It’s always a very special experience, seeing the Givenchy Haute Couture each season–it’s shown as a small, but utterly extraordinary, presentation held in the beautiful salons of the Hôtel d’Evreux, on the Place Vendôme.

For the past few seasons, Riccardo Tisci has mounted his Haute Couture shows for Givenchy this way, and I understand why: this venerable hôtel particulier has an Old World elegance that’s calm and serene. The pieces were presented in three large reception rooms, through which Riccardo’s team led us on a private tour. The clothes were shown in varying shades and textures of white (or white-on-white), with hand-beaded fabrics, pearl-encrusted designs, macramé trim and beautiful fringe. The craftsmanship and attention to detail on display were beyond –this is real couture!

What’s so fabulous about a presentation is that it allows time and proximity to really look at the pieces and see the detail–to notice, for example, that what seemed, at first, to be abstract patterns are actually designed to look one way up close and another from far away. Haute Couture trompe l’oeil.

The Givenchy Haute Couture was so special, it truly took my breath away (in fact, I could barely pull myself away from the presentation). I feel lucky to have had the privilege to see these clothes “up close and personal,” as it were. And I can’t stop thinking about it.

Photographs by Stephane Israël and Arnaud Paumier