Photo Diary: Haute Couture S/S 07

Travelling back on the Eurostar and leafing through the new Paris Vogue, just spotted the latest fashion photographer to 'do a Juergen/Terry' and publish a nude self-portrait. The question is: who will be next after Mario?!

They started with quite an 80s silhouette, with pronounced Montana-like shoulders, but this softened as the -brief at 10 minutes- show went on, into this more curvaceous, almost Edwardian outline.

Showing in the very chic Romanian embassy, Boudicca unveiled a very sharp and precise collection of trouser-suits and lace evening dresses. The fit was impeccable but in truth, it was hard to see the fabrics as it was very, very dark.

The fabric is threaded through the beads to mould the shawl to the body.

Closest to us, you see the brilliant 'Oil Painting Dress', for which the house has washed three oil paintings to strip the canvas of its gesso, softened them and then pieced them together in this shift, carefully folding them to create a waist. Get a message to Cate: THIS is what she should wear!

Here you are seeing the scene after the Margiela presentation, where a photographer is shooting the models behind apertures in a curved hall of mirrors. In a kind of museological tour, a cropped section of a model's body emerged from the darkness to reveal one of 24 garments in turn; a men's and a woman's to represent a different month of the year. Meanwhile, a voiceover explained the origins and construction of each piece -in the foreground you see a trench made from 40 shopping bags- in three different languages. A brilliant idea that took me back to my museum days!

Risking life and limb for SHOWstudio apparently, Benjamin took a video camera into the Chanel show on Tuesday. He popped by the hotel bar last night to show me the results of his quick little edit.

Mmm, Cate looks interested in this one for her Babel acceptance speech.

This was Giorgio Armani's biggest collection at close to 70 'exits'. There was glitzy sparkle and lustrous fabrics galore, but most of all, it seemed, there were these spiral dresses with asymmetrical hemlines.

From left: ex Bondgirl Rosamund Pike, Cate Blanchet -who was flown in on the Armani jet especially- the Armani niece, whose name is possibly Natalia (?) and of course, friend of Giorgio, Katie. All wearing Armani Prive, naturally.

Yes, really: it's Katie Holmes!

This white lace dress came with an attached lace gimp mask: someone should tell Cantankerous! Such a great fit without being stretchy: brilliant.

These amazing halos -each girl wore one (as seen with this 'bleeding heart dress') fashioned from metal, perspex, feathers and all manner of stuff- are going to be shot to pieces in the coming reason. I mean, who wouldn't look better for a little ray of light around the hairline? Now, which supermodel do we most see one on? How about Naomi...

There were so many angels floating around that as the dresses became more complex, I kept thinking we were witnessing the bride, who is traditionally the final 'exit' in a Couture show. At around 65k each, wedding dresses are key to keeping the industry afloat as they comprise a good proportion of Couture sales.

Once the model wearing this solid gold number descended the staircase onto the runway, she slid open the 'doors' of her mask to reveal her face.

Of course, the classic Gaultier trick is the visual pun: trompe L'Oeil, the trouser-dress or some such cheeky gag. In this afternoon's show, any jokes were played out in the staging, rather than the clothes themselves, which were as elegant and demure as the angels on which the collection's theme was based. This modest suit, for instance, was revved up in the sexy stakes by its model, Dita von Teese, whose appearance in a show about virgin Madonnas was a shrewd move, given her pending divorce to Marilyn Manson.

On arrival, each guest is given a slip with a district of Paris printed on it in exchange for their invite. This is a clever rouse: nobody knows how good their seats are before they get in and so can't make a fuss at the door (London PR Mandi Lennard runs a system like this, only with coloured stickers). I have a hunch I know where the back row is- La Salette: that's what it says on my slip!

Acres of chiffon, tulle and suede trailed in the muck to perfect the late 19th century silhouette.

After an initial section of tailoring – that looked a lot like Ready-to-Wear – but then, I was a few rows from being able to see any perceptible detail, all Riccardo Tisci's attention turned to trains...

Lacroix does two sittings and my ticket was for the latter so I wasn't sure what to make of my friends text to 'expect a nu rave show'. At Lacroix? Really?! The palette was pretty fluoro, yes, and there was a smattering of techno crystal, as seen in this waspie waister, but it wasn't awash with teen spirit, I wouldn't have said.

Oh, the romance! I'd been told to expect a carnation on my seat when I got here. Apparently, they are to throw at Christian Lacroix at the end of the show. The programme notes say this – 40th – collection is about 'scent of a woman'. That's the one where Al Pacino shouts a lot, right?

'Tradition and refinement versus savagery' he said: samurai warriors, crysanthemums and flower arranging and contemporary art were the central themes of the (legendary) research books.

Origami-like folding a key construction theme.

Of course, judging by the get-up of most of the c60-year-old clients sitting on the lacquered, black seats in the audience, it won't be garments like this delightful, poufy sack dress with rope motifs that will be the big sellers in the coming weeks. But such items demonstrate that Galliano is capable of greater modernity and subtlety than has been found in his most recent Couture collections.

Stephen Jones nearly stole the show with his fantastic hats!

John (we're on first name terms since my visit last week...) described getting the diagonal graduation on the hand dying for this dress as like 'mathematics' when he showed me the research books from his preparatory research trip to Japan.

It's quite a trek out here to the Dior venue in the Bois de Boulogne: a far cry from the central setting of the Tuilleries for the Ready-to-Wear.

One thing you can say about Couture: the demographic and attire of the audience is certainly different from Ready-to-Wear!

Here comes the bride, concluding a collection of Roman toga-inspired draping and knife pleated sparkling tulle. In honesty, couldn't see much from the Gods and slightly distracted by all the plastic surgery on show in the audience!