According to Alexandre Vauthier, when David Bellemere was shooting Luna Bijl outside the Hôtel Le Meurice earlier this week for the designer’s lookbook, drivers on the Rue de Rivoli didn’t hold back on the honking. Hardly a surprise; Vauthier’s clothes exist to stop traffic. Maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but there’s no question these ready-to-wear looks signal the Parisian va-va-voom of his most recent haute couture collection, only now within (relative) reach. Should you have an occasion that merits the same daring violet metallic jersey dress and boots worn by Aurélie Dupont, the dance director of the Paris Opera Ballet, to the opening gala last week, you’re in luck. Despite the switch to lamé, its slinkiness is, for all intents and purposes, identical.
Of the looks that Bellemere shot throughout the hotel—from Alain Ducasse’s kitchen to the Salvador Dalí suite—there were others that differed only in surface detail. Sequins replaced Lesage embroidery on a hot little number ringed in a ruffle around its one shoulder, for instance. Given that this lineup delivers in Spring, couture cashmere would be moot, anyway. Arguably, these cotton voile polka-dot dresses put an easier spin on 1980s chic than the haute originals in stiffer silk organza.
Moving past the comparisons, Vauthier’s proposition arrives at a time when a nod back to such a glamorous moment feels welcome. As someone who will never dabble in ugly or eccentric, his strass-spotted jean jackets and micro-studded slip dresses not only feel most authentic, he said they are increasingly sparking interest among retailers who know that, eye-roll if you must, sex always sells.
That said, let’s suppose you were the wife of a dashing, driven president who defied all odds, you would still find any number of Vauthier’s statement jackets and tailored pants to request for state visits and official ceremonies. Understandably reserved about his rapport with Brigitte Macron, he seems chuffed all the same. Vauthier didn’t say as much, but her ongoing interest in his structured blazers validates his vision in a way that goes far beyond the buzz he gets from Bella.
