At Ease In Town

Until This Winter, Coty award winner Bill Blass was predominantly--and internationally--known for his high-style female fashions. Now his first collection of sophisticated yet casual attire for men is available and it's bound to make headlines. Blass' bold approach to pattern and color combinations, as well as his original treatment of coat shapes, gives the wearer a with-it look that's neither faddish nor extreme. And Blass, perhaps more so than others, designs clothes for a specific occasion; his trim tailored raincoat pictured here, when coupled with rain slacks, becomes a coordinated rain suit that can be complemented with a Blass high-turtleneck pullover and a rain hat. Men's casualwear wardrobes build up gradually. Blass keeps this in mind by turning out wearables that are independent yet readily interchangeable. His tissue-wool high turtleneck, for example, looks great with evening clothes, tweeds, corduroys or the rain suit. Blass emphatically designs for the man who takes his casual clothes seriously. His styles, fresh from the drawing board, typify the upbeat upheaval that has brought fashion elegance and élan to today's urban scene.