There was once a time when the resort/cruise collections were made for the rarefied woman who could afford to escape the winter by heading to the tropics (she needed swimwear and a caftan, did she not?). Not anymore. While still a David to the Goliath fall and spring collections, resort is catching the attention of more and more people.

Like air travel and cell phones, is resort bound for the masses?

Collections are just now beginning to hit stores and, for a season that's ostensibly all about lounging around on the beach or the deck of a boat, there's a lot of fashion news to digest: optical motifs, exotic locales like Marrakesh, sheer, leathers for day, aquatic, scuba, old-world charm, draping and, of course, nautical.

The media is doing their part. Fashion magazines are pointing out 'It items' like the floral ribbon-laced sandal from Prada, a bright green croc tote from Roberto Cavalli and pretty much everything in Chanel's stunning parade of black and white caftans and graphics (above).

Fashion insiders have long contended resort/cruise is either an evolution of fall or a preview of spring. That's not necessarily the case today, says style and beauty expert Mary Alice Stephenson. Stephenson explained to me this week that fashion has become like fast food and designers are compelled to feed the hungry. In other words, a resort collection must stand on its own.

"People want whatever's new," she says. "And designers like to keep customers surprised with their unique point of view. Shoppers are putting more thought into their splurges. So designers have to seduce the buyer with making the pieces usable in every aspect of their lives."

Others tell me resort/cruise is the one time designers get to cut loose and get creative. Saleability is less of an issue for a season that lasts, at most, two months. Of course, some designers go overboard. Calvin Klein designer Francisco Costa caught hell from my former employer Women's Wear Daily for his lineup of transparent dresses: "A long-standing argument against such [formal runway] presentations for resort is that inevitably some designers will crossover to the too-editorial side." Too-editorial means that those dress will have nothing whatsoever with how you and I dress in reality.

Still, as buyers we are demanding uniqueness, a slice of our favorite label. We want pieces to seamlessly integrate into our wardrobes. We want reality. And we want season-less items to wear far into next year.

We want it all, don't we?

Designers are in the midst of a heated argument at Milan fashion week-whether one should dress for sex or dress for abstinence in a global recession. Seems a fitting debate in a country where the famously womanizing Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and Pope Benedict XVI are its two most powerful leaders

On the celibate team sits Miuccia Prada, who practices restraint on a regular basis (well, by Italian standards). She further reigned in her collection (well, by Prada standards) to include charcoal knee-length walking shorts, Fifties-style swimwear and demure day dresses. The ever quirky Marni showed knee-length shorts and paired them with thick-strapped shoes with thick soles worn with beige ankle socks (I can hear my boyfriend's protests now). Roberto Cavalli went AWOL from his I'm-too-sexy position in the marketplace, putting out modest peasant dresses with hems stopping mid-calf.

Then again, sex sells. Versace stayed true to form. Sex, sex and more sex with Donatella's brand of cigarettes afterward, thank you. Slits cut up to there. Necklines cut down to there. Cut-outs revealing erogenous zones. Towering stilettos. Short, short, short. (Definitely more my boyfriend's speed, I'm guessing.)

Roberto Cavalli is an in your face type of designer. His designs are unapologetically bold and at times risky, but always always intriguing. Cavalli's Gem Heels are that perfect balance. Set against sexy black patent leather, these heels are adorned with gems and crystals that create an instant wow factor to be be worn for years to come. However, the gold tone 4 inch stiletto heels might make them a bit dated but Cavalli's Gem Heels are still strikingly gorgeous. Price: $775.

In a turn away from the soft, slouchy, and often puffy bags that always seem to overrun the springtime runways this Leopard print box clutch by Roberto Cavalli is a glamorous and sleek alternative. Multicolored leopard print resin is paired with gold hardware and a golden chain handle. The design is very minimalistic, with no exterior accents (other than Cavalli's signature) and closure acheived with a hidden internal magnetic closure. It also has a hinged base and luxe golden lining, but looks like no interior pockets. $1,195

The economy just might be getting to Roberto Cavalli. He convened a press conference in Milan, Italy to cancel the show for his secondary line Just Cavalli, a press conference that the Guardian referred to as a temper tantrum. The Just Cavalli line is controlled by IT Holdings, a company which sought bankruptcy protection from its creditors Thursday.

