Paris Fashion week rolls on

Uma Thurman and Hilary Swank were among a galaxy of A-listers at the Giorgio Armani Prive couture show during Paris Fashion Week. Uma Thurman told the waiting press: “Since I started acting Armani was sort of the pinnacle of elegance and early days in Hollywood and glamour. I think one of the first designers really who entered Hollywood and started dressing actresses from the very beginning.” The collection was a nicely judged mix of timeless classics and exotic innovation. A huge lightning bolt shooting down the catwalk added to the eclectic energy and underlined the theme, which was all about intensity. Alexandre Vauthier’s collection was called Cold Summer, which at first glance might seem like a contradiction in terms. He explained: “I started out by doing the opposite of the preceding collection, because the idea is always to surprise people. I worked with the idea of rigour, with the tailored suit and the tuxedo. It’s a summer with codes that aren’t really summery, because I worked with black and navy blue – all around the concept of water, midnight skinny dipping, etc etc.” The collection was sexy, featuring sheer and backless tops in draped, shimmering and clinging fabrics. Stephane Rolland showed his spring/summer couture collection, accompanied by violinists wearing togas. He is popular with celebrities like Lady Gaga and Yasmin Le Bon, who enjoy his eye-catching designs. One frock was decorated with cigarette ends collected after a fitting with a chain-smoking model, for example.