Paris When it Poufs

By Kate Betts/Paris Monday, Jan. 26, 2004
    • PIERRE VERDY/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

    Shock of the Frock Uncommon: Christian Lacroix dolled up the runway with pink chiffon poufs

    When the lights went down after John Galliano's 18-karat Christian Dior haute couture show in Paris, a pack of paparazzi nearly trampled Bernard Arnault, chairman of Dior's owner LVMH, (Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton), as they lunged for Sarah Jessica Parker. "Please, please tell Mr. Galliano I am so sorry, but I can't go backstage," she said as they snapped away. Parker was too busy putting on her own fashion show across town at the Hotel Plaza Athenee, where she was filming the final episode of Sex and the City .

    Between setups, she and costume designer Patricia Field had sneaked off to ogle the perfectly tailored French excess that is haute couture. Joining them in the front row was pint-size singer Christina Aguilera and Lord of the Rings lovely Liv Tyler, who had flown in especially for the Givenchy show (never mind that she's paid buckets of money to promote its beauty line; she needs an Oscar dress).

    Over at the World Economic Forum, the Davos chieftains were predicting prosperity and a new Europe, so the shows made a fitting counterpoint. Couture is, after all, the last outpost of a very Old Europe style of commerce — the essence of antiglobalism and anti — mass production. Where else in the world is something so extravagant and intricate made on the individual body of each customer? "Fashion should not just be a marketing exercise," sniffed Ines de la Fressange, a former Chanel model who is directing the relaunch of a line of couture shoes inspired by the famous shoemaker Roger Vivier. "True luxury is in the originality of the creation. It is not about everyone carrying the same handbag and shopping in boutiques that look the same in every city."

    But how is couture to sustain its beautiful, frail self when very few can afford these otherworldly clothes? The clients who pay retail — from Kuwaiti brides-to-be to fashion-conscious socialites — don't give the brands much exposure. And these creations are made to be seen. Which is why stars — and, even more crucially, their stylists — are ever more welcome at the Paris shows. A stunning dress on a gorgeous body at a telegenic gala can do wonders for the fortunes of star, event and especially designer.

    So while originality abounded at the Dior show with 1950s-style gold gowns and Nefertiti headdresses piled high with crystals, pearls and gold-plated glamour, the stylists were thrilled by the sight of model Liya Kebede in a slick silver dress at Chanel (for Nicole, perhaps?). And they scribbled furiously as a Stepford -style Donatella look-alike in crystal-encrusted satin came down the catwalk at Versace (undoubtedly for Uma).

    Parker and Field quickly claimed an inky black taffeta Versace gown for their show's adieu episode. But that still leaves a gold Dior number for any soul brave enough to face Joan Rivers in it. According to Galliano, gold is the new black, but he forgot to mention that it matches the Oscar.