Fall Fashion Forward.(Brief Article)

If you really felt like it this fall, you could dress up like a Tibetan herder--or one of the same Tibetan herder's flocks of sheep--and still look stylish. Labels from Dior to Helmut Lang have trotted out ankle- length shearlings with ragged fur and enormous, shaggy sweater vests. But if you're a more practical type, here's a common-sense guide to what's in and what's not.

* Sweaters: Big, frumpy A-lines in bold argyle, Nordic Fair Isle or winter white are weighing in--perhaps the influence of pregnant London fashion icons Kate Moss and Sadie Frost. The silhouette to go for is lopsided--big tops with tight pants or big pants with tight tops. Men, too, will be wearing chunky tweed knit cardigans layered, according to Details magazine, under a velvet blazer.

* Pants: A warning to the newly pierced--naval-gazing is officially over. Balenciaga has mounted a major offensive against the low-rider-- check out the long, clean lines of their high-waist jeans and black trousers.

Slim utility pants (please don't call them cargo pants; that's so last season), jumpsuits and anything with grommets and zippers are also in vogue. Kal Ruttenstein, fashion director at Bloomingdale's, likes the utility look in satin or silk paired with a jacket.

* Shoes: Never mind practicality when it comes to shoes. The heels this season are so high (five inches is fab) that models fell off them at the Gucci and Prada runway shows last spring. Gucci's velvet evening sandals lace up the ankle with leather--a Gothic mix of naughty and nice. Boots make their annual comeback embroidered with flowers, embossed and fringed or in something of an '80s throwback, slouching in suede.

* Coats and jackets: Leather and suede are flying off the ...