view slideshow »

Gap Inc.'s Holidays, Three Ways

Just the gap between high and low is increasingly closed - mixing a designer jacket with a pair of jeans from a chain store like Gap is perfectly acceptable these days - it also makes sense that customers of Gap Inc.'s various brands, Old Navy, Gap and Banana Republic, would look to these stores to satisfy different wardrobe needs, whether it's clothing for kicking around the campfire or attending a company holiday party.

Gap Inc.'s Holiday 2008 presentations for these three brands on Thursday, July 10 in New York, showed the distinct holiday occasions that customers might look to those stores for.

Banana Republic, at the high end of the Gap Inc. spectrum with its self-described mantra of "Accessible Luxury," highlighted evening looks, like their version of Prada's Fall lace dress designs, silk cocktail dresses (one-shouldered, flutter sleeved or plunging neckline were among the various designs) in rich tones like raspberry, deep violet or royal blue. Coats had strong volumes, with funnel neck or bow details. For day, op art print blouses had a seventies YSL flair, as did their version of Le Smoking, a white tuxedo jacket paired with tapered black pants. Accessories were also strongly emphasized, particularly large costume baubles made from clear or colored crystals.

Gap's Holiday collection went for the collegiate-prepster-on-winter-break look, with slouchy, comfy designs for both men and women. Wide leg or straight leg "boyfriend" pants sat low on the hip for the women, while men's denim and pants were likewise relaxed. Lumberjack plaids were given a chic twist when used with ruffled front blouses and belted wool coats for the women, while stripes and argyle, a perennial preppy favorite, were mixed and matched in muted neutral tones. Time to get the sleds ready and the hot chocolate warmed up on the cabin stovetop.

Old Navy's strongest Holiday offerings included their wide variety of sleepwear, with cotton and flannel pajama bottoms in bright, fun patterns. Paired with bright sweaters in happy shades of pink and aqua tempered by grey and black, it will be a hit with college kids writing papers late at night during the coldest winter months or families gathered for winter holidays looking for cute matching pajamas for their roost.

		* A Very Betsey Birthday Bash * Martha Davis: Industrial Design Meets Shoes