For all you fashionistas out there, if you’ve ever heard about Paris Fashion Week, here is a little update for you…

The Paris Fashion Week is a well renowned fashion week held semi-annually in the fashion capital of the world – Paris, France. Every year there are two notable events held, Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter with schedules starting in New York, followed by London, then moving to Milan, and ultimately ending in Paris.

This season’s Paris Fashion brings the latest Spring/Summer collection of 2011 introduced by some of the most ingenious and eminent designers inclusive of, though not all, Chanel, Givenchy, Christian Dior, Giorgio Armani, Prada, and, of course, my personal favorite Paul & Joe.

Chanel

We all know that Karl Lagerfeld is prominent for his inspirations based on dreams. But this year he did not need any dreams to rely on because this year his muse is none other then the film Last Year at Marienbad.  Last Year at Marienbad was the extraordinary French film from the sixties that probably enticed every bit of your imagination and senses to the limit and left you with a feeling of having experienced something unique and very intense at the end.

Coincidentally, all 80 outfits of the Chanel collection at Paris Fashion Week, worn by 80 different beautiful models, will leave you with the same experience the film Last Year at Marienbad gave you. While the surreal setting of the monochromatic garden and the fountains produce a somewhat delirious feeling, the black-and-white and gray scale use of colors in Lagerfeld’s clothes alleviate the mood to greater heights. For those of you who might not know, Coco Chanel herself designed Delphine Seyrig’s clothes in the film Last Year at Marienbad.   This theme was very well delineated towards the end, with the black lace dresses tufted with coq feathers. Overall, the whole theme of Marienbad made the boldness of dresses even more audacious.

Prada

Miuccia Prada is probably the only name who has the daring to exhibit a collection that ranges from hospital scrubs to seventeenth-century cherubs to our very own “Black Pearl” Josephine Baker.

Prada has meticulously portrayed plain cotton suits delivered in brilliant, stimulating colors such as: orange, blue, green, and violet, like (extra)ordinary uniforms. She always comes up with a theme that is bold and brave and this time it‘s rather obvious that the brave uniforms her models exhibited are indeed bold. As a matter of fact, the casual black dresses and dresses of bold stripes and florals that close the show are an extreme delight and leave us with a sensuous feeling. All in all, Miuccia Prada has once again made her statement crystal clear: “It is time to be bold.”

Giorgio Armani

If asked for one reason why Giorgio Armani’s collection always seems to be alluring – the answer would be his focus. He takes one idea and works around it until he is satisfied he will entice you with every piece of clothing introduced. This season, his idea was the night sky over the Saharan desert; warm, in clover, and dispersed with stars. Everything was in a navy shade of midnight in dark reds, navy blues and black and as the show continued the sprinklings of crystals and sequins imitated the same starry night where we get lost under the roof of heaven. Although the theme of the Sahara was lucid in the Tuareg head wrap and tribal jewelry, Armani made no less effort in his portrayal of  the city trends in jackets and slash-backed crepe. Sometimes it may work but this time Armani’s obstinacy has proved very well that refusal is elegance, an understated grace and elegance.

Paul & Joe

Perhaps Paul & Joe is the only show on the runway where every model has a smile on their face, whether it’s a cute “angel” smile or a big teethy grin. The reason might either be the fact that they all were in flat footwear or the fact that it was the second to last show of arduous month of the Paris Spring/Summer collection of 2011. For whatever reason, their beautiful charming faces were a perfect fit to their captivating clothes. The awe-inspiring use of spring and summer colors in all outfits made the show only more legit for the Spring/Summer season. Sophie Albou, Paris-born designer best known as the founder of Paul & Joe clothing line, explained that she wanted to incorporate the shades of the rising sun in her clothes.  Kudos to her for executing her thoughts and vision in the most dazzling manner.

I must say that these designers and many more have successfully taken the bonanza of the Paris Spring/Summer collection of 2011 extravaganza to the next level!

Photos courtesy of Armani, Chanel, Paul & Joe, Karl Lagerfeld and Prada