When I first saw the pictures from this Chanel Haute Couture Spring 2008 presentation, something was a bit off, but I could not immediately put my finger on it.

Then it struck me…flats. All the models were wearing flat shoes.

Now I am a 4in and above type of shoe girl, in all weathers, so this was definitely a huge issue for me.

There were the typically classic Chanel pieces and the presentation was decadent, but not pretentious and sexy, yet sophisticated, but did not have much of a Couture feel. It was more like Spring 2008 ready-to-wear collection.

The other downside were the colours, which were mostly black, white, and grey pieces. Me noticing that is no doubt due to the fact that I still have the vibrant rainbow colours of Dior’s collection fresh in my mind.

My overall verdict is that this presentation was just OK, with only one stand out Oscar potential dress – the 4 tiered silver dress.

Chic In Paris also attended this show and even congratulated Karl Lagerfeld after the show and had her picture taken with him.

Lucky girl….If only I could be chic in Paris…*dreams*

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The Armani Privé client must have it all, because Giorgio created ensembles for every aspect of their lives.

Day wear, evening wear, party wear and something for that odd special occasion.

The collection was very beautiful with many red carpet Oscar possibilities that all would look magnificent on Cate Blanchett and Katie Holmes.

The only downside for me is that a few of the pieces – the bubble skirts – resembled pieces from the Giorgio Armani Fall 2007 ready to wear collection, so there was a touch of de ja vu.

If you want to read a first hand account of someone who was lucky enough to actually attend the show. Read the Chic In Paris blog.

Not only does she appear to be in the front row, from her own personal runway pictures, but she also had her photo taken with some front row celebrities.

Jealous? Hell yes.

You can feel like you were there by viewing the whole collection here.

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I really loved this Spring 2008 Haute Couture collection by John Galliano for Christian Dior.

I loved the colours, the intricate embroidery, the make-up, the UFO style hats and the dramatic effects of each piece.

My particular favourite pieces were the leopard print dress and the satin canary yellow skirt with the embroidered bodice.

Some of the pieces felt very familiar, like the Asian Kimono styled dresses, but there were so many other great pieces, that this could be forgiven.

I can not wait to see Eva Green or Dita Von Teese wearing some of these on the red carpet.

You can view the whole collection here.

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Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week starts tomorrow, and I am excitedly looking forward to:

Monday
Christian Dior
Armani Privé

Tuesday
Christian Lacroix
Givenchy

Wednesday
Elie Saab
Valentino

It will be great to see the Spring 2008 designs, as we may get to see possible Oscar dresses.

From last years Armani Privé Spring 2007 collection, we saw 3 dresses worn to the Oscars.

Here is the full schedule for this years shows.

Ellen Pompeo will be attending the Armani Privé show on Monday exclusively.

Vanity Fair is taking actress Blake Lively to the couture shows, after which she will be photographed for a fashion story for an upcoming issue. She will be attending Chanel, Valentino, and Jean Paul Gaultier shows. I did say that Blake Lively would be one-to-watch in 2008, and it looks like she is already proving me right.

For Valentino’s last show Gwyneth Paltrow, Lucy Liu, Uma Thurman, Blake Lively are expected in the front row. I suspect there will be tears at this show.

We will not only have the runway shows to look forward to, but also the parties. There is the 150th anniversary celebration of Boucheron on Monday night in which Naomi Campbell and Julianne Moore are due to attend.

Can’t wait.

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Lanvin Spring 2008
This was a brilliant collection which stayed away from the floaty, floral dresses we have seen this season. It included toga gowns, tunic dresses covered in feathers, flapper-style dress, ruffled satin cocktail dresses and satin trousers with a dinner jacket.

It started off with dark muted colours, then exploded with colour.

Collette Dinnigan Spring 2008
This was a great mixture of fabulous party dresses.

They ranged from short and sassy to full length and fabulous, in bright colours and a range of fabrics, metallics, delicate lace, abstract silk florals, and bold solids.

The one-shoulder dress featured heavily, as did dresses that were nipped in to accentuate the waist. There were also sixties-style shifts and baby dolls. Many necklines and waists were embellished with silvery sequins or crystals.

Louis Vuitton Spring 2008
Louis Vuitton’s spring collection, designed by Marc Jacobs, was very colorful.

The collection had nurses’ uniforms, puffy skirts, vests layered over blouses, arm-length gloves, and cardigans.

For me the most interesting part of this collection were the bags. They ranged in different shapes from extra large sacks to clutches, but all were bright with colour and had colour-bleeding and graduations which we have see a lot this season.

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Elie Saab Spring 2008
Elie Saab creates my dream red carpet dresses. Flirty, floaty, sparkling, embellished, full-length and fabulous.

The colours were kept to ivory, red, black, blue, yellow, violet and green. Every piece was a beautiful.

John Galliano Spring 2008
You would have been forgiven if you thought this was Madrid Fashion Week with the flamenco style dresses on display at John Galliano’s show.

The collection was very romantic with short tiered dresses, 3/4 length jackets/coats, flouncy dresses and lots of ruffles.

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Alexander McQueen Spring 2008
This collection had sculptural tailoring, romantic gowns and bird theme. The collection had many wearable pieces. I can already picture Cate Blanchett wearing the gold winged little black dresses.

My favourite pieces were the two that had a colour-bleed effect. This we have seen a few times this season.

Chanel Spring 2008
The collection started off with Chanel denim, chic monochrome looks, red, white and blue stars and stripes. The usual Chanel tweed jackets were on the runway alongside rainbow knitwear and swimsuits. But what was unusual were the ankle bags.

Could this be a new way for celebrities to cover up their alcohol bracelets?

I am sure Lindsay Lohan has hers on special order. Another used for this bag could be to carry your lipstick, keys etc to save you dancing around your handbags on the dance floor.

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