After a fall and winter of moody, cloudy shades of black and gray, many designers celebrated the naissance of a new season by bravely and heavy-handedly applying color in their spring/summer '08 collections.

Spring Marks a Departure from Darkness in Fashion

In part, this kaleidoscope of color was contributed to by the concurrent floral trend – featuring printed bouquets of vibrant roses, peonies, and pansies as realistic illustrations and graphic abstract motifs. Admittedly, the concept bright colors and flowers for spring isn't exactly revolutionary, but it is refreshing nonetheless and in bold contrast to other movements in fashion for spring 2008 which feature washed-out, soft sorbetto hues.

Vivid Color Rules the Runways

But back to the bold. Rainbow bright shades of sunny yellow, warm coral, vermillion orange, verdant green, hibiscus red, hot pink, pungent purple and sapphire blue made their way down the runways of more than a few designers.

Standout talent in the bright brigade  included the man New York Magazine describes as the master of elegance, Valentino, who – in his final ready-to-wear show – expertly incorporated punches of color on an overwhelming number of drop-dead-gorgeous, figure-conscious silhouettes, including sugary pink, lavender, fuchsia, turquoise, lemony yellow, and (of course) the signature Valentino red.

Even Burberry Prorsum added a little spice to the traditionally neutral palette in what Style.com has described as "the sexiest version of Burberry yet." In a luxuriously edgy, but mainly neutral and metallic mix, designer Christopher Bailey tossed in a few delicious hits of bright turquoise and magenta belted sheath dresses and jackets, opting for the undiluted impact of solid color.

Alber Elbaz's brilliant spring collection for Lanvin brought goddess dressing into the realm of mortal women with his uplifting and dramatic draping of fabrics into pleated, airy dresses in cobalt, emerald, yellow and orange. After a pause for a sampling of black and white, the explosion of color continued with teal, magenta, citron, coral, and purple billowing, belted, embroidered and embellished silky creations.

Color Your Wardrobe

Ease into the color trend by wearing one bright piece as an accent feature to an outfit:

• Wear bright colored opaque stockings with a black or charcoal gray skirt or dress; finish it off with a pair of peep toe shoe-booties.
• Wear a solid colored blouse or wrap top with a neutral pencil skirt, flare skirt or peg-leg trouser; try red, cobalt blue, coral, lilac or chartreuse up top and white, grey or black on your lower half.
• Make your outfit pop with colorful accessories: cinch a little black dress with a cheery yellow or nearly neon orange obi belt and finish it off with matching peep-toe pumps.
• Counterbalance colorful prints – especially psychedelic ones – with neutral solids.

Stand out this spring by wearing vibrant shades from head to toe:

• Wear a solid-colored sheath dress belted with a contrasting or black sash, or play with the color wheel and bring together separates in analogous colors.

• Jump into the bright color trend with both feet by wearing large blocks of contrasting colors: red and green, blue and yellow, purple and orange… you're bound to turn some heads. All that's required to pull this off is a healthy helping of confidence.

Go Bold With Color, But Keep It Simple

To really work this trend to the max, select highly saturated colors – there's no room for shrinking violets in this style.

To avoid looking too busy, keep makeup simple. Either go for a nude lip and dramatic eyes, or a bright crimson, orange-red, or fuchsia lip.