By KAREN POULSEN Owner/Founder of Bella Moda

Many fashion trends come go return again again with new names. On the runway they are showing a very short dress short paired with a business looking jacket or worn over a legging. (Didn’t we call those hot pants in the ‘70s?)

The “shirt” is usually a man’s garment, so how did we get to a shacket? Ladies have been layering their tops forever. Many women layer an extra outer blouse over a tee, tank or colorful camisole to keep warm on a cool spring evening, or to keep the chill off the shoulders in a favorite restaurant or theater. The fashion industry has renamed our outer layer blouse a shacket! When a sweater set is too warm; a coat or jacket is too much for the outfit, the shacket steps up to the task.

I remember my mother grabbing one of my father’s crisp clean white shirts using it for a light jacket in the summer. There you go, the first big white shirt, or was it a shacket? Today this is a great look with jeans, clean simple; you can belt it or let it hang open like a tunic or jacket. Roll up the sleeves add several chunky colorful bracelets. Change it up with a colorful legging for summer. A new fashion look found right in your own closet!

If the big white shirt is not your thing, then go for color bold geometric prints. These bright colors bold geometric prints from the late ‘70s early ‘80s are now called Mod (is that because of the Mod Squad we used to watch on TV.) Keep the prints simple like very large dots, flowers, bamboo with beautiful colors. It is ok to mix them together, as long as the colors complement each other. Mixing prints is very fashion forward. Don’t be afraid of the stripe, many better designers have gotten wiser about the way stripes run, where they end intersect, giving us a figure flattering look.

Take what you see on the runway apply it to your everyday style. Carefully select the items styles that work with your unique body type. Many newer fashions are very retro others are very classic looks. You can never go wrong with a classic look that suites your unique style.