Think dresses for spring, separates for fall. If there is only a single purchase in your budget for the coming season, make it a floral print dress or a motorcycle jacket. Such is the fashion wisdom shared on Thursday by Terron Schaefer,Saks Fifth Avenue executive vice president and chief creative officer.

Just back from the shows in London and Milan, Schaefer expounded on fashion today as special guest at the Houston Community College "Passion for Fashion" luncheon at Wortham Theater Center. Interviewed by CultureMap editor-in-chief Clifford Pugh, Schaefer continued his observations saying that Versace was the most "shocking" of the recent shows with everything in latex and "strong and aggressive" designs.

"The Prada show was really luxurious" he said, noting designs emphasizing wool and fur with lines harkening back to the 1940s. He pointed to the Donna Karan, fur-trimmed dress that luncheon honoree Sheridan Williams wore as classical example of the luxe styling that will be popular in the fall. Williams was honored as the 2013 Fashion Icon and was recognized not only for her stylish personal presentation but also for her community involvement and philanthropy.

She was applauded by a room full of fashionistas including luncheon chairs Paula Fyhr and Liz Glanville, honorary chairs Rosemarie Johnson and Melissa Mithoff, co-chairs Kelli Cohen Fein and Mary Ann McKeithan and Passion for Fashion founder Julia Anderson Frankel.

The two previous Fashion Icons — Diane Lokey Farb, fresh from the Academy Awards, and Becca Cason Thrash, fresh from her second home in Zurich — joined fashion forces at a lead table, Farb in Chanel suiting and Cason Thrash in Rick Owens dress.

The tony crowd raising funds for HCC's fashion and interior design program included luncheon emcee KPRC news anchor Dominique Sachse, Mickey Rosmarin, Greggory Burk, John Eddie Williams, Patrice Ferguson, Holly Moore, Mark Sullivan, Annie Amante, Monsour Taghdisi, Kristen Nix, Cerón, Estela Cockrell, Lucinda Loya and Ericka Bagwell.

You can see Schaefer on NBC's Fashion Star, the second season of which premieres March 8. "The designers are much more talented," he said in way of a sneak peek. And if you think he's a bit harsh as a judge on the show, it's not his fault. "NBC made me the heavy," he said.