UNIFORM DRESSING

Police officers, waiters, and postal employees aren’t the only people around town who are in uniform. Check out any sizable yuppie-infested gathering, and chances are that a few Units-uniformed individuals will be in attendance. The simple, one-size-fits-all, mix-and-match, modular pieces of top-stitched cotton/polyester knit are washable and layera-ble-and they must be addictive, too, to judge from the increasing number of Dallas women who wear little else.

Units, which began production in 1980 as the brainchild of Dallas designer Sandra (pronounced Saundra) Garratt, was sold last year to a group of investors with whom Garratt has since parted ways. Thus, while Units now has multiple locations, it no longer has anything to do with its original creator.

Happily for Units purists, Sandra Garratt Design has opened in the original Units location in Deep Ellum at 2644 Elm St. (939-0649). There, refined, redesigned versions of the clothing-available in black, white, and red as well as a color of the month-are joined by a new P.M. dressing line of matte jersey evening separates and housewares along the lines of sachets and sheets.

As in her Units days, Garratt is designing for a woman juggling family and career who has limited time and resources and needs a functional, affordable, attractive wardrobe. One more happy note: Sandra Garratt pieces are priced lower than their Units equivalents. A wedge-sleeve jumpsuit, for instance, is $38 at Sandra Garratt Design, $45 at Units.