BEST OF NEW YORK


Shopping

Best Sundresses
Henri Bendel
712 Fifth Avenue
At 56th Street
212-247-1100


So maybe the air’s still a bit chilly for you to break out the sundresses, but if you’re already daydreaming about your Study in Black and Gray closet blooming into spring colors, check out Henri Bendel’s vast selection. From May through the middle of June, the store will fill a ground-floor boutique with hundreds of styles—from its own label and from designers like Nanette Lepore, Jill Michelle, Diane Von Furstenberg, and Betsey Johnson (mostly $150–$300). You’ll find slips in every imaginable variation -- delicate, bold, paisley, or solid -- all of which are sure to complement your bronze shoulders come summer. For an edgier -- but equally colorful -- nighttime look, try Tracy Feith (209 Mulberry Street; 212-334-3097). We always love his silk paisley dresses, but this spring, the blue ribbon goes to the Wyamea -- a flowing coral-and-white animal-print number, piped with turquoise and gold ($485).