For us, the best thing about Saks.com’s new “Fashion In Action” video catalog isn’t the actual video.

Not that it isn’t fun to see the clothes in awkward semi-motion (although it’s really the camera that does most of the moving)  to the sound of that soft, disco-thumpy generic music loop.    You know us--throw in a silky-voiced narrator and gushy fashion-speak blurbs like, “Avant elegance!” “Run for color!” and “Bangles, bangles, bangles!”, and we’re all in. 

But what we really love is seeing all of the put-together outfits in the series.  Unlike most online catalog still shots, these pieces are mixed and accessorized with other designer’s pieces from head-to-toe--including bags and jewelry. 

Which is a beautiful thing, because, if you haven’t noticed, putting together today’s freshest looks is trickier than ever. 

Gone are the days of late-90’s minimalism when everything worked with everything else as long as it was black.  Now, unless you want to look like a salesclerk or a waiter, the head-to-toe black thing--or anything too neutral--is teddibly un-chic, Dahling, as is anything too matchy-matchy.   Not to mention the fact that,  with pants, tops and jackets all running the gamut from cropped to long, skinny to wide and fitted to full, combining separates can be its own special nightmare. 
Let’s face it:  Getting the the right balance of silhouette, color, pattern, texture, and detail in outfit requires a practiced eye, and few do it better than the stylists at Saks.

For instance, check out these three different jeans looks:

Or how the orangy-red Chie Mihara shoes don’t perfectly match the pinky-red in this Laundry By Design print dress, but the Alexis Bittar lucite jewelry does match:

And would you ever in a million years have thought to put that necklace and those boots with this airy little dress?
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Us neither!  But we have to admit that it strikes the perfect dressy-but-edgy note for, say, club- or gallery- hopping in the city for women young enough to pull it off.

And, although we’d love to be able to buy each outfit just the way it is--hell, we’d even settle just one pair of those gawgeous Louboutins-- each look can easily be interpreted with less expensive pieces, and/or ones you already own.  Because, if you really take the time to analyze each look, you’ll see that it’s less about the actual pieces than how they’re combined. 
Even makeup plays a crucial role--don’t be so distracted by the exaggerated application in the to notice the how expertly the makeup colors combine with each outfit, especially the lip colors.



Nice job, Saks stylists!