Lanvin celebrates last decade of fashion

[March 03, 2012]  PARIS (AP) -- "Dreams, history and the past," Alber Elbaz said of his extravaganza fall-winter ready-to-wear show that celebrated and retraced his 10-year journey as creative director of Lanvin.

Every inch of the couture, ruffles and shimmer that revitalized the house over the last few years was on display Friday, including reinterpretations of 1960s vintage pieces from the iconic archives.

Celebrities, like singer Mika and actress Tilda Swinton sat in the front row, behind whom some 2,000 revelers applauded exquisite cocktail gowns that included patches of the Art Deco fur of Jeanne Lanvin's 1920s heyday.

Spotlighting dappled the colors of scuba-like neoprene dresses with peplums and inflated arms in canary yellow, emerald green and royal blue.

Reading like a Lanvin fashion encyclopedia, the theme switched to a leather-infused take on sportswear jackets with a dazzling array of reworked parkas, perfectos and bombers.

The next chapter revisited archive pieces such as a duchesse satin insert -- replicated from the 1960s -- on a black and gold brocade gown with matching knee-high boots.

Another vault piece, a black bustier dress with calico ruffles, got whoops from the crowd, perhaps still giddy from the flowing pre-show Champagne.

The collection closed with a celebratory, postmodern twist: sheaths printed with Elbaz's own hand-drawn sketches of dresses over the years, including two-dimensional ruffles and slashes.

Instead of bowing, a joyful Elbaz took a microphone to the stage and, admitting he couldn't sing, attempted a rendition of "Que sera sera."

The future is not ours to see: But with this, one of the strongest shows of the season so far, it looks shiny bright.

[Associated Press; By THOMAS ADAMSON]

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