KEY POINTS:
Breathing new life into aged houses is the fashion industry's favourite sport and at last week's ready-to-wear Paris Fashion Week it was a theme that was discussed and dissected even more than usual.
There were plenty of new names on the autumn/winter schedule; Alessandra Facchinetti took over at Valentino; Esteban Cortazar made his debut at Emanuel Ungaro; ex-Mulberry designer Stuart Vevers presented his first collection for Loewe; and the London-based duo Eley Kishimoto made a quiet start at the perky French brand Cacharel.
But what some of these relaunches illustrate is just how tricky it is to bring a new perspective to established brands. For Facchinetti, best known for briefly succeeding Tom Ford at Gucci in 2004, the greatest challenge is how to make a brand such as Valentino relevant to a new generation. She decided to keep it simple with chic skirt suits, clean-cut coats and frothy, frill-laden dresses and gowns. Much of the brand's contemporary relevance is, of course, for red-carpet numbers.
Less convincing was Cortazar's debut at Emanuel Ungaro. He is the fourth designer to take the reins of the house since its founder departed in 2004. His collection of draped jersey dresses, printed chiffon tops and fluid trousers were light and feminine, in keeping with the heritage of the house, but they also felt dated and did little to reposition the label. Cortazar is only 23 years old, though, and it's a tall order to have a clear viewpoint in just one outing.
For many of these old labels, the problem also lies with the customers. Picture the bouffanted and bejewelled Chanel pensioners who marched into the Grand Palais to their front-row seats and you'll begin to appreciate how tricky it must be to balance the needs of a luxury brand's faithful old-school clients with a fresher, fashion-forward approach that will please both the critics and a new generation of fans.
It's something Karl Lagerfeld makes look supremely easy every season. The prolific designer always makes a modern homage relevant at Chanel by giving iconic pieces a subtle revamp. He drove home that message by showcasing his autumn collection on a gold Chanel carousel laden with giant emblems from the house - quilted bags, ballet pumps, giant bows and boxy tweed jackets.
The models, who eventually climbed on board the rotating carousel, wore "faux pauvre" versions of the house's famed tweed suit with worn-out elbows or lightly distressed skirts, quilted black silk tops and feather-light chiffon dresses, as well as some of the chicest midi-length skirts we have seen all season.
But it's not only the old guard who have mastered the balance between desirable product and critical acclaim. Stefano Pilati turned out his strongest collection for Yves Saint Laurent since he took over as creative director in 2004.
His focus was on strong, architectural tailoring, which he kept feminine by adding swingy skirts or light pleat-front trousers to cut-away coats and jackets in incredibly light tweeds and cashmeres. Pilati played with ultra-modern textures such as a shiny black sequinned fabric that looked like blackened bubble-wrap and contrasted classic heavy couture silks with plush flock.
His vision was stark, totally focused and given added emphasis by the shiny black bobbed wigs, narrow black sunglasses and black lips that adorned the models. Yet such is Pilati's skill that it all felt very YSL, from the ultra-chic cream pique blouse that came out paired with a straight black flock skirt to the sculptural, heavy-silk, egg-shaped tunics, sheer chiffon blouses and smoking coats that rounded off the show.
At Balenciaga, Nicolas Ghesquiere has long been a reliable source of collections that are entirely original, thought-provoking and refreshingly extreme in their viewpoint. But over his past few collections Ghesquiere has also become adept at creating modern pieces that fit neatly within the Balenciaga heritage yet drive the house forcefully full-throttle into the future.
This week he created ultra-sculpted dresses and separates from wool, cotton and taffeta bonded with foam - a technique he pioneered with the incredible floral prints of his summer collection. Coats came in patent leather padded in the same way, while rubbery bonding edged his pencil skirts. His designs are entirely original yet still give a respectful nod to the label's founder, Cristobal Balenciaga, with his curved "comma" sleeves and the cocoon shapes of jackets and coats.
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