Pitti Bimbo remains the gold standard of kid’s trend and trade shows. For Spring 2009, the top tier brands showed a renewed interest in bright colors, nature stories, well-worn denim and a truly feminine tone with plenty of dresses and floral confections.

Nolita Pocket, always a favorite offered up a thoroughly modern L’il Hippie while Agatha Ruiz de la Prada moved towards nature with her bright and busy looks. At Brooksfield, classic Americana prep was mixed with Capri Cool for a salable and fresh tennis club vibe while Calvin Klein offered up a casual cool with plenty of denim, heather grey knits and plenty of pink. Levi’s was a welcome addition to the runways with their uber cool layered knits and timeless denim pieces. Liu Jo’s clever knit and woven separates are offered in funky layers that show off their bright colors and a secondary theme of red-white and black. At Miss Blumarine offered a variety of feminine looks including cream formal looks, poppy printed separates, animal printed casual looks as well as tea party worthy voile layered tunics and dresses. At Monalisa, dressy looks were all centered on florals whther printed or appliquéd while casual looks all featured some reference to a licensed character. The faves included Disney’s Minnie Mouse and the ‘Duck’ family as well as the Road Runner from the WB.