Sonia Rykiel introduced a slighter darker mood to the Paris Fashion Week catwalk. Photo: Getty
DESIGNER: Natalie Rykiel, Sonia's daughter.
INSPIRATION: Things were just a little more sinister than your classic Rykiel fayre, complete with a wire fence and strip lighting down the centre of the catwalk.
TOP LOOKS: In a rich palette of ochre, russet and forest green, outerwear was the biggest player in the collection, with loden parkas and princess silhouettes created from tartan blankets, while the collage-like trend from fur sleeves on wool coats seen at Dries Van Noten and Balenciaga continued with Rykiel's use of fox fur in eye-frazzling bright colours.
ACCESSORIES: Brothel creeper brogues, and courts with contrast-colour elastic ankle straps dressed the feet, while clasped handbags worthy of Margaret Thatcher dangled from arms.
WHAT WE THOUGHT: It wasn't exactly Gareth Pugh or Rick Owens, but on the Sonia Rykiel scale, this was pretty dark. Instead of skipping down the runway with crimped hair, models were pouty, even sultry. And this translated to the clothes. There were flashes of text book Rykiel; engulfing belted colour-block jumpers and a sprinkling of tongue-in-cheek trompe d'oeil. But Nathalie brought a new sense of polish and sex appeal to the Rykiel tried-and-tested formula, and - guess what? It worked.
See our favourite looks in the gallery below: