FASHION: Haute Couture S/S 2013

So Haute Couture week S/S has come round again and I'm spending any free moment in my day desperately waiting for snippets of a dress, or an eyelash or even perhaps Lagerfield's Choupette in a perspex and lace 'cone of shame' to escape from the secrecy of the front row. My dedication was thankfully rewarded as slideshow after slideshow of fantastic dresses have appeared since Monday, with definite highlights from Valentino, Chanel, Dior and Jean Paul Gaultier (for me).

I can sit around discussing each look and its merits, but quite frankly only pictures do them justice - so here's a highlight of the catwalks so far...

Dior - EPA

Dior - AFP

Dior almost feels like a lifetime ago. Since disappearing down the rabbit hole with Raf Simon's Alice in Wonderland inspired show, we've trekked through enchancted forests (Chanel) and visited the eastern realms of Turkey (Giorgio Armani Prive) and Morroco (JPG). But Dior's show was one to be remembered. Only the second time Simon's has created a couture collection for the brand (and yes I do still miss Galliano, though not his anti-semitism), Raf has shown real awareness for Dior's legacy. Classic Dior shapes kept the collection cohesive with the brand, whilst see-through dresses and bright colours ensured it remained fresh.

Versace Prive's show also featured bright colours in the form of neons offsetting its statement metallics. It wasn't my favourite Versace couture collection, but it was fun and sexy, as Versace should be.

Versace - Vladimir Potop

Giambattista Valli's third Couture outing cemented his place as a welcome addition to the shows. Beautiful shapes, fabrics and patterns added to a rather dreamy collection.

Giambattista Couture - Vogue.co.uk

Giambattista Valli - Vladimir Potop

Next up was Lagerfield's Midsummer Nights Dream inspired show for Chanel. Combining gothic makeup with white lace, feathers, ethereal pastels, bold patterns and thigh high leather boots, the show was full of contrasts and yet was still Chanel cohesive. Lagerfield's closing statement of two brides holding hands with his little nephew clearly referenced his pro same-sex marriage stance, and whether you think the catwalk is a place for politics or not, you gotta appreciate some lesbian Couture.

Chanel - Reuters

Chanel - Vadimir Potop

Jean Paul Gaultier and Armani Prive injected some rich Eastern influences into both their collections. Where Armani utilised more simplistic styling (to full effect) JPG's line was a mixture between bright almost 70s style maxi skirts alongside more simple and sophisticated dresses adorned with bright veils.

Jean Paul Gaultier - Vogue

Armani Prive - Vladimir Potop

Elie Saab's show was undoubtedly beautiful but lacked the drama of the others. Of course I'm sure it will transate to red carpets everywhere as Saab's creations always do. But the real jewel of the week was Valentino's stunning show. Utilising Valentino red against crisp white's and dramatic blacks the show demonstrated the enduring expertise of Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli. I can't do it justice so have a look at the highlights below.

Valentino - Vladimir Potop

I do not own the rights to these photos - they are from Telegraph.co.uk and Vogue.co.uk

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