Long and short of frills

Frills may be recommended by most designers but not all are getting it right.

Actress Julianne Moore came wearing a feathery creation by Christian Lacroix at the Cannes Film Festival. Huge black flowers on the shoulders of a lemon yellow dress, along with heavy diamanté detailing.

What was she thinking? Star wreck Back home actress Deepika Padukone also tried the gownwith-frills look at an awards function, but didn't quite make an impression. And Ayesha Takia looked like she was about to drown in frills, at the recent IIFA awards in Bangkok. The odd ornaments hanging down the front of her blouse didn't help either.

Designer Nachiket Barve offers a simple tip: "The amount of frills in your outfit should be in inverse proportion to your age. Also, keep the detailing minimal." Designer Mandira Wirk seconds this opinion. "The frills should be on the collars and sleeves. Frills all over a dress can make you look horrendous. And if you are voluptuous to begin with, big frills will make you look fat," she says. Other options The best way to make a statement, feels designer Nainika Karan, is to stick to small frills on the hemline, neckline and sleeves.

Designer Nikhil Mehra of the Shantanu & Nikhil label says that structured frills accentuate a curvy figure. Men, he suggests, could stick to frill-inspired pleats.