Floral Elegance in Paris

Valentino

This collection is UNREAL. I fell in love with literally every piece. Valentino's label might be just nine months shy of its forty-fifth birthday, but in a season when a buzz about "lightness" is in the air, Valentino proved he holds the franchise on old-school loveliness. Remarkably, his spring collection made some of the lifelong themes of his work—delicate dresses, lace, bows, and, of course, the color red.




































































Givenchy

For spring—this all-important third collection— meant ethnic geometrix shapes. We see elements of tribalism on draped and folded silk jerseys, patent-leather breastplates, and animal-like fringe on a long black dresses. As for the dog collars, striped stockings, and strappy, hobbling footgear that accessorized all this—well, it made for provocative entertainment.



































































Yves Saint Laurent
Stefano Pilati said he had been inspired by "violets, which to the Greeks symbolized modesty, humility, and virginity—and the feeling of transition from spring into summer." To that end, he laid out one of the prettiest—yet most hazardous—runways ever trodden by models in spike-heel platforms: a deep, earthen lawn planted with hundreds of living purple violas. In theory, it was poetic, but the girls’ tentative, anxiety-raising progress created an unfortunate distraction that disrupted the viewing of Pilati’s most beautiful pieces.