In the spirit of Lanvin

Lanvin headlined the last day of the Paris menswear shows on Sunday with a rock-and-roll inspired collection billed as anti-uniform, before Versace kicks off six days of haute couture.
“Freedom to choose” was the catchphrase for designer Lucas Ossendrijver, with pants both slim and wide, waistlines high and low, and classic tailoring and streetwear paired with coloured sneakers and chunky-knit scarves.
“It’s not about a single look, or a single man. It’s about individuality,” Lanvin’s creative director Alber Elbaz said after the show, for which actor Will Smith sat in the front row.
Elbaz took the uniform as starting point for the line. “It’s the opposite of what makes people happy,” he said. “You have to be yourself.”
Shows by Paul Smith and Saint Laurent were to wrap up the Paris men’s fashion, before a late evening show by Versace that opens six days of haute-couture collections – showcasing jaw-dropping creations aimed at A-list stars and the world’s richest women.
More than 40 years after the death of its founder, Italian firm Schiaparelli made a much-anticipated comeback to haute couture on Monday, under the Italian designer Marco Zanini. Elsa Schiaparelli was among fashion’s most prominent figures between the two world wars and became Coco Chanel’s biggest rival.
Haute couture is a legally protected appellation in France, subject to strict criteria, such as the amount of work carried out by hand, and the size of a house’s workforce.
Altogether, 15 French houses, including Dior and Chanel, are showing couture collections this week, along with six foreign labels and 10 guests, including Britain’s Ralph and Russo and Belgian designer Serkan Cura.