New York Magazine publishes online guide to fashion designer Stephen Burrows

The Label
Friends with Warhol, dressing Cher, partying at Studio 54: Stephen Burrows was the designer for the drug-laced disco days-and one of the first African-American names in the industry. Known for his signature "lettuce hems" and sexy, flowing chiffons, Burrows notably exaggerated stitching instead of hiding it, and often used bright colors like red for the thread. After his clothes sold successfully at O, a NYC gallery-boutique located across from Max's Kansas City, Henri Bendel's created an atelier in the basement of their store called "Stephen Burrows' World." But in 1982, Bendel's was sold, and Burrows' fame and fortune went with it. In 2002, after 20 years of obscurity, he made one of the biggest comebacks in fashion history with a re-vamped Bendel's boutique and, later, Fashion Week shows. Soon after, he also debuted a watered-down version of his line on the Home Shopping Network.

The Look
Lots of chiffon-gathered, draped, and always sexy; vibrant disco-era colors like fuchsia, orange and turquoise; mini-miniskirts; and, most of all, soft, sumptuous jersey. But while there are elements of Burrow's past success, his current collections are modern and functional, and made for the world today. The clothes are so comfortable-yet-sultry that one model exclaimed, "Wearing Burrows makes me feel like I'm walking into a room naked!"

The Designer
New Jersey-native Burrows graduated from FIT in 1966 and quickly became one of the era's most famed African-American designers. After making his name designing for the club crowd, Burrows faded out in the early-eighties. For nearly twenty years, he concentrated on designing for the theater and a few couture clients (and on renovating his Harlem brownstone), until Bendel's came a-calling in 2002. Today, his career spans the high-end world of the Fashion Week shows to his spots on the Home Shopping Network. (see more at New York Magazine)