Confused by conflicting reports about a global recession? Well, you’re not alone. Even the experts disagree. According to Morgan Stanley, the US is already in one. Then CNN commentator Lou Dobbs hysterically announced that the US economy was flirting with disaster. Meanwhile, the luxury industry asserts it’s sitting pretty, as recession-proof as ever.

Clearly sectors such as the housing market are already experiencing an economic downturn but amid the predictions and chatter about the world’s current and future fiscal health, there’s one important question that hasn’t been asked: if there is a recession, what does one wear? It’s not as trivial as it might seem.

“The last thing people should do is dress down,” says Simon Doonan, creative director of Barneys. “You’ll just depress the people around you. A little bit of optimistic flamboyance is what is required during a recession. Think of Auntie Mame, who inspired the musical of the same name. She still wore a big hat even when she had no money.”

For Doonan, “optimistic flamboyance” is more than a feckless fashion statement, it’s a civic duty. “During a recession everybody, including people on Wall Street, London’s financial district and elsewhere, has an obligation to dress in an optimistic fashion because you’re not only dressing for yourself, you’re dressing for other people,” he says. And he’s not suggesting you bring on the bling – a colourful tie or a natty pocket handkerchief will do.

George Hammer, president of Urban Retreat, the 20,000 sq ft spa in Harrods, says: “We’re about to talk ourselves into a recession, even though there might not be one.” He suggests a more direct form of sartorial communication. “When people support cancer research or some other area of need, they wear a badge or a bracelet. I think we should have anti-recession badges saying ‘Growth rather than Recession’ or ‘Recession-proof’ or even ‘I’m Riding out the Recession’. It would counteract the negativity in the media and in the world. It’s easy to be negative, but it takes some effort to be positive,” he says.

Anita Campbell, a blogger on the website Small Business Trends, www.smallbiztrends.com, echoed Hammer’s sentiments in one of her recent “economic trends” columns. “Rather than obsessing about gloomy financial news,” she wrote, “focus on how you conduct your business. What matters more for your business is your state of mind. I’m talking about the attitude between your ears. If you let yourself get spooked and defeated, your business is done for – even in the best economy.”

A rose-tinted view

When the world economic forecast is not particularly sunny, what better way to brighten your outlook, writes Vanessa Friedman, than with a pair of rose-coloured shades?,

From Pucci and Alberta Ferretti’s eye-wear debuts to Robert Marc and Linda Farrow’s classic styles, not to mention Thakoon’s fuchsia and Derek Lam’s pearly pink hues, this spring/summer’s sunglasses are in notable shades of candy-floss.

It seems fashion designers are more sensitive to the credit crisis than industry outsiders might think.

“The choice of colour is fundamental to the design of sunglasses,” says Alberta Ferretti. “Pink sunglasses, for instance, make your day happier and brighter. I wanted to use a colour that would stand out for its uniqueness, brightness and optimism. I also wanted to underline a characteristic of sunglasses that I really like: they can be a screen to sadness.” As for Matthew Williamson, creative director of Emilio Pucci, he says of them: “they’re much more fun.”

They don’t call them “sunnies” for nothing.

A sense of humour might also help. James de Givenchy of the venerable French fashion family, and president of Taffin, the New York company that produces his line of jewellery, says he’ll wear a “bearskin suit”, an allusion to Wall Street’s bull-and-bear fluctuations.

Trevor Pickett, founder of Pickett, the handmade leather goods retailer with three locations in London, says he has no intention of changing the way he dresses. “If you’ve got a good wardrobe and you know your style, your wardrobe carries you. You just need one or two key pieces to smarten up your look. People will stop buying silly things rather than the things they do need such as a nice pair of shoes.”

Cristina Bomba, owner of Bomba, a retail clothing store in Rome, says she’ll take a more hands-on approach and make some of her clothes herself. “I made one of my best dresses using plastic garbage bags in different sizes,” she says. “At the same time, I blended very luxurious fabrics and treated them to make them look old.”

Michelle Finamore, design historian and research associate at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, doesn’t need to make her clothes look old. They are old. And that’s just the way she likes them. “I’ll be wearing vintage mixed with some contemporary clothing,” she says. “A wonderful V-neck cashmere sweater, a beautifully tailored white blouse, or a black dress with simple lines that fit your body type never go out of style. Classic looks defy trendiness, which can really help if you are finding yourself a bit pinched by a recession. None of my vintage clothes are made in China, the prices are great, and when do you see real silk linings these days?”

You won’t find David Coleridge, managing director of Huntsman, Savile Row’s most expensive tailor, in anything remotely resembling rubbish bags, even if there is a deep recession. But you might find him in one of only 40 new Huntsman suits made from a bale of 11.9 micron, 1PP graded wool that is judged to be the finest ever produced. Prices start at about £4,000 but, if a recession puts that kind of purchase beyond reach, Coleridge suggests “customers send their suits in for a ‘good look over’ in order to have them valeted, and any rips, tears or broken buttons tidied up. Some may even want to consider a new lining to give a coat fresh pizzazz.”

“It goes back to trench warfare during the first world war,” says Simon Doonan. “The people who dealt with it best were the ones who maintained their personal appearance. They found that, too, on polar expeditions; the guys who started turning into cavemen were the first ones to go. It’s all about maintaining your own personal style and your grooming – they become increasingly important to your own sense of order and well-being during difficult times.”

Richard Torregrossa is the author of ‘Cary Grant: A Celebration of Style’