Zac Posen, Paris Fashion Week, autumn/winter 2011/12. Photo: Getty
DESIGNER: Zac Posen
INSPIRATION: After a less than welcoming reception to his debut showing in Paris last season, Posen got serious with a runway collection that nodded to the heroines of film noir.
TOP LOOKS: This season saw a sharper look, and daywear had a decidedly sombre palette, with plenty of lean trouser silhouettes, high-necked tunic tops and form-fitting peplum jackets. Posen's signature gown was simplified to offer sultry, figure-skimming silhouettes.
WHO WAS THERE: Leigh Lezark, Daisy Lowe and Charlotte Dellal, but they were somewhat eclipsed by an all star cast of models that included Jourdann Dunn, Carmen Kass, Coco Rocha and Crystal Renn.
WHAT WE THOUGHT: This season's venue, the cold, Brutalist concrete Palais de Tokyo, was a world away from the the opulence of the Westin Hotel ballroom where the collection showed in September, and it marked a change of design direction for Posen. While perhaps not groundbreaking, this was a finely edited and contemporary aesthetic that will be utterly wearable. We just hope that Posen's die-hard party set approves.