Once more fashion designers decided to prove that there is nothing more elegant and chic than black color. On the first day of shows in Milan, Miuccia Prada unveiled her autumn-winter 2005-06 collection, featuring raven hue with a bit of grey and camel thrown for diversity. Black felted wool coats, black tops, black suits, some with the occasional splash of white along a seam, black taffeta items, black feather shoulder cape over a hourglass dress – all could be characterized by exact tailoring and simplicity.

Black and grey were also the dominant colors at Emporio Armani show, when Giorgio Armani presented his collection, featuring belted volume and cropped sleeves a la Balenciaga. The new range included fringed black satin skirts, black wool and velvet jackets, little black dresses, pencil skirts elasticized above the knee, mid-thigh bloomers, tiny flapping hot pants and fishtail minis.

"It's powerful, very exciting, sexy," Kal Ruttenstein, fashion director at Bloomingdale's, told Reuters.

While a top U.S. fashion critic called the bloomers “monstrous”, Armani said they were "more modern, more courageous — after all women like to show their legs."

"It's a collection for a woman who loves her glamour, who goes out to eat at night. It's a homage to beautiful women," said the fashion industry veteran about his splendid creations.