Black & white & spring all over

NEW YORK -- ``We're all looking for excitement," says Tim Gunn of ``Project Runway" fame on the first day of Olympus Fashion Week. ``I come in with a sense of what the designers have achieved before, and that puts you in a place where you have certain expectations. I always like for my expectations to be surpassed. It's always thrilling just to be surprised."

The excitement for spring 2007 was not found in over-the-top, expectation-smashing colors or forms. Most of the fashion that sauntered down the runway this week (the shows conclude tomorrow) thrilled because it was so incredibly understated. The palette for spring 2007 is black and white, or, more important , black-and-white prints. British designer Luella Bartley showed an entire collection of black-and-white print miniskirts, dresses, and tight suits with the smallest splashes of pink, fuchsia, concrete, and putty.

When designers were not showing black and white, they were showing the next blandest thing: neutrals. Whether it was called straw, soy cotton, or toffee, the clothes were unnervingly calm -- and not always in a bad way. Alice Roi's collection was a study in soothing ecru and cafe con leche constructed into smart jackets and pocket dresses. Sophisticated mocha was also an important color staple. As a result, spring 2007 is looking strangely autumnal. Promising Indian designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee showed a fall-like black and gold A-line jacket, while Tuleh's Bryan Bradley went so far as to top cocktail dresses with faux fur blouses.

``We've just come out of a couple of springs that have been very, very colorful," menswear designer John Bartlett said after Roi presented her collection. ``The natural reaction to that is neutrals. I think people are concentrating a lot more on detail, silhouette, and layering."

While designers concentrated on details, spectators at this week's shows concentrated on the steady string of celebrities upstaging the clothes at the Bryant Park tents. Those hoards outside on 6th Avenue presumably were not crowding the sidewalk for an early glimpse of Diane von Furstenberg's line.

A designer's cache could be measured by the caliber of the celebrities who attended their runway show. The Monday night Marc Jacobs show at the New York Armory had the most magnetic pull, bringing in Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore , LeAnn Rimes , 50 Cent , and Kanye West , all of whom helped to off-set the presence of Stephen Baldwin , who was hawking his new book (note to Baldwin: Hawk at your own event). Chris Aire's sex-drenched Friday night show was another big draw, as Cee-Lo from Gnarls Barkley sang ``Crazy" and Tyson Beckford walked the runway shirtless in a pair of tight, rust-colored trousers to screams and cheers.

Then there were those who seemed to be at every show. Carmen Electra's smile beamed daily at the tents.

``I sketch clothes all the time," said Electra just before the BCBG Max Azria show. ``I've always been interested in fashion. My mom is a seamstress, so if I sketch something, she can put it together." However, she confessed that the dress she sported at the show was Azria's, not her own.

Electra's smile seemed warranted at a BCBG show because Azria's line was a frilly, pretty celebration of spring and femininity. He daintily took the baby- doll trend of 2006 further, with light and layered dresses that billowed on top, and rode high on the hem. He was one of the few designers who stepped into color and used it well. Even a massive, full-length dress with delicate embroidery at the hem had the look and effortless quality of a summer nightgown.

Tracy Reese also took the baby-doll dress in a nightgown direction with an embroidered ``free frock." Eyelets and feminine lace dominated several spring collections. Reese began her show with a subtle nod to the eyelet in a three-quarter length dress, but midway through the procession of models, it evolved into eyelets gone wild, as one model in a cut-away tunic was quickly followed by another model wearing a mauve table linen inset mini. (Table linen is shorthand for fabric with sections that are cut away to show the skin underneath.)

Early in the week, a newcomer and a seasoned vet both demonstrated their prowess in very different ways. On Sunday, Brian Reyes, who once worked for Oscar de la Renta , showed a line of short, sexy, young dresses that were stunning. De la Renta's show the following day featured very adult dresses that managed to sidestep looking matronly.

Those craving a unified skirt length, must-have shape, or defining single color for spring 2007 will find the solution by looking to the fashions of the past.

``It's all about the 1950s and 1960s shift dress, but with a less architectural form," says Robert Verdi, host of E!'s ``Fashion Police." ``That's why the colors are very basic for spring. Designers are giving shoppers a chance to become accustomed to these shapes in basic colors. They don't want to completely scare off their audience."

Christopher Muther can be reached at muther@globe.com.