Christian Dior Spring/Summer 2012 Haute Couture Show Paris

Haute Couture Show

The spring/summer haute couture collection shown in Paris on Monday was a clear attempt to get the Dior name back on track. Gaytten was taking no chances getting his message across this time: he had the Christian Dior quote he used at the top of the show notes hand-embroidered in organza on to the skirts of several dresses.

"Elegance must be the right combination of distinction, naturalness, care and simplicity," it read.

This collection was "an X-ray of Dior", Gaytten said after the show. That meant two things. The wasp-waisted, full-skirted silhouette was a clear reference to the Dior heyday of the early 1950s, while the extraordinary construction of the clothes was celebrated with transparent fabrics which showed off the layers and underpinnings that form the base of those shapes.