Chanel’s spring/summer haute couture collection

The sound of chirping birds in a forest formed the welcome backdrop to the presentation of Chanel’s 2013 spring/summer haute couture collection.

Woodland princesses pass through this delicate landscape, wearing little cocktail dresses

Following the path, turn the corner and there stands an amphitheatre, decorated with majestic rough wood, surging from a surrounding nature that appears to have quite literally taken root.

Through lush vegetation, gracious creatures, alternating between romantic and deadly flowers, wander like a breath of fresh air over white sand. Their faces are half hidden by clusters of chiffon leaves and feathers and their legs are swathed in thigh-high boots crafted from lace.

The dresses and subtly flared suits, barely touching raised waistlines, parade nonchalantly by. In feather-weight tweeds, woven with ribbons, lace and organza tulle, the open necklines frame the shoulders.

As Karl Lagerfeld explained, it is the “framed shoulders”. A graphic yet fluid line runs throughout the show, reinforced by a clever game of trompe-l’oeil over sparkling décolletés, embroidered with crystals, lighting up faces.

Alongside the blacks and navy blues is white, beige, gold and powder pink infuse tweeds, chiffons, organza and ethereal tulles with their gentle luminosity. The intense pigmentation of glistening black, bright pink and vibrant green saturate dresses, embroidered entirely with sparkling sequins, sketching out large floral tableaux with the illusion of being a print.

Woodland princesses pass through this delicate landscape, wearing little cocktail dresses structured in iridescent organza pleats, sheath dresses with cascading hand-smocked ruffles, shoulders always framed, and capes with dropped collars.

The array of fabrics can only impress: dresses in white neoprene veiled in black guipure lace; ever-so-slightly translucent sheath dresses made entirely from white, black, beige or gold Calais lace; dresses, bolero jackets and trousers in white silk satin all embroidered with black lace.

Gradually the ultra-modern flower girls transform, becoming darker in their hand-painted tulle and chiffon puff ball dresses, resembling inverted corollas, and shift dresses embellished with explosions of embroidered multi-colour bouquets.

Short dresses with long ruffled trains are adorned with celadon and pink chiffon leaves, petals and feathers, each one cut out individually.

Increasingly pernicious beauties, with their smoky eyes, stride forward in liquid black shift dresses, drenched in shimmering sequins and “embroidery printed” with daisies, anemones and ranunculus.

Finally, two brides and a little boy peeping out from behind their dresses and capes in tulle, chiffon and diaphanous feathers, amplify once more the nebulous beauty of nature, as envisaged by Karl Lagerfeld.