Nicolas Di Felice is still the reigning lord of the body con movement even while this season heats up to challenge him. It seems that a woman’s body, its shape, and curves are all he thinks about when he creates his bare looks to – often wire frame supports the construction around the torso and hold the flimsy silk fabric – make a statement about female power. Using only razor thin models is a bit boring at this point but the collection which veered into a cool sporty track suit terroir is one of a kind when it comes to subversively sexy clothes in a very classy French way. Di Felice channeled the 24 hours in a Parisienne’s life which clearly has some after hours dancing as a priority.

Antonin Tron considers himself a humble dressmaker: a craft he has executed for more than a decade with his label Atlein. On board at Balmain since mid-November he only had two months to put together this very grown up and ultra-chic collection in which he managed to put his positive body-con stamp on every look and added a layer of Parisian nocturnal chic. Nothing was out of step or a bit garish like Balmain had become a bit of late, this was an assured collection which puts elegance at the center. Tron went as far back as to 1946 to research founder Pierre Balmain pieces and cleverly avoided the recent Balmain era to make a statement about what he called controlled opulence. Animal print dresses, black leather suits and plenty of cleavage revealing blouses and dresses added a good heat. This debut brings Balmain back into the fashion conversation and had German fashion expert actress Diane Kruger in the front row.

Julian Klausner has only been creative director of Dries van Noten for a year and in that short time he has already made the house his very own. After the men’s collection which had the teenage years and finding one’s favorite piece of clothing and owning it as the focus point, he applied the same formula for women’s but in his hands the two efforts looked strikingly different unlike what we saw at Prada or other houses which bring their men’s and women’s runways closer and closer. A wild mish-mash of pixilated prints, ornamental jewelry on tough coats and denims worn with very chunky buckled boots grounded this very new silhouette and fashion. The show felt like something you hadn’t seen before with many passages from one continent to another to end up with a heightened version of school uniforms all expressed and channeled by the individual. A duffle coat has never looked better as in the opening look. Klausner’s fantasy and usage of the Indian embroidery at Van Noten make him a new force in fashion.