My mother was and still is a stylish lady, and there is no one I enjoy shopping with more. As a small child, I remember she went through a period of wearing suits, and on special occasions for black-tie events, she looked the personification of chic next to my father, both dressed in matching sleek black tuxedos. They have always been an incredible duo...

A tuxedo is technically a tailored two-piece suit with a satin lapel and cummerbund. In the fall of 1966, Yves Saint Laurent created a female version he named Le Smoking when he showed his Pop Art collection. Le Smoking was not an instant success, and it wasn’t until the 1970s when celebrities like Liza Minnelli, Catherine Deneuve and my mother’s muse Françoise Hardy wore it that it became the iconic style it is seen as today. Le Smoking is, of course, a more form-fitted female style of the silk-lapeled men’s smoking jacket, which was created in the late 1800s to protect men’s clothes from the ash of their cigars.

It’s been nearly 60 years since Le Smoking debuted, and this season’s evening wear will find elegant women suiting up for cocktail time, at least that’s what many designers are hoping for. Ralph Lauren, a designer who often returns to suiting in his collections, opened his first store in Beverly Hills back in 1972, just a year after Bianca Jagger wore a white satin-lapeled jacket to her wedding with Mick.

This season is no exception, with a classic female rendition of Le Smoking, including a crisp white shirt and satin bow tie, creating a striking silhouette. Others, like Harris Reed, the beautiful force behind the revival of the Nina Ricci label, made an elegant navy pinstriped tux. Versace and Valentino did away with pants altogether and created long noir mid-calf jacket-style dresses. A touch of masculinity and a great deal of glamour, Le Smoking gives off a touch of the dramatic but with a great deal of wearability.

As Yves Saint Laurent declared, “Fashion fades, but style is eternal.” Le Smoking, whilst not experimental, has just the right amount of cinematic flair for the current times with a whiff of sustainability.

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.