MANILA Philippines -- Louis Vuitton makes a quick stop in the wartime 1940s with a sedate pre-Fall collection of tailored skirt suits and a great emphasis on the waist before Marc Jacobs segues the fashion house to the fun, flamboyant 1980s for Fall-Winter.

At the recent trunk show-style press preview of the Pre-Fall 2009 collection in Bangkok, the house showed a lineup of hourglass shapes: pencil skirts and belted jackets, waists cinched with logo belts, and some delicate bow trims on knitwear. Pants are cropped, the better to show off the stratospheric shoes?with embroidery or sequins, in satin, velvet or exotic skins, toned down only by some witty styling: They?re worn with socks.

The Irene bag, inspired by Madonna?s pleated Kalahari style, is the bag for pre-Fall, which arrives in stores in June. The drawstring style with tassels comes in a mix of patent leather and monogrammed suede, in shades of brown and taupe.

Sofia Coppola?s collection for the brand will also make its full roll-out, to include the understated and utilitarian city bags (in suede or matte skin; in gray, navy, burgundy and Monogram), evening clutches and sensibly low-heeled wedge sandals.

Thrown into the mix is a selection of ballerina and driving shoes, ankle platform boots and two zippered boot styles that can be worn three ways: thigh-, knee- or ankle-length. Minaudieres of past seasons are updated with either new hardware or fabrication. The Multicolore wallets are to watch out for with their new, colorful inner flaps.

For men

For menswear, Jacobs designs a mix-match of very light day-to-night pieces, in a palette of charcoal, gray, navy and maroon. One of the key pieces is a reversible wool-leather jacket. Stingray and croc skin come together in a men?s formal footwear style, while the signature Damier pattern combines with a leopard-print material in a pair of sneakers.

Next month, Vuitton will also debut the Tambour watch?s bi-metallic version?in 18k yellow gold and steel for both men and women. It also introduces the follow-up to its successful Tambour Lovely Cup women?s chrono watch, which now comes in a larger size.

Louis Vuitton is at Greenbelt 4, Makati City.