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Sunday, Jul. 05, 2009

Kressley to guys: Wear some pink

COXS CREEK — Carson Kressley can dish about fashion just about ­anywhere.

Even on an unfashionably drizzly June morning at stables near Louisville, where he boards a horse, the host of How to Look Good Naked on Lifetime and the defunct Queer Eye for the Straight Guy on Bravo was talking clothes and horses — specifically, the Lexington Junior League Horse Show this week.

“I think it’s my favorite show,” said Kressley, a noted horseman who has attended the event since the ’80s and is the host of this year’s pre-show gala benefit on Friday. “You can get a drink and you can visit with your friends along the rail. People are dressed up and the community comes out and they wear great clothes. And there’s shopping. So for me it’s like — it’s nirvana.”

This year, fashion and the horse show mix even more. For the first time in its 73-year history, the Lexington Junior League Horse Show will host a Pink Ribbon Night, on Tuesday, when show-goers are invited to deck themselves in pink to show support for breast cancer research. Proceeds will be donated to the search for a cure.

For women, pink is no problem. But what about the guys? Some men think pink is just too girly for them.

Pshaw!

Kressley, who said he has an idea for a style-based talk show, said guys should not fear the classic summer shade. He said pink adds a bright pop to a simple jacket or a pair of traditional khakis.

“It might be a pink ­seersucker tie,” he said. Or printed pocket squares: “These are like $6 or $7 dollars at Marshalls or Stein Mart,” he said. “Really just a touch of pink to show off their blue blazer.”

For a cool Southern vibe, ­nothing delivers like a bow tie, he said.

“Before they were ­wearing them on CNN, Kentucky was rockin’ the bow tie,” said Kressley,. “It’s nothing too crazy; it’s a collegiate look.”

He said men can go as bold as they dare with pink or add just a rosy touch to their outfits. On this day, Kressley went for the former: He wore a classic blue blazer (his was a Dolce & Gabbana, but he said a good choice could just as easily be a more affordable design from J. Crew) with a pink shirt and tie and Lilly Pulitzer “Phipps” pants in a fabulous, if a little out-there, patchwork print.

Lilly Pulitzer’s fun, bright Palm Beach-style patterns have been around for years. They’re traditional and unique.

“It’s an old-school preppy look,” Kressley said.

He stopped short of ­pairing his bold pants with the equally eye-popping matching blazer.

“Don’t wear them ­together,” he said. “Children will cry.”