PARIS, Oct 6, 2004/ FW/ --- Once again, French designer and rising powerhouse of fashion, Isabel Marant was able to shine in Paris with her Spring/Summer 2005 collection.

Her grey, knee length coat with detailed sparkling, wide belt caught the eye of the over capacity filled open room at the Ecole de Beaux Arts. A second coat in black and white print was just as appealing as the first.

Throughout the collection, it is the coats and jackets that deserve much praise. They are in the opinion of this writer one of the finer points of a collection that pushes forth the notion that understated fashion is just as important as the over-the-top.

One jacket was worn over a gorgeous beaded top. That was soon followed by a denim skirt with top in a soft, delicate pink. Later in the show, a mini trench coat with wrap belt reminded us that the designer means business as she works to make coats more of a fashion must-have than a bad weather necessity.

Marant is in tune with what’s ahead. She did a cute, sleeveless denim jumper, which was cut well above the knee. She also did another garage jumper that keeps pace with those shown three months ago during the men’s collections. But hold on! Her jumper is like the deodorant Secret: “Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman.”

My favourite pieces from the collection are a printed top and dress done in the same fabric. The both billow out at about ľ down. When you see them, no one could ever doubt the identity of the person who created them fore that are so Isabel Marant!

In the absence of a little black dress, Ms. Marant slipped in on us a dazzling tight little black skirt. It is so sexy that it will certainly do in the place of a little black dress. That was then followed by a wife-beater dress spanning below the knees with unrefined finishing touches.

Isabel Marant, like one or two other designers who are not known for injecting too much sexiness in their collections, drew gasps of air from the audience (and particularly yours truly) when she sent model Roos out in a knit, string bikini. It was steamier than a hot plat of grits before church on a Georgia Sunday morning. And her one-piece black swimwear that later followed drove the room’s temperature up 3 degrees.

Isabel Marant

Isabel Marant

Isabel Marant

Isabel Marant