Roberto Cavalli expressed his displeasure at not being able to have the show. He seemed very frustrated by the fact that the company was making 240 million euros in annual turnover over a year ago but was now in trouble. He stated that he felt very emotionally attached to the line. IT Holding owns several other Italian labels including Gianfranco Ferré, C'N'C Costume National and Versace Sport. Just Cavalli was a sexier line aimed at younger women and featured Kate Moss in one of its advertising campaigns. The main line Roberto Cavalli will show at the end of the week. Check out the designs from the last Just Cavalli show in the gallery below.

For the most part, the fashionable set chooses exclusive credit like the AmEx Centurion -- the oft-envied black card crafted from titanium instead of mere plastic. But as of March of this year, Roberto "Excess is Success" Cavalli is trying to get in on the action with a snakeskin-finish credit card for the discerning shopper.

The iridescent card comes with its privileges: special sales at Cavalli, invites to fashion shows. Perhaps cardmembers will gain access to Cavalli's new club in Florence, or clubs soon to open in Dubai and Milan.

But snakeskin does not a status card make, between AmEx's personal concierge, free stays at the Mandarin Oriental and the eye-catching prestige of carrying plastic that's not plastic at all.

[via BlackBook]

Italian fashion designer Roberto Cavalli becomes the latest designer to take his talent to a hotel project in Dubai. The Fairmont Dubai will be the site of Roberto Cavalli's first Cavalli Club a new 'entertainment and night-life' concept. In Dubai, Cavalli is planning a two-story club with a separate entrance from the Fairmont Dubai. The floors will be done in shiny black quartz with reflective crystal dust and tall walls of Swarovski crystals create sparkling curtains. Want to shop late at night? The ground floor will showcase jewelry, watches and exclusive accessories from the Cavalli Maison. There will also be selection of refined food products chosen by Roberto Cavalli to express the best of 'Made in Italy."

Upstairs, an Italian restaurant is at center of the hall, while on either side of the Italian restaurant, there are are two large atolls in gold-colored glass and fur, suspended from the floor, which host a sushi bar and a wine bar featuring Cavalli Selection red wine. The upper floor also features a lounge bar with music and a suspended platform that will host the DJ and the dancers, as well as other entertainment and shows. The Cavalli Club Dubai will open in November 2008, with Cavalli set to take his party to Florence and Milan later.

(In this photo Cavalli poses with a plate portrait done by Julian Schnabel. Cavalli bought the plate portrait in 2007 at an AmFar auction).

Italian designer Roberto Cavalli has put off talks over selling a stake in his fashion business to a private equity firm. The Telegraph reports that bankers at Merrill Lynch in London and Italy were working on deals with buyout groups including Carlyle, Lion Capital and TPG in recent months. The deals halted on a pretty major sticking point, the value of the business. Cavalli figures his business is worth about $2 billion while some buyers thought that figure was close to $1 billion.

It's unknown whether Cavalli has called off talks permanently or is on the hunt for someone who will agree with his valuation. In our currently gloomy economy some luxury companies are finding it increasingly difficult to attract investors willing to write the big checks. The luxury brands are doing well but right now the climate of economic fear has some firms fearing the long haul. For the moment Cavalli seems to have aimed too high but the Italian designer, famed for his sexy styles, will likely get his deal eventually, he might just have to scale back his expectations.

Versace has tapped two of modeling's most beautiful faces for its new Fall ad campaign shot by famed photographer Mario Testino. Russian knockout Natalia Vodianova (foreground) and Brazilian stunner Isabeli Fontana star in the ads which feature Versace's eye-popping new line of handbags, clothing and accessories. Fontana is having an especially good season campaign-wise. As we reported last month, she also stars in Roberto Cavalli's theatrical new ads as well those of Valentino. See the gallery for more pix from the campaign.

