I know, I know- with the first sprouts of crocuses finally popping their sleepy heads out of the cold ground this week, the last thing you probably want to think about is fall fashion. It usually takes just one or two good sunny day in March to get me feeling that first twitch of spring fever, too!

But before we pack away our sweaters neatly into cedar scented storage (because we all take proper care of our out of season clothes, right?) let’s take a world wind peek ahead to the colors and styles that by August everyone will be talking about.

First stop: Paris, France- where the mood was best described by Style.com as “austere opulence“. Apparently the more turmoil there is going on around the world, the more luxurious fashion gets. The austere- the female silhouette becoming more powerful, closer to the body, opulence- lots of fur, rich jewels and unbelievable accessories!

Some exciting moments to note during the week- designer Alessandra Facchietti’s first showing for Valentino, the unusual fabrics at Balenciaga and Stella McCartney had everyone guessing, the India inspired royal romanticism at Alexander McQueen, the thought provoking mismatching of colors at John Galliano and the love it or hate it- Victor and Rolf collection, which gave a whole new fashionable meaning to “just say no”.

Although there was lots of black…. the LBD and skinny black pant suit will rein again come fall, there was also plenty of color.

Colors of the Parisian runway ran the gamut from super subdued and soft ( the icy, pale blue at Louis Vuitton for example ) to the deepest earthiest of saturated satin ( the color blocked prints at Christian Lacroix ).

The most exciting color news to me was the way designers choose to pair colors together. Mauve and red, grayish blue with deep red, lime and deep delicious purple, yellow and orange, pink and black just to name a few. Also I loved the pairing of long gowns with flat shoes ( Valentino, Chanel ), Ms. Facchinetti said of the idea behind this look is that women want to be glamorous and comfortable- amen to that sister!

So feast your eyes on a quick synopsis of a sampling of the best of Paris: and stay tuned, next stop Milan.

Style.com has a wonderful video series of all the runway shows- check it out!

photo of Eiffel Tower from photoparis.com

all runway photos from style.com   

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