For 40 years, Yves Saint Laurent has stood for slick Parisian chic - so beloved of the haute bourgeoisie - and still does, even though the ready to wear is designed by Alber Elbaz, who is now under the direction of Tom Ford of Gucci.
Yves Saint Laurent's autumn/winter collection shown yesterday in Paris recalls the hard-edged glamour of Saint Laurent in the late 1970s and early 1980s with a tightly controlled tailored look. Sleek black and pinstripe suits were buttoned over black leather shirts and tied in a way that recalled Saint Laurent's androgynous period.
The only concession to femininity was the softness of bloused chiffon tops with tie-necks, tucked and belted into pencil-slim skirts, or a few jersey dresses that were loose about the torso and tight on the hips.
This was a polished presentation which shows 80s-inspired fashion in a completely different light to what was shown in Milan last week.
Thierry Mugler's show, ironically, was a missed opportunity. In recent seasons, he has presented the chicest hourglass tailoring - sexy, assertive fashion that has its roots in 80s glamour. So just as fashion swings around to that look again Mugler, surprisingly, abandons it for loose, easy shapes which are softly belted or draped. The old Mugler only showed its face in the few silver leather bodices and reversible lame robes that he sent out.
Paris also plays host to a number of more conceptual designers such as Yohji Yamamoto, whose shows are a highlight of the Paris schedule. The Japanese designer's eiderdown skirts and great fur-trimmed ecru wool, or carpet patterned coats seem to be inspired by Inuit eskimos and looked warm enough to wear to the Arctic.
There is always a remarkable poetic mood to his presentations and this season there was a romantic down-at-heel gentility about the ragged-edged wool hooped skirts and the distressed earthy look of the fabrics, which were a complete contrast to the polished precision elsewhere on the catwalks.