This year’s spring-summer collection by Jean-Paul Gaultier was a glamorous affair at Paris Fashion Week.
Butterfly show-girls fluttered down the catwalk as the designer transformed his haute couture gowns into delicate creations with iridescent wings in multicoloured hues.
Many of the models wore extravagant headdresses spouting ostrich and pheasant feathers.
“This inspiration was totally butterfly, but it was that kind of butterfly from day and from night, so the ‘papillons Parisiens’, little Parisian women, from day, that become after like a butterfly, a showgirl. So it was a little, like, sexiness in it, but elegant and chic and very, very, very, very couture,” said Jean-Paul Gaultier.
In a show inspired by burlesque dancers, who better to call upon as a surprise guest than American model Dita Von Teese?
Gaultier’s customary bride took to the runway in a cabaret-style bodysuit and a veritable waterfall of feathers flowing off the top of her head.
Lebanese designer Elie Saab’s show at the Palais de Chaillot drew a host of celebrities including lingerie designer Chantal Thomass and French actress Clotilde Courau in the front row.
With the traditional intricate craftsmanship that defines couture clothing, the Elie Saab show delivered a delicate spectacle of elegance. It featured a cascade of fabric petals on evening gowns reminiscent of 19th century watercolour paintings. The fabrics were rich and full. Lines were free flowing, and pleats and draping had a weightless elegance.
Saab’s bride, who closed the show, wore a very traditional, beautifully embroidered wedding dress, that flowed out effortlessly from the waist.
