PARIS, Mar 1, 2006/ FW/ --- Three basic silhouettes were on offer from Michel Klein. Two of them adhered to a very Parisian conception of chic - with his workshop situated on the Rue St. Honoré in the heart if the city’s fashion district, this is perhaps no surprise however – while the third took its inspiration from elsewhere.

The first was a wasp waist hourglass affair that almost put one in mind of Dior’s celebrated New Look of the 1950’s. This was seen in the very first exit with a redingote of cashmere felt which was fitted on the torso but with a full skirt standing well off the body and coming to roughly around the knee. Here the coat’s collar drifted from the lapel to form a flowing scarf also.

At the time Dior was criticised by many for returning women to a role of silent ornamentation after they had found a liberation of sorts through the war time labor market: pretty skirts may appeal aesthetically but aren’t designed for a hard day’s work. Judging by the front row of ladies who lunch however, Klein probably doesn’t propose clothes for working girls anyway.

The next basic shape was long and slim. We saw a whole range of slinky trousers set upon high stiletto heels and paired with shirts unbuttoned almost to the waist. Brighter colors such as burnt orange accompanied the ubiquitous black here and the ensembles were styled with maybe braces or an off-kilter trilby for a sexy androgynous look.

The final silhouette brought much more volume with sleeveless, square cut tunics. Hemlines were high and the arms of course were bare but the body wasn’t at all defined as tube cut bodies billowed and sagged over their hidden belts. Loose scarf style hoods completed the exits that could have been suggesting either the East or medieval dress.

The egg-line silhouette, which has been very much a feature of this season, was also present in the eveningwear with drawn under hemlines gathering the base of dresses that were again off the body but here nipped in by broad belts that highlighted the waist.

Nothing was really very original in this collection but it was quite pretty and charming through its retrospective elegance.

Cher Michel Klein

Cher Michel Klein

Cher Michel Klein

Cher Michel Klein