BARBIECORE PINK BECAME A DISTANT IF NOT OUTDATED MEMORY ONCE THE SEASON TURNED. The onset of fall brought forth plenty of fashion trends and with it a new crop of colors. In a season of muted tones few colors made the cut, ice-cool blue and an unusually summery buttercup yellow threaded through enough collections to become bona fide trends. But the most heavily featured shade on fall runways was a very desirable and festive-friendly RED. 

Never truly going out of style, red is a classic forever trend. A color which cannot be ignored, a color which cuts to the chase and filters out the dull. While this season was awash with neutrals, red drove a path through the quiet luxury trend and came out strong. What wasn’t lost from stealth style was the elegance. Red permeated onto a swath of different styles, but the one that charged the hardest was the red frock. Even at its most glamorous, these monotone red dresses screamed sophistication, often touting less cherry and more tomato with orange undertones. 

These days, it seems color must penetrate more than just the clothing on the runway. Cutting a crimson path was David Koma, whose catwalk vibrated with red walls and a plush red carpet to match a large selection of the collection. At Loewe, more attainable satin shifts were printed with blurry images of a basic mid-length dress to create a dress-on-dress effect. The vibrant red one was particularly striking, and like much of the collection, easily wearable, made evident by the flat slouchy boots that accompanied each one. The lineup of red dresses was insatiable from Bora Aksu’s long Bandeau leather dress, to Valentino’s elegant red shirt dress accessorized with a very masculine black tie and a thigh-high side slit. Injecting a red hue onto a multitude of dresses, it comes as no surprise these looks gave some of the most show-stopping moments. 

As all these red dresses suggest whether they be short or long, day or evening, red speaks volumes and is a paragon of glamour. Fire it up. The red dress is smoking hot this season. 

Kim Smith has been a professional wardrobe stylist in Honolulu since 2004. Born a true Londoner, Smith had a successful career in public relations in the fashion industry in London for more than eight years before moving to Hawai‘i in 2002. Smith’s work spans a vast array of magazines, retailers and television as well as working with individual clients on their specific style needs. See her work at kimsmithstyle.com.