There are days when I despair of modern fashion and it’s insistence on the new at the expense of beauty and elegance, and then someone like John Galliano will come out with a collection like this one – a collection to swoon for.

Christian Dior – as we all know – was a genius of 20th century fashion. His ground-breaking collection of 1947 “La Corolle” (known these days as the New Look) was about reinventing women as flowers – his designs were memorably illustrated by Rene’ Gruau.

It looks as if Galliano has been inspired by both creatives to produce a wonderful collection of gowns, inspired but not restricted by a sense of 1950s lady-like elegance, down to the immaculate hair and make up.

There’s a cohesiveness of colour and texture, drama but never over the top…okay, maybe a little over the top – but this is runway, and the actual gowns will not be as excessive – which could be a pity, because these are pretty fabulous.

I can almost hear all that silk swishing as the models sashay down the catwalk…

Thank you to wendylady2 on livejournal for sharing these with us – to see more, I recommend her original post.