Haute Couture week in Paris: dreams made of neoprene

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Haute couture meets tradition:

creative director

was inspired for her designs by folklore dresses and opted for female silhouettes.

Here a traditional corsage dress.

Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

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Tone-on-tone embroidery, lace patchwork, ruffled sleeves and smocked waists are common elements throughout

's current Autumn/Winter collection.

In case you are interested: The entry-level prices in this fashion league start at around 50,000 euros.

Photo: Mohammed Badra/EPA

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Luxury, but not obviously shown: Inspired by old folk customs, her collection is an ode to craftsmanship, explained

designer Chiuri.

Photo: Mohammed Badra/EPA

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Fresh from the archives: Lagerfeld's successor

sent her models down the catwalk for

in eye-catching houndstooth and tweed fabrics.

A nod to Coco Chanel's designs from the 1930s.

Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

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Although this time it wasn't the princess' daughter Charlotte Casiraghi who rode a horse down the catwalk, Viard moved the

show to an equestrian center in the Bois de Boulogne.

Photo: Christophe Archambault / AFP

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Hats on instead of on horseback:

muse, just like her mother Princess Caroline once

did.

Her outfit was also topped off with a matching wide-brimmed hat - a nod to Coco Chanel's early career as a milliner.

Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

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The black riding boots, which almost all the models wore, were meant to be reminiscent of the previous January haute couture show, which was opened by Charlotte Casiraghi on horseback, according to Viard.

Photo: Christophe Archambault / AFP

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Handover at Gaultier: Fashion designer

succeeded designers Chitose Abe and Glenn Martens in developing a one-off couture collection for

, who announced his retirement in 2020.

Rousteing opened his show with menswear inspired by Gaultier's 1994 Tattoo collection.

Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

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Since

's retirement , selected designers have reinvented his designs for the couture shows.

presented an unconventional interpretation with a pregnant belly of Gaultier's legendary bag corsage, which Madonna wore on her 1990 "Blond Ambition World Tour".

Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

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"This show is an open letter to Jean Paul, an open love letter," said Olivier Rousteing before the unveiling of his haute couture collection, which the old master had invited him to design.

Gaultier tore down many boundaries for him and subsequent generations of designers.

Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

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Daniel Roseberry,

creative director of the Italian fashion house

, reportedly wanted to set an example against the increasing trend in the fashion industry to take itself too seriously.

He created fashion for the sake of fashion, he let it be known, and he happily celebrated the decadence of the 1980s.

Photo: Victor VIRGILE / Gamma-Rapho / Getty Images

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Opulent ruffles at

majestic designs made of silk, tulle and lace are the Lebanese designer's trademark.

Photo: Pietro D'Aprano/Getty Images

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second haute couture collection for

was eagerly awaited like no other

.

The designer only revived the line, which had been dormant since 1968, last year.

, Nicole Kidman, Dua Lipa, Selling Sunset's Christine Quinn, Bella Hadid and Naomi Campbell presented his designs at Cristóbal Balenciaga's original atelier on Paris' Avenue George V.

Photo:

Balenciaga / abaca / picture alliance

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With catsuits, coats and dresses in heavy black neoprene, Demna paid homage to Cristobal Balenciaga's earliest designs.

The models' faces were shielded with Teflon-type face shields made of coated polyurethane.

They were made in cooperation with Mercedes-AMG Formula 1.

Photo:

Balenciaga / abaca / picture alliance