Liz headed back to school

By Michele SanFilippo -- Home Textiles Today, 8/30/2004 12:00:00 AM

NEW YORK —

For the first time in its relatively short history, Liz Claiborne has gone back to school with offerings intended to catch the eye of the fashionable collegiate.

The lineup features five new print patterns in a range of colorations that includes a reversible comforter, sham and sheet set for $129.99 retail. The first new back-to-school looks are Horizon in two colorways, Floral Pop, Blooms, Island Hopping and Lucy. In addition, four new back-to-school colors have been added to the existing Main Street program. They are fern, turquoise, azalea and poppy.

After launching bath this past spring, Liz Claiborne is adding two new towels (Ripple and Fashion Plaid) that coordinate back to its initial reversible solid-color towel. Ripple is a two-toned jacquard and Fashion Plaid is a jacquard that will be offered in four colorways. In addition, five more colors are being introduced to the main reversible towel: ocean, kiwi, teal, lavender and coral.

In bath accessories, there are eight new looks, some of which coordinate back to bedding, while others are freestanding, utilizing a mix-and-match concept. New looks include Bon Aire, Strie, Crocodile, Mambo, Lucy, Shannon, Blue Botanical and Floral Wash. Bon Aire is a vinyl rattan and faux leather look in coral or green, while Strie offers hand-painted colored resin in a palette of nine colors. Crocodile is an embossed ceramic in four colors and Mambo, a sugared resin in two fashion-colored geometric designs.