Shoe blog

Jean Paul Gaultier Spring Couture 2011

If I could choose one designer to make an outfit for me, it would be Jean Paul Gaultier.  He is a master tailor so the piece would be extremely well made, his ideas are not ordinary, and he has such a wicked sense of humor.

Gaultier presented his Haute Couture collection a couple of days ago in Paris.   In the pre-show he described the outfits as “CanCan Punk.”  Many were prepared for a hot mess because he had a loop of cancan music playing before the show and there was no seeming way the two components could combine to be very good.

Then music stopped and the show started.  Catherine Deneuve described stunning, outfit after stunning outfit  in French while the models held numbers, the old-world couture way.

The shoes, I dunno. Lace booties, pumps with bondage ankle cuffs, crochet sandals.  True, he added crochet lace on the platforms. The lace, not only on the shoes but also in the stockings had a hand-made, old fashioned heft to it, but  I was hoping for something prettier.   His banana leaf shoes come to mind – a pair I would still love to own.  Maybe I am being a little hard on him.

Let’s look at what he presented.

This purse is part of the humor Gaultier includes in his collections.  It is pretty funny and fits his personality.

Andrej Pejic  in the wedding dress- another indication of Gaultier’s wicked humor.

Below is probably my favorite dress.  It would be great fun to see Gweneth Paltrow or Uma Therman wear this on the red carpet, maybe even Jennifer Lopez.

I could see Dita Von Teese wearing this.

Gaultier always seems to have such fun with his fashion shows, always presents beautiful sophisticated outfits, and this collection is no exception.  I just wish I liked the shoes more.