>> Usually Christian Lacroix's designs are a little too overwrought to speak to me, but something about this set sits just right. 

Maybe the scarlet backdrop is to blame, setting off all the intricate detailing with its vivid hue: the peekaboo lace sleeves, the bell-shaped cocktail dresses, the gossamer tufts; or maybe I've just gone buggy for Lacroix's insect-inspired fantasy world. If so, I'm not the only one: the attendees showered the designer with carnations at the end of the show.

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>> Transparency is still the word, in John Galliano's mind.  The beanie-sporting designer had Lisa Fonssagrives, wife to Irving Penn and oft-credited as the first supermodel, in mind when producing his typical voluminous dresses, but with layers of light chiffon, rather than the heavier, stiffer fabrics Christian Dior couture has boasted in recent seasons. 

Frequent collaborator Stephen Jones, meanwhile, looked to Eduardo Garcia Benito, famous for his '20s Vogue cover illustrations of women in cloches, when creating the accompanying skull cap-cum-cloches.

Peplums were aplenty and Galliano couldn't help himself, sneaking a little leopard print into the bunch.  But the unifying thought with this collection seems to be: What will we see on newfound Dior client Carla Bruni-Sarkozy first?
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>> Instead of opting to do a by-appointment presentation like some designers or a full-blown runway show like other designers, Alexander McQueen chose to present his Resort 2009 collection yesterday in Milan along with his men's Spring 2009 collection because "they both go into the shop together."

He also wanted to play up the importance of resort season — get this — it makes up about 60 percent of his business. Given that fact, expect to see lots of the body-conscious cocktail dresses with neon punches, illusionary prints, japonisme-inspired motifs, and Margiela-like colorblocking in the next couple of months.

Full gallery of all 13 looks below.
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