Fashion month is over; with the highlight of the last day in Paris being the Louis Vuitton show. Pressure may have been loaded squarely onto the shoulders of Nicolas Ghesquiere (we don't envy him, there) as Marc Jacobs' successor with this, his first show - plus, he's embroiled in a mega-sized libel suit with Balenciaga, his previous employer - but could you tell he was feeling the heat? Not one bit. Here are the lessons you can take from his debut show:
1. Do thank your predecessor
We've always imagined there to be cutting wars waging behind the scenes between the designers, but if there are, Nicolas ain't getting involved. How adorable was his love letter to Marc - the most Instagrammed letter of this week - to whom he said: 'I salute the work of Marc Jacobs, whose legacy I wholeheartedly hope to honour.'
2. And always stay humble
There was no way Nicolas could beat Jacobs' finale for Louis Vuitton - an all-black swan song last October - and he shrewly opted for the iconic, fail-safe Louvre, dappled in sunlight, rather than creating a fancy pancy production that might obscure his debut collection. Neither did he try and act all cool about the fact he was now working for Louis Vuitton, in fact his letter was a lesson in humility. 'Today is a new day. A big day. You are about to witness my first fashion show for Louis Vuitton. Words cannot express exactly how I am feeling at the moment.' Awwww.
3. Line-up an unexpected front row** **
Yeah we love Ri Ri and Poppy D, but they're not exactly surprises on the front row, are they. Catherine Deneuve and Charlotte Gainsbourg - the star of seksi new Von Trier film, Nyphomaniac - on the other hand (with Gainsbourgh accompanied by her mini daughter Joe) is about as cool as they come.
4. Get a semi-retrired supermodel to open the show
Wang may have got Gisele (for Balenciaga) but Nicolas got Freja to open his first collection for Louis Vuitton - meaning that everyone was properly on the edge of their seats just 10 seconds into the show. Skills.
5. Remember your roots
Random fash fact of the day: 90% of Vuitton's sales come from leather goods alone. Which means that a large part of Nicolas's collection had to cover bags, bags and glorious bags. The designer was the brains behind Balenciaga's sell-out Lariat handbag, so he knows his arm candy. The classic Speedy bag was re-imagined in tweed, whilst miniature suitcases and holdalls were rendered in monogrammed leather.
6. Re-discover the '70s
We've suddenley started wondering why we're so hooked on the '90s. The '70s is where it's at! Nicolas was all about the '70s palette (browns, creams) with an amazing shaggy belted coat and knee high patent boots. There was an emphasis on wearability, with slim-cut cracked leather coats with Alexa-style collars, patent ankle boots and shift dresses, with thin polo necks layered undeneath.
7. Make leather preppy
We're calling this 'equestrian chic'; high-shine black leather trousers, worn by model-of-the-moment Natalie Westling, were paired with the unexpected additions of a pie-crust frilly collar and tweed jacket.
8. Oh, but make it sexy too
Is there anything sexier than Nicolas's fitted low-cut leather tank tops and ribbed scoop neck camisoles? Especially when offset with knee-length A-line skirts.
9. If in doubt, throw a zip on it
This was a seriously zip-heavy collection: they were trammelling down the front of collared shift dresses, diagonally and multiply across mini skirts and on jackets and jumpers, too. Jackets were given a sporty vibe - to offset the retro - with the addition of zips. Superfluous zips are an excellent example of something functional morphing into a zingy detail. Yes, there were buckets of florals in the collection - but it's the unexpected truckload of zips that got us going.
10. And finally? Remember a statement necklace doesn't have to be OTT
Make-up was natural and hair kept tousled and loose, with the only accessories a single dangly earring (sod matching, just wear one), a small gold pendant or a big gold crescent choker. Like Balmain's four-strand leather chokers, Nicolas was putting the Vuitton stamp on the choker - thus no doubt attracting a whole new echelon of hitherto choker-fearing fashion folk.
Re-zult.
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Pictures: Jason Lloyd-Evans
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.