Classic labels reinvented at Paris Fashion Week

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"That's my daughter," boasted a glowing Sir Paul, just after Stella McCartney unveiled her spring/summer 2011 collection at the impressive Opera Garnier. "She's all 'round productive!" he laughed. Besides having established herself as one of world's best-loved designers, McCartney also has her hands full on another front at the moment: She's hugely pregnant with her fourth child, and though she plans on taking some time off, it's fashion that keeps her on her toes, focusing on pieces that work for multitasking women. To the delight of her fans, which included a turbaned Salma Hayek and a classically suited Liv Tyler sitting front row, McCartney sent out a no-nonsense collection brimming with strong, modern proposals. In a season when most designers are consumed with romantic flow, McCartney's displaying her Savile Row techniques and giving women a timeless ease in the process. Her eclectic collection ran the gamut from a blush pink tailored pantsuit, to boxy, minimalist pale blue denim tunics and citrus prints whipped up in a variety of ways. "She's a very sophisticated designer, but as smart as her approach to femininity is, she also maintains a kind of naiveté that's really irresistible," Hayek said. McCartney said her hard/soft sensibility feels right to women because "there's a man in all of us."

Still, the romance quotient was high on most runways, and few did it as beautifully as Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel. While many pumped up the volume with vibrant colours, at Chanel, pastels cropped up to compliment the stellar, mostly black and white offering. The Grand Palais was transformed into a gravel garden fantasy reminiscent of Versailles, and a live 60-piece orchestra provided an exquisite soundtrack for a tour de force extravaganza. Teenage Quebecois pop sensation Coeur de Pirate, decked out in a grey wool Chanel mini dress, talked about the privilege of being dressed by the house. The story here was seduction: Dresses were short for the most part and some were worn with black leather leg warmers. Metallic threads lent a subtle glitter to tweed suits, some tattered, many with short jackets and several featuring the skimpiest of hot pants. Feathers also flew: Carmen Kass was swathed in an apricot marabou cocktail number. She wasn't the only seasoned face cast in the show: 39-year-old Stella Tennant and the iconic Ines de la Fressange, 53, also took a turn. Lagerfeld said it's their sort of beauty that he finds most intriguing. "That's what is modern about women today - their agelessness," he explained.

But as much as age barriers have dissipated in fashion, there's something to be said for injecting youth into an established aesthetic. When done with reverence, it can lift a label. And that's what's happened at Valentino. Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli have been struggling to get the house on the right romantic track since taking over last year, aiming to woo a younger customer without alienating existing Valentino devotees. This time out, they struck precisely the right chord, with dotted beige organza and short black chantilly-lace dresses for cocktail hour; ankle-length evening gowns with layers of tulle and chiffon in ivory, cocoa and cinnamon; and smart day ensembles in sleek and shiny pale blue denim and crisp cotton. Perhaps most thrilling of all was having Valentino himself in the front row. "I'm so happy," he told me backstage. "This collection shows a lot of respect - it's very true to the Valentino heritage, but with a new interpretation."

Maintaining the signature of a house, while pushing its sensibility in new directions isn't easy. But that's what Sarah Burton, who was the late Alexander McQueen's right-hand woman for 15 years, will have to do in the coming seasons. The skilled designer was put at the creative helm of the label in May, a few months after McQueen committed suicide. The Gucci Group, which owns the McQueen name, knows the brand's potential and felt Burton would be the obvious choice to execute her mentor's vision. "I guess you could call it 'commercial McQueen,' " quipped Holt Renfrew fashion director Barb Atkin about the show. "And that's not necessarily a bad thing at all. In fact, retailers will be rejoicing at just how sellable this collection is." Burton did a splendid job of keeping the McQueen footprint intact with trademark razor-sharp tailoring and beautifully crafted fantasy garments made of feathers, black leather leaves and straw. There was a lot to drink in as we sat, missing the late designer's flare for sensational storytelling, but appreciating this tribute to his memory by the talented team he'd inspired. The true test will come as the house evolves and Burton is compelled to develop the vision. In the meantime, there is a softer, gentler touch to the McQueen sensibility that will, at the very least, make cash registers ring.

Jean Paul Gaultier's swan song for Hermès was a class act. After deciding to leave the luxury house after a 7-year stint in order to concentrate on his own eponymous label, the designer was adamant about going out in style. The show opened with live horses trotting around at the top of the catwalk. Models emerged, decked out in gaucho hats and elegant, relaxed pieces like tailored leather jackets, suede suits, corsets and shorts, skirts in all lengths and trousers both skinny and loose. The effortlessness that Gaultier brought to Hermès will be treasured as his successor, Christophe Lemaire, prepares to take the reins. So what did his stint at the label teach fashion's original enfant terrible? "So many things about craftsmanship, and about how to stay true to myself but still be true to Hermès, too. I guess a kind of discipline," Gaultier said.

"There is no such thing as bad taste," Marc Jacobs said after his Louis Vuitton show. "Fashion should be a celebration. It's not about propriety." As a testament to that, Jacobs unabashedly embraced the seventies moment that so many have been riffing on for spring and rode the wave of hedonism all the way to high camp. It was "Suzy Wong does Studio 54" on a runway flanked by two stuffed tigers and crawling with models in colourful silk kimonos, sequined obis and long slinky jersey gowns in a barrage of wild shades from mauve to mustard. The last look featured Kristen McMenamy in high-waisted satin tuxedo pants and nothing on top but artfully applied zebra body paint. "I guess the ultimate fashion is no fashion at all!" laughed the 45-year-old veteran model. The joyful Vuitton presentation felt like the culmination of everything that's right about fashion these days - a playful fearlessness that's about taking charge and dressing to one's own beat: We're becoming increasingly confident in our choices. With the economy rebounding and a plethora of strong, diverse options on the horizon, strutting into spring should inspire us to buy into optimism and put our best foot forward.

Jeanne Beker is the host of FashionTelevision.