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New York Fashion Week: At Calvin Klein, a mixed bag

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Calvin Klein designer Franciso Costa has been having a great year. He dressed two celebs for the Golden Globes Awards (Emma Stone and Claire Danes), and they were among my picks for best dressed.

But those sleek and sexy, bold-colored dresses (Stone was in melon orange, and Danes in shocking pink) couldn’t have been further from Costa’s fall collection, which rested on gradations of black, white, stone and gray.

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Costa was trying to convey sportiness by giving dresses and coats rounded and dropped shoulders to resemble a sweat shirt, according to the show notes.

But the stiff volumes were awkward, not athletic.

Costa is noted for his fabrics. But the wool fleece and alpaca flannel used on voluminous coats and sheaths were so plush, at times they resembled plush toys. Soft and shaggy alpaca done as a pullover top, and worn with pressed wool cigarette pants, however, looked cozy and cool.

The best pieces were sleeveless shifts with metallic jacquard details. But I would have ditched the chunky white, crepe-soled shoes worn with them. Too Nurse Ratched.

--Booth Moore in New York

Top photos: From left, Emma Stone. Credit: Matt Sayles / Associated Press; Claire Danes. Credit: Jason Merritt / Getty Images.

Middle and bottom photos: Looks from the Calvin Klein fall-winter 2011 runway collection shown during New York Fashion Week. Credit: Jonas Gustavsson and Peter Stigter / For The Times.

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