LANVIN

ALBER ELBAZ is in a reflective mood - so in turn this evening's Lanvin collection reflected his reflective mood. "I've been thinking more about how people think. The world is changing and so is the way women are dressing. People are asking questions - who are the next designers, who is the next Pope? So this is an elaboratory collection," explained Elbaz post-show, himself elaborating that he treated this collection like real luxury - because couture is experimental too and he wanted to show that it's relevant and can be worn everyday. 

His answer to this? Put flat shoes with those prom-style strapless dresses and Thirties slips, pleated skirts and femme fatale looks, complete with fur stole thrown over a shoulder. And when it comes to masculine tailoring, again with that Thirties androgynous underpinning, add a shiny, sparkly heel. Mix it up, keep it relevant and right for now.

"There was a lot of feeling and thinking with this collection, but mostly thinking," he said, going on to point out the importance also of the word necklaces that featured throughout: "happy","love", "hope", they said.

"Because we're always seeking something and I hate the word 'cool'. I'm allergic to the word 'cool'," he declared. 

OK, so this wasn't then a cool collection - that's not actually what Lanvin is about and that's certainly not what Elbaz would ever want it to be but it was about exploration and a story. "I need stories, I need words," confessed the designer. 

So his woman - or rather his women for he is not so short-sighted to think there is just one Lanvin avenue in this day and age - started out as a princess bedecked in jewels and crown, transformed into a flapper and then Thirties vamp along the way, went sleek in utilitarian coats and then added a dose of wartime glamour, tried on some sweatshirt shapes for size and then went and played in the garden for insect-adorned embellishments on signature Lanvin cocktail frocks. And we might have just have had a bride too.

"It felt like a couture show with the bride at the end - but she wasn't a bride," clarified Elbaz of the pretty and be-crowned last look and the potential there was.

The overall message wasn't as cohesive as we have seen before (last season it was all about squares and the season before about a big birthday bash), but that was actually the point. Right now in life there is a lot to think about and Alber Elbaz is trying to think about it all. "In fashion, we talk about modernity, but today what does that mean?" he pondered. This evening, at least, modern meant mixing things ("We're living in a world where everything is the same," said Elbaz), taking one's time, luxury over the ephemeral, elaborating on and adding some shine to life. And Mr Elbaz is here to help guide you - fashion's life coach if you will.