CHER! (exclamation mark required) sitting in the frow at the Gareth Pugh show was the celeb spotting of day two of Paris. Once we got over that excitement of the Goddess of Pop in our midst, we got down to taking in the stately and arched beauty of Pugh's collection. The more intimate salon setting of the Hotel Salomon de Rothschild meