The precarious polka dot is everywhere these days, it seems.  Spots of white adorn garments of many different shapes and sizes, ranging from the itsy bitsy teeny weeny itty bitty string bikini to the casual summer dress, full-on cocktail party dress, high-waisted skirt, one-piece jumper, wide retro headband, and little flat ballet shoes.  Bold primary colors go best with these fun, round companions: red, green, navy blue, and black.  As a general rule, polka-dotted fodder should be complimented with nice, simple, clean-lined classics.   Nothing too busy, crazy, ruffly, or avant-garde.  It is, after all, a fashion faux-pas to wear an outfit with elements that compete for center stage.  And the polka dot was meant to be the star of every outfit.

Yet there will always be some people who are adverse to polka dots for a variety of reasons.  These sleek fashion kittens often tend to prefer the more minimalist ultramodern look.  Maybe its because they want to be the star of their own outfit, and prefer not to be overshadowed by a funky dotted garment?  They love the look of monochromes: black and white, white with white, or black on black.  Ahhhhh.  No splashy patterns or white dots to interfere with the cut and the line, a modern minimalista’s dream has come true this summer with a beautiful abundance of monochrome outfits with cutouts.

Travis Taddeo: cuts out from the side

Embraced by local designers like Travis Taddeo and international designers like Versace and Alice + Olivia, cutouts are sexy, fun, and classy.  Whether a piece is missing from the back, the sides, the shoulders, or little pieces seem to be missing everywhere, the cutout is a great way to show a little skin without sacrificing style — in a simple black dress cut to kill.