DEDICATED EXHIBITIONISTS SHOULD LOVE NEW FASHIONS.

Byline: Susan Phinney Seattle Post-Intelligencer 

There's something about spring that brings out the sleaze in fashion designers.

Each fall, when they unveil their spring/summer collections to retail stores and the fashion media, they always include things the fashion police should impound. Like shorts cut so high in back they're cheeky, or dresses cut like aprons that don't cover much of anything - to cite just a couple of examples from past seasons.

Last week, as designers were showing spring '97, the sleaze factor is high. Very high. Those here expecting to see ready-to-wear clothing walk down the runways were seeing lingerie instead.

At the D&G collection, by the Italian team of Dolce and Gabanna, sheer clothing was layered over what appeared to be pants and bras, or perhaps two-piece swimsuits.

Camisoles were paired with bell-bottoms for a pajamalike daytime look. For evening, sheer and shiny fabrics let spectators see a model's G-string beneath. The finale of this show looked like an adult sleep-over with all the ``girls'' in sheer nighties and jammies.

Designer Norma Kamali went to India and came back inspired to create a white pantsuit made from cotton toweling - the kind with a border of blue stripes usually found in kitchenware shops. If one wanted to wear the jacket unbuttoned, there were white quilted bras to wear beneath - bras similar to those Madonna has been known to wear in public.

Betsey Johnson, a designer whose playful designs have been hovering in the sleaze zone for years, did not disappoint with this collection. She put colorful waist-cinchers over T-shirt dresses, and created a slip dress with the bodice ruffled in sheer nylon.

Sheer curtains with ruffles are rarely seen today, but Johnson apparently resurrected some and made them into skirts. The ever-innovative designer also used stretch lace - the stuff often used for bikini panties - for a dress.

Most of the clothes in Johnson's collection were sheer and worn over bright orange bras and panties. Models wore thigh-high hosiery (without benefit of garters).

A bright blue slip-dress had a red lace bodice and ruffle around the bottom. It was shown with orange shoes. Another dress was fashioned of tiers of red nylon, just like the tops of so-called ``baby dolls'' found in some lingerie catalogs.

Johnson also used red ``blister acetate'' (picture finely textured bubble wrap) for a dress, then added a waist-cincher to give it some form.

Amid all this sleaze, there also is some fine clothing. Johnson, for example, had a beautiful crocheted suit in her collection - a suit that would be stunning if worn with an opaque slip beneath.

Designer Carolina Herrera had a ``Golden Girls'' theme for her show. It opened with models in gold leather dresses, skirts and jackets. Some of her white jersey evening gowns had brush-strokes of gold or silver on them. Stunning!

Designer Nicole Miller also used matte jersey for evening gowns, but they looked more like nightgowns. Miller made her reputation doing simple little cocktail dresses, often in witty prints.

There was nothing witty about Miller's doubleknit polyester pantsuits and dresses that she labeled ``uniforms'' in the program. They truly look like they came out of a uniform store in the 1970s.

Where are the fashion police when they're needed?