Olivier Theysken's Real Ricci Girl

>> Hubert de Givenchy had Audrey Hepburn, Giorgio Armani has Cate Blanchett, Carolina Herrera has Renee Zellweger, and Olivier Theyskens continues to align himself with Reese Witherspoon at Nina Ricci — because, as it's put in the November 2008 issue of Vogue, "every newly named artistic director of a fashion house in Paris knows he needs a huge Hollywood actress."

According to Theyskens, the match just fell into place: ""When I met her at Rochas, it was not the right fit.  But when I started at Ricci, I had a strong feeling about her being a real Ricci girl, and I showed her some drawings and she was really willing."  Plus — "We are the same age, so we have some roots.  I am quite fascinated by roots of generations."

Recalling the first time they publicly debuted a collaboration — Reese's canary cocktail Nina Ricci number for the 2007 Golden Globes — the actress invited Olivier to visit her in LA: "So he came to my house and sat on the floor and started sketching.  Of course I put out tons of food and he didn't eat anything.  He brought out two kinds of fabric — he brought out one gray and one yellow.  And he said, 'I think you are like this! I think you are like a party! I think you are wearing a yellow dress!'"

Olivier was nervous about the whole ordeal: "The yellow dress with the bustier — for me it was the first thing that the world would see from me at Ricci. But still, I wanted it to fit with Reese. I was afraid. And it was Reese who picked that fabric. This was one of my favorite fabrics! She just fell right into it. She is very intuitive."

After that first frenzied collaboration, everything feel into place, according to Olivier: "If I do her an elegant dress, she can dress so elegant. If I find a dress, she will find a way to be at her ease. I feel OK — I'm Olivier doing dresses! I'm superhappy about working, and everything is getting more fluid."  And that is how he came to be photographed with her in Vogue, Reese wearing two dresses he made especially for the occasion.
*image: source