Chic Cantabrigians are facing a crisis.

The calendar says spring is here, and signs of the season abound, from the smell of backyard barbecues to the sound of chirping crickets.

Accordingly, the fashion magazines are dictating a transition from heavy winter gear to the light ensembles of spring.

But in Cambridge, the weather isn't quite cooperating.

Unfortunately for local fashion bugs, the march of style proceeds without regard for the thermometer's reading.

So while the temperature remains ten-degrees-below-balmy, designers have decreed rising hemlines, bare legs and open-toed shoes are hot.

"People start buying spring clothes in April, and they're still buying them through May and June," says Tess Enright, owner of the eponymous boutique at 20 Brattle St.

To bridge the gap between chilly and sultry, trendy Cantabrigians require pieces that combine style with protection from the elements.

Thankfully, some designers are obliging this season.

On the shoe front, last season's stiletto--a nightmare on Cambridge's cobblestone streets--has given way to flats of all kinds.