What: Shorts will always be a favorite summer must-have but designers have given it a whole new role. It’s been transformed from being a laid-back weekend option to being an alternative to office suits, a choice for red carpet events, and even as a substitute for the ubiquitous summer dress.

What NYTimes says: This month the supermodel Eva Herzigova matched a cropped dinner jacket and a ruffled white blouse with a pair of satin-trimmed black shorts to walk up the red carpeted steps at the Cannes Film Festival in France. In New York, the actress Jessica Simpson, who played the micro-jean-shorts-wearing Daisy Duke in the film “The Dukes of Hazzard,” turned up at an exhibition opening wearing tiny denim shorts and a wide smile. Then there is the fashion world icon Kate Moss, whose love of shorts in any situation has been well documented over the years. Her choice to wear black stockings under her denim shorts at the last Glastonbury music festival has already spurred countless copycats.

What we say: This summer we’ll definitely see shorts becoming more than just an option for casual events. NYTimes reports that designer brands like Valentino and Jason Wu have all come up with their own styles. Now with all the options available, from bagged cuffed versions to microshorts worn over stockings, there’s a big possibility that this trend will be more than just a passing fancy.