how much I like it. The tailoring is classic, and the retro prints are somehow refreshing. Suddenly, everyone else looks so blah!\n\nWe set out to Washington Square Park, where we get nods of approval from a cross-section of New Yorkers (a teenage boy on his skateboard, a smartly dressed elderly lady, and a toddler who stops in her tracks and says, \"Wow!\"). My confidence boosted by this outing, I decide to go it alone for the next one. I throw on an office-appropriate silk shirt and pleated skirt in clashing prints, both by Jonathan Saunders. Several tourists actually snap my photo. I'm undecided as to whether this is a good or bad thing, but when it comes to the prints themselves, I am sold. After packing and returning the samples, I log on to Net-a-Porter to place an order. I'm ready to play for keeps. At least until next season."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.teenvogue.com/story/prints-and-patterns?currentPage=all>