Haute couture fans may be wondering if today’s Christian Lacroix’s catwalk show will sadly be the last one after the fashion house filed in May for protection from creditors, yet Lacroix is not the only one going through financial problems and, in a way, the Autumn/Winter 09 high fashion shows started on a slightly less extravagant note.
There were enough evening gowns, craftsmanship and artistry at Alexis Mabille's but there was also an almost ready-to-wear mood in many of the outfits striding down the catwalk.
The main inspiration, at least at the very beginning of the catwalk show, were antique linens and textiles. Precious lace was indeed used for dresses, trousers and skirts, and also employed to create decorative trims on short sleeves, pockets and hems, calling to mind immaculate bed linens, pillow shams and handkerchiefs.
Lace allowed the designer to play with the theme of transparency: he alternated it with perforated fabrics slightly reminiscent of broderie anglaise or used it as romantic motifs on impalpable see-through dresses tied at the waist with a black ribbon.
Pastel colours such as nude, pale blue and peach prevailed, though little sparkles of gold were added in precious brocade sleeveless jackets and skirts and shorts edged with beads reproducing waving motifs.
Darker colours were used for less romantic, yet luxurious fluid looks, such as dressing gown-like evening dresses that freely flowed on the body.
Mabille's signature bows were turned into sashes, mixed with long satin ribbons and ostrich feathers, applied to evening dresses and jumpsuits and even to elegant sandals.
There were references to luxurious sportswear in hooded mini-dresses characterised by relaxed silhouettes and Mabille also tried to reinterpret the famous "Le Smoking", giving it a casually elegant look, while the grand finale came courtesy of a bride in a black tuxedo with lace inserts along the trousers. Her head was covered in a blue and black veil and she was accompanied by two male bridesmaids in matching outfits and Mabille's signature bow ties.
Christian Dior by Galliano’s haute couture shows always represent the climax of frivolous glamorousness and luxury, but, for this season, the customary lavishness was a little bit toned down.
Grandeur and opulence were still there, especially in the lavish floral decorations, but the spectacle was slightly more intimate.
Showing the collection in the salons of the maison, located in Avenue Montaigne, the designer evoked indeed the heyday of the haute couture years.
Galliano’s art references were missing, though: rather than studying clever connections with the works of his favourite painters, the designer focused on the archive of the maison, transporting it in the boudoir and filtering it through the transparency theme.
The jackets of the “Bar” and “Rubempré” suits reappeared in updated and more rigid versions, in bright fuchsia or in a zebra print, paired with nude garters or black see-through skirts; in other cases there were no jackets, but just a black bra, highlighting the model's slender torso, paired with a bright orange bouffant skirt or light petticoats peaking out of dresses and skirts.
All the looks were matched with shoes that incorporated satin mini-garters or little bejewelled garters.
Rather than getting the impression they were part of a boudoir, connoisseurs felt as if some images from Dior's photographic archive had suddenly taken a life of their own: fans of the designer may remember in fact photographs by Henri Cartier-Bresson portraying the designer with his models in bras and corsets dressing behind the scenes at a catwalk show.
Theatricality, and couture above all, weren’t therefore missing: corsets were incorporated on top of jackets, most outfits were paired with the most extravagant feathered hats and a bright palette gave a touch of ironic optimism to the outfits, contrasting with the subdued shades of the garters and corsets, but the embroideries, beaded motifs and yards of fabric used to build extremely complicated layered dresses, definitely came from the world of haute couture. 
Nothing was extremely new: both the silhouettes seen at Dior's and the underwear worn as outerwear have already been used, but the clever juxtapositions of the bright shades with the less interesting underwear colours made sure the beaded elements, the layered lace and the draped motifs were nicely highlighted.
A final mention goes to Roger Vivier: following the previous season's "two in one" shoe, creative director Bruno Frisoni went for the "two in one clutch".
The bags can be transformed by removing their outside jackets into less sumptuous clutches or can be turned into precious art objects to display in one's house.
You wish though that Frisoni had been less childish in picking the names of some clutches: the onomatopoeic "Piu Piu Piu” may be a fun reference to the two gold-plated silver birds that adorn the clasp of the bag, but, as a name for a bag, it's simply sickeningly sweet.
Member of the Boxxet Network of Blogs, Videos and Photos
http://www.boxxet.com/my/badgeBN.80.15.js?boxxetId=u23036
Member of the Boxxet Network of Blogs, Videos and Photos
http://www.boxxet.com/my/badgeBN.160.30.js?boxxetId=u23036
http://www.lijit.com/wijitinit?uri=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lijit.com%2Fusers%2Fabnet75&js=1