L.A. Fashion Week Spring '04: Twelfth Streetby Cynthia Vincent
Cynthia Vincent returned to Mercedes-Benz Shows L.A. this season with her Twelfth Street by Cynthia Vincent Spring 2004 collection. The Los Angeles designer and former president of the Coalition of Los Angeles Designers was one of four designers whose runway show was sponsored by MBSLA.
Vincent’s aptly titled “Prim & Improper” show, held on Oct. 28, defined the paradox of fashion for Spring. Dressing down and dressing up are the same thing for the modern woman in Los Angeles, and conservative-yet-sexy is the goal.
Vincent showed combinations such as cardigan sweaters with cropped pants alongside racer-back tanks and pleated minis. She dressed up classic silhouettes with metallics and sparkly chiffon and altered classic cuts for sexier looks. Cardigans came in off-theshoulder styles, for example, and see-through chiffon dolmans covered up tube tops. Most of the pieces in her collection incorporated some type of sheen or sparkle, but there was a smattering of more-natural looks such as linen pants. There were metallic tunics in pink and earth tones, as well as a combination featuring a white polka-dot sparkle chiffon top over khaki tuxedo pants. A tie-dyed top and polka-dot skirt combination was about as casual as Vincent got, and even that outfit displayed some dress-up quality. —R.M.
