Here’s The Skinny On Fashion Wrap Narrow Belts Offer Inexpensive Way To Update Wardrobe

This spring it seems that the thin belt can do no wrong.

Designers on both sides of the Atlantic have made use of it to punctuate shapely jackets, accent ladylike sweaters, finish off dresses and hold up pants.

“We used the small belt to top off the clean, slick feeling of the clothes,” says a representative from the office of Miuccia Prada, the designer credited for sparking the trend.

“The result is a very groomed, refined look.”

“The waistline is an important focus of the season, and the slim belt emphasizes it in a feminine way,” says Margot Brunelle, fashion office director at Marshall Field’s, in Chicago, who reports that the most popular belts are in black patent, white, pink and snakeskin.

The practical message in all this?

The slim belt is a pretty, inexpensive way to update your existing wardrobe.

But how thin is thin?

“We like to use the word narrow - as in narrower than what the customer is used to,” says Steve Cooper, national sales manager of Omega Fashions Ltd., a manufacturer of women’s belts.

While last year’s standard belt was 1 1/4-inches wide, this season’s versions are just under 1 inch, with the thinnest measuring in at five-eighths of an inch, he says.

Though a defined waist is often slenderizing, only you can judge if a belt flatters or not.

You may want to consider choosing a belt in the same color family as your outfit, especially if you intend to wear it on top of a jacket.

That will ensure an uninterrupted line of color, always a figureenhancer, while providing the shape and fit of the season.