Denim is No. 1 for back-to-school clothes

KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Denim, which has been fashion's high-flying star at all price levels for several seasons, is due for a downturn, financial pundits have predicted.
Certainly, conventional thinking is that anything that hot has to eventually cool down.
But nobody can really expect denim to fade from the world of chic anytime soon. It just gets reinvented.
Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst with NPD, a sales marketing and trend company, says denim is the No. 1 item in the back-to-school business.
Nylon, the trendy fashion magazine, devotes a whole issue to a wide variety of denim including prairie skirts, tote bags you can make out of jean tops and dark denim. The newest blast finish is rusted, by the way.
Chanel even has a limited-edition eye shadow compact containing four denim-inspired shades.
Dickies, the work pants and overalls loved by plumbers and fashionistas, are now so updated, they are available with cell phone pockets, Time magazine says.
And the Lee Co., based in Merriam and known best for denim, is opening a retail store in London.