Last month we reported that Italian designer Roberto Cavalli had picked not one but four beautiful models to replace Kate Moss in the ad campaign for his signature collection, which will be modeled on the classic movie Il Gattopardo. He's not quite over Kate, however. She is now starring in ads for one of his diffusion lines, Just Cavalli, which is targeted to a younger audience. The ads, shot by fashion photog duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, mirror real life somewhat, portraying Kate partying with a bunch of rock star dudes (no controlled substances are visible). After finally breaking with messed up Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty, the eternally gorgeous Brit beauty took up with another, more presentable rocker, James Hince of The Kills, though on her recent party jaunt to Sardinia he was conspicuously absent.

Sparkly and golden, this handbag is sure to make you feel like a rockstar as you make your entrance at whatever event you take it to. It's the Metallic Bracelet Bag from Roberto Cavalli and it's really a two-for-one handbag and bracelet. It features gold metallic leather with a gold bangle bracelet that can either dangle off the bag or dangle on your wrist. It has a clasp closure on the top and a shiny leopard print lining. This is the kind of bag that will make you feel beautiful no matter what kind of day you're having! $1,165

Italian designer Roberto Cavalli has chosen four top models to replace Kate Moss (right) in his new Fall/Winter 2008-09 ad campaign. The campaign, to be shot by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, is inspired by one of our favorite movies, Luchino Visconti's 1963 Il Gattopardo ("The Leopard), based on the book by Giuseppe Tomasi Di Lampedusa.

The movie, set in Sicily in the 1860s, stars Burt Lancaster as an Italian prince struggling to maintain a dying aristocracy, Alain Delon as his dashing nephew, and the beautiful Claudia Cardinale as Angelica, daughter of a rich former peasant who represents the new social order. Cavalli has chosen models Isabeli Fontana, Angela Lindvall, Raquel Zimmerman and Frankie Rayder to play the parts of Cardinale and the movie's other beauties in the ads.

"I've always been aesthetically fascinated by this film," Cavalli tells Women's Wear Daily. "I also find Il Gattopardo, a story that's based on the idea that 'the more it changes, the more it stays the same,' a good metaphor for fashion. In the campaign, the heroine - a sort of new Angelica - dances in the wilderness while a fire rages in the background; she represents the force of everything that is new, yet in the end she dresses like a romantic debutante." We think Fontana for one is perfectly cast as she bears an uncanny resemblance to Cardinale.

These quirky gecko cuff bracelets are so recognizably Cavalli, I can't think of another designer that could make sparkly reptiles look somewhat cool and fashionable. The shimmering Swarovski crystal lizard is toned down by the neutral wood body, making these bracelets a fun and playful addition to your summer accessory collection. Pick your color, fuchsia, blue or green... or a more wearable black (my favorite). Vivre.com carries the Roberto Cavalli Gecko Cuffs which retail for $625.

These stunning Roberto Cavalli Wooden Wedge Platform Sandals, kick any simple summer outfit into high gear. Towering 6 inch heels (+3 inch platforms) may have you teetering, but no one said fashion was easy, right? Soft leather in a basic creamy nude shade, is embellished with shiny silver hardware including studs and a large silver buckle. These fabulous wedges retail for $1,850 and are available online.

After several years of scrambling after hot new faces, a slew of the world's top fashion houses have decided to take a more classic approach for Spring/Summer '08, showcasing supermodels who ruled the Earth in the 1990s in their latest ad campaigns. The top indicator that the supes are back in town is artist Richard Prince's new campaign for the Louis Vuitton bags he designed, starring a gaggle of semi-retired stars: Stephanie Seymour, Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer and Eva Herzigova, all sprawled on the hood of a kandy-kolored muscle car.

This season, Schiffer also appears in ads for Salvatore Ferragamo as well as Chanel, along with Christy Turlington, who's now also the face of Escada. Herzigova also stars in the new Roberto Cavalli and Chopard campaigns, while Shalom Harlow meanwhile does the honors for Valentino, Tumi and Jones New York.