thefword: Couture Week

Couture week in Paris came to an end last night, with Valentino drawing the curtain for Spring/ Summer 2011's collections. To sum up the extravagant event, thefword will feature some of the designers that presented their works.

My favorite show comes as no surprise. Valentino's collection was ravishing to say the least. Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli sent models down the runway in frothy dresses that looked like a dream, with all their delicateness and lightness. Ruffles and femininity were present in full force. Also staying true to this season's hottest trend, the pieces were in a whole spectrum of nude colors.

While Valentino was the epitome of beauty, Chanel's collection was girlish and pretty, with models in frilled and feathered dresses gliding down Pavilion Cambon in flat, backless black patent shoes. Once again, Chanel's palette was pretty muted, with icy tones like pale pink, blue or lilac. Also, the traditional boucle wool suits over narrow trousers that were played out at the start of the show, overlapped with Armani Prive's elements of a narrow shouldered silhouette and a downplay on the womanly figure.

Of course, other designers also stuck to the trend of nude colors, such as that of Givenchy's Tisci who presented a strikingly strong collection which balanced the hard with soft, feminine with technological and paid homage to Japanese dancer Kazuo Ohno.

Then there was Elie Saab who showed off delicate feminine dresses with light touches of embellishment, characteristic of couture pieces.

Couture week was not short of drama either, with Jean Paul Gaultier's outstanding collection that was inspired by Seventies punk meets Moulin Rouge.

Christian Dior's John Galliano showed a flamboyant collection featuring classic Dior looks of the Forties, with splashes of bright red and black that toned down to a pastel palette later on in the show. Referencing to that era were girls in updos and shawl-collared jackets cinched at the waist with wide alligator belts or peplum jackets with narrow waisted pencil skirts. This was contrasted with voluminous skirts under neat fitted bodices.

Probably Giorgio Armani's most architectural show, the Prive couture show was 'futuristic techno meets oriental' where jeweled colored dresses were stiff and sleek, with architectural lines and laser cuts that made the pieces look very streamlined. Huge slabs of embellishment and head gear gave a science fiction feel to the already futuristic looking outfits.