Camouflage styles are doing anything but blending in

  • By Samantha Critchell Associated Press
  • Friday, October 4, 2013 12:35pm
  • Life

There is no hiding from camouflage.

The print that at one time was only a tool for military troops to go unnoticed has become a front-and-center look in fashion. It’s been adapted in luxe fur, sequined sweaters, athletic wear and casual kicks. It’s for girls and boys, women and men.

“The irony is that camo is anything but camouflaged right now,” said Zanna Roberts Rassi, Marie Claire’s senior fashion editor.

More utilitarian versions include vests and parkas at J. Crew and jeggings at Aeropostale. For spring, North Face has camo-inspired workout gear.

“Camo is peaking,” said Emilia Fabricant, Aeropostale’s executive vice president of design, merchandising and production. “It’s hitting everything, from sweaters to outerwear. It’s so graphic. It’s edgy but it’s also completely neutral.”

That’s the beauty of it: It dresses up, it dresses down. It is as urban or as country as you want to make it.

It’s evolved into something like the cheetah print that was, at one time, considered edgy and a little risque but is now offered in everything from sweet ballet flats to toddler clothes.

Camo retains its cool, though, especially when it’s worn with a wink, said Tom Mora, head women’s designer at J. Crew. It’s wearing the print in a feminine fabric or something like a parka over slim cargo pants and a lacy tank top or high heels, he said.

“I like the sexy take on the classic hunter look,” Mora said.

It shouldn’t be worn head-to-toe, Roberts Rassi said. The good news is that single pieces will have a long shelf life.

“This isn’t a trend for a single season,” Roberts Rassi said. “It 100 percent transcends time.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.