obsession : ruffles

I was never a big "ruffle girl" - they always seemed too cutesy or child-like to me. But having just costumed a play consisting of many ruffled Island-style skirts (and seeing the racks of can-can skirts and crinolines in the back of our warehouse with the hoops) I've started to love them a little bit. They have a marvelous weight to them, and the volume is just right.

The kinds of ruffles I'm talking about aren't 1970s men's shirt ruffles, or ruffled sleeves. I'm referring to those lovely ruffled strips placed on the hems of skirts or blouses.

Prada Spring 2011 RTW; I love everything about this dress on the right. The ruffle is a wonderful kicks-out-when-you-walk length, the colors are whimsical, and it's still somehow marvelously sophisticated.