Reference points for Dior's pre-fall collection included Helmut Newton and Alfred Hitchcock, both men who idealized icy blondes. Unsurprisingly, it was easy to imagine such a creature in the nipped-waist belted jackets and the flaring full skirts, which exhibited John Galliano's instinctive feel for the Dior originals. The same muse would have gone for a rose-printed dress with a big bow back, or another dress that buttoned all the way down the spine. You'd need a lover or a dresser for that one. But there was also something of Dietrich in a dotted chiffon blouse paired with a black pencil skirt, or a leopard coat trimmed in red fox. With their little platforms and 15-mm metal heels, the shoes were a perfect crystallization of the fashion fetishism that informed the collection.
