Shiny leather is popping up everywhere

The crushed patent gives off highs and lows of light, creating a vintagelike look. "It gives an aged effect — the opposite of what you think of patent leather," she says.

"I love regular patent leather but it's very ladylike," she adds "Our bags are slouchier and softer. They hang. I don't have 'rules' about when and where to wear the patent bags. I'd wear patent with jeans in the daytime or out at night."

"The simpler the better when it comes to patent leather," advises Bill Blass designer Michael Vollbracht, who is launching a collection of Blass-branded shoes for spring. A patent-leather sandal with a metallic heel was featured prominently during the recent spring preview runway show.

There was some shine to the clothes and the patent leather helped continue that thought, he explained. "I wanted the shoe to be an extension of the leg. The best shoe — one made by Coco Chanel — was nude colored with a black tip. It made the leg look long and the foot small."

The allure of patent leather is that it always looks new and fresh, but, he adds, it's a little risky to use white patent leather because no one wants the foot to get all the attention.

"I used patent leather to be delicate, not bold," Vollbracht said.

The thought of seasons, however, never entered his head.

"The idea of 'season' for us is so narrow — they all run into each other. We have clients who spend part of the year in New York and part in Palm Beach (Fla.), or some of the year in Naples (Fla.) and some in Grosse Pointe, Mich. No one worries about 'fall' or 'spring' anymore," Vollbracht says.