The Soiree Is Over

The presentation opened with a group of white suits that were flattering but not particularly interesting. The jackets were belted and the skirts fell to the knee. They emphasized the rounded shoulder, a polished aesthetic and a curvaceous shape. There were draped dresses in a graphic black-and-white flower print. He mixed lacquered fabric, which looked almost like melting rubber, with traditional jersey in colorful dresses that jolted the eye with blasts of purple, fuchsia and an avalanche of sequins. The dresses were at times garish, the rubber effect not at all attractive. But the short dresses slowly began to evolve into gowns. The hemlines dropped to the floor, the sequins became more controlled and the strange fabrics less in evidence.

Galliano's collection explored silhouettes, fabric technology, the use of volume and color. At times his experimentation was unsuccessful. But there were also moments when one of his strange dresses would redefine "pretty" and lodge itself in the imagination.

Burrows was known for the cast of characters who swarmed around him -- beautiful people living enviable lives. Even in his heyday, he instinctively knew that fame brought fortune. His friend the model Pat Cleveland was dutifully giving interviews about his brilliance. But the fashion shows here have brought out Natalie Portman, Kanye West, Katie Holmes (inexplicably wearing a black formal gown at the Giambattista Valli show at 12:30 in the afternoon), Pharrell Williams and Paul McCartney. The ubiquitous Jackson attended more than a half-dozen shows, her Winnebago-sized security guard and his muscleheads clogging exits and entrances everywhere they went. Burrows needed more than a retired model to add glitter to his show.

Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Miu Miu

Stephen Burrows cannot compete with fashion's great showmen. And he is not a corporate designer who can send whatever he pleases down the runway because he has revenue from handbags and shoes to pay the bills.

Marc Jacobs, who designs for Louis Vuitton, can indulge in ruffled skirts, layered dresses, corset tops and billowing shirts. Vuitton is a leather-goods brand. The clothes are available in only a handful of Vuitton boutiques and then only in dribs and drabs. Sunday afternoon, models marched out clutching small leather purses in faded blue with trompe l'oeil details. Schoolgirl satchels were covered in multicolored leather paillettes. And Jacobs transformed the throwaway shopping bag -- the plaid nylon satchels that street vendors use to transport their wares -- into a designer boondoggle by stamping an LV logo on the side and upping the price.

For Hermes -- think leather goods, ties and fancy scarves -- the inspiration for the brand's Saturday evening show was a cruise. The models sauntered along the runway in designer Jean Paul Gaultier's satin shorts with matching jackets, long and fluid dresses in almost transparent scarf prints and cropped baseball-style jackets that wrapped around the torso. Most important, there was also a new Birkin-ish bag that collapsed and was secured with a bit of leather that wound around the outside.

Miuccia Prada presented her Miu Miu collection -- shoes, shoes, shoes -- in a private residence in an elegant neighborhood not far from the Arc de Triomphe. Her models wandered through the rooms wearing high platform shoes in colorful silk.

The clothes included cadet blue trousers that sit at the natural waistline and blouses in color blocks of blue and raspberry with tiny white round collars. There were also short skirts with petal-shaped panels in similarly strong colors. The combination had the sharp primness of a school uniform.

Her dresses came in abstract prints -- Spirograph meets Jackson Pollock -- and with hemlines that fell to mid-calf. Skirts sat high on the waist and fell almost to the ankles. It was a contrary commentary on hemlines in a season that has shown them predominantly mid-thigh or to the floor.

These small shows with nontraditional runways keep the focus on clothes and ideas. The models just walk; they don't perform. It's business, not a social occasion.

In hindsight, one wishes that Burrows had produced a show such as the one organized by designer Martin Grant. It was an intimate presentation and the audience could almost reach out and touch the splendid garments as they passed by.

Grant's clothes are not fussy and precious, but they retain a bit of romance. They have enough fashion in them to make a woman feel up on the zeitgeist. His sleeveless dresses with their pleated skirts and drawstring collars had the sportiness of tennis clothes. His cherry red shift with its crushed pleats was irresistible. And a bright red rain slicker with short sleeves was as fanciful as a gumdrop.

Burrows's clothes, after all these years, still have merit. He is a talented designer. But he tried in vain to recapture the atmosphere of a party that for fashion ended a long time ago.