Paris Fashion Week: Front Row Style

By Chris Frey
March 14, 2011

Alexander McQueen Show

Alexander McQueen Paris Fashion Week (Photo by Dominique Charriau/WireImage)

The pomp and pageantry of 2011 Paris Fashion Week is infectious both on the fashion runways and in their shadows, as fashion’s players don their most treasured and camera-worthy-pieces. We've already written about the street style of those lucky enough to simply be in attendance at the City of Lights. Now, we focus on the A-listers—front row figures, models off duty and of course, the celebs.

Kate Moss & Stefano Pilati

Kate Moss and Stefano Pilati attend the Etam Fashion Show Spring/Summer 2011 Collection (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images For Etam)

The fashion industry's glitterati made headlines of the following fashion trends: maxi dresses, boyish menswear, pointy-toe shoes, floppy 70’s hats and bright accents, especially orange and coral. We decided to hone in on a few less obvious but equally influential fashion trends—some entirely unexpected and some a refreshing and classic return.

And since we’re quite certain Chanel's slouchy military boot already has a waitlist (and it isn't even in production yet!), we hope some of these items will spark some more immediate shopping gratification.

Dark, Textured Metallic Dresses

These girly but sophisticated dark metallic dresses (think pewter and bronze) are subdued in contrast to the bright, foiled metallic dresses of seasons past. In a gunmetal tiered body-conscious mini is everyone’s favorite "Gossip Girl," Blake Lively, the newest Chanel “ambassador” for the Mademoiselle bag. Editor of L’Uomo Vogue, Giovanna Battaglia, undoubtedly one of the most sought after subjects of street photographers and fashion bloggers, boasts one of the most envied wardrobes on the planet, including this bronze, feather-trimmed mini with overlay houndstooth pattern.

Dark, Textured Metallics

Blake Lively attends the CHANEL dinner hosted in her honor during the 2011 Paris Fashion Week (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images); Giovanna Battaglia attends a cocktail and dinner hosted in honor of designer Michael Kors during Paris Fashion Week (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Roll over items for details

New Proenza Schouler Dress

(buy it now price, $399)

New Bcbg Gunmetal Dress

(buy it now price, $125)

Bright Shades with Black

Bright, bold shoes are having a moment, and we especially love them as a punctuation point to an otherwise all-black outfit. Victoire de Castellane, the creative force behind Dior’s whimsical couture jewelry, chose color-blocked open toe sandals. Rie Rasmussen, the Danish actress, film director and photographer, who was the face of Gucci under Tom Ford, rocked seafoam green platforms, primed for Spring avec black tights.

Bright Shades with Black

Fashion Industry elite Rie Rasmussen arrives in a Viktor & Rolf dress for the Viktor & Rolf Ready to Wear show (Photo by Julien Hekimian/WireImage); Victoire de Castelane arrives the Christian Dior Ready to Wear show (Photo by Eric Ryan/Getty Images)

New Marni Sandals

(buy it now price, $299)

New Nicholas Kirkwood Suede Lace Up Sandals

(buy it now price, $790)

Dog-Inspired Tops

We couldn’t have predicted that we would be searching for dog apparel on the heels of the runway fashion shows during 2011 Paris Fashion Week, but here we are! And because it’s Paris, these weren’t your run of the mill dog sweaters. Liv Tyler donned a men’s Givenchy t-shirt, while French television personality and director of film Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton, Agnes Boulard, (a.k.a. Mademoiselle Agnes) wore a Balenciaga German Shepard sweater with neon pink jeans. It’s a highbrow meets lowbrow moment that we find playful and graphic. Stay tuned for dogs, but in the meantime, think wolves.

Dog-Inspired Tops

Mademoiselle Agnes arrives at the Balmain Ready to Wear show (Photo by Francois G. Durand/WireImage); Liv Tyler arrives at the Givenchy after show party fully dressed in Givenchy during Paris Fashion Week (Photo by Julien M. Hekimian/Getty Images)

New Wolf T-Shirt Dress

(buy it now price, $17.14)

New Ruby Rose Wolf Kaftan Dress

(buy it now price, $59.54)

Boxy Tweed Jackets

We found it refreshing to see two of today’s young It-girls wearing classic boucle jackets at Chanel. Both fashion forward girls, the French actress Clemence Poesy and British stylist Caroline Seiber, one of Karl Lagerfeld’s newly appointed muses, have styled the jackets with feminine black mini skirts. Clemence Poesy chose tights and ladylike pumps, while Caroline Seiber went with bare legs and tough metallic shoes. But the jackets remain the focal point of the look for both. The rich texture and the collarless, boxy cut of the jackets make them a timeless and versatile must-have fashion trend for evening dresses or a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

Boxy Tweed Jackets

Clemence Poesy arrives with a Chanel jacket and bag at the Chanel Ready to Wear fashion show (Photo by Julien Hekimian/WireImage); Caroline Sieber, with a Chanel jacket, leaves the Chanel Ready to Wear fashion show (Photo by Julien Hekimian/Contributor)

New White House Black Market Tweed Jacket

(current bid, $10.49)

New Ann Taylor Loft Tweed Jacket

(buy it now price, $34.99)

Slim Clutches & Attaché Cases

Attaché cases and slim oversized clutches were spotted on and off the fashion runways during the 2011 Paris Fashion Week. Jewelry designer Gaia Repossi, artistic director of the House of Repossi, designs fashions for such high profile clients as Carine Roitfeld and Karl Lagerfeld and recently collaborated with Alexander Wang. Her classic briefcase-inspired leather attache case looks spot-on with her all white ensemble. Carrying a slim blue crocodile attaché case was Ines de la Fressange, a former French model and fashion designer, who was named to the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame and last year, at age 52, walked the Chanel Spring runway.

Slim Clutches & Attache Cases

Gaia Repossi attends during the Celine Ready to Wear Autumn/Winter 2011/2012 fashion runway show (Photo by Eric Ryan/Getty Images); Ines de la Fressange attends the Jean-Paul Gaultier show as part of the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2011 (Photo by Eric Ryan/Getty Images)

Bottega Veneta Leather Clutch

(buy it now price, $850)

New Tory Burch Envelope Clutch

(buy it now price, $179)

Romantic Winter White Dresses

White always looks fresh, and these days, there’s no reason to abide by outdated seasonal sartorial rules. Alexa Chung (who at this point needs no introduction) and Russian model Elena Perminova, who has been making headlines with her off the runway style, both chose romantic, voluminous, high-collared white dresses with hemlines well above the knee. These winter white dresses will transition perfectly into spring.

Romantic Winter White

Alexa Chung arrives at the Chanel Ready to Wear Autumn/Winter fashion show (Photo by Marc Piasecki/WireImage); Elena Perminova attends the Viktor & Rolf Ready to Wear fashion show (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)