NEW YORK, Sep 18, 1999 /FW/ --- Since the hurricane rained off Thursday, a few shows were re-scheduled to today. Unfortunate for the designers but most of the international press had kept their flight bookings and gone home already. But it didn’t dampen the three collections that I saw.

First up I went backstage at Anand Jon and watched as the hair was twisted and finger loosened and faces were glittered and bronzed to complement Anand’s colorful sari-inspired collection.

I ask Anand what he makes of the Indian influences that have appeared in a lot of shows this season and how it affects him - since this has always been his signature style. He responds, "It's a form of flattery actually. Indo-chic has always been there on a subtle level but designers have never really thought why until now. Now they are making a casual element that has always been there stronger."

I ask him where his line is leading if the rest of the pack have caught up to him in this regard. Will he end up doing his own version of street wear? "This is a challenge, I agree. But I’ve never forgot my Indian heritage although that’s not all that I’m about. I live in the USA and day to day influences can’t help but seep in to my collections so yes, its possible influences from street wear will infiltrate."

Out on the catwalk Anand's designs were indeed a textural bacchanalia of cultures colliding. Combat style boots worn with khaki speckled embroidery shorts and a black crystal and gold girdle belly jewelry worn on the tummy between embroidered tops and fitted skirts. The glitter ball shoes and stockings-and-shoes-in-one that rounded off dresses like the gray sequins hand beaded yantra dress took the sari feel to downtown groovy.

My favorite pieces were a simple lavender silk bias dress flowing and worn with encrusted ruby and gold thong slippers and a pink organza dress with silver embroidery. Brocade mini skirts and bandeau tops and a blue halter with mirror worktop were memorable too.

Because of the new Saturday schedule there was no fight to get seats at Vivienne Tam as it was held in the big tent. Since Vivienne is a native of Hong Kong, she called her collection the Year of the Dragon and refers to representations of the dragon throughout the clothes.

Birdsong played as the models began to glide out in hand embroidered tech fabrics - very unexpected. I thought the fringed mint pointelle camisole and dress were exotic and this worked best in a lime fringe bead halter-top with an open back worn with a lime wax silk eyelet skirt. I was not crazy about the palm frond, sea monster and dragon prints but absolutely loved the chartreuse metallic halter tee and turquoise sequin dragon embroidered skirt - they were a lovely mix.

For my last show of the week, it was back in the Pavilion for the British designs of GHOST. How unfortunate that the hurricane rained off a designer that had to keep twenty-four staff in New York an extra two days for the re-scheduled shows. They were certainly very disappointed to show on a Saturday since they were expecting the best ever RSVP list of attendees of all the big editors.

No matter, backstage I found designer Tania Sarne who told me to expect a collection that would be a celebration of a 21st century carnival. The mood she said would be feminine, seductive, modest and elegant. As we took our seats around a square runway ruched, tucked ribboned flowing separates flowed by as a string of coral and pomegranate colored dresses and tops with ribbons trailing from cuffs and sexy frilly dresses.

I liked the jellybean print tea dress - a spaghetti string slip dress in pale mint with multi colored jellybeans embroidered on. However, the most striking combination I think was the dotty drill bell skirt in black and coral paired with a black cotton side wrap top and the most feminine of all, the finale dress - a moss colored Georgette backless ribbon dress. It was a feminine gypsy-style ending to an inspiring but grueling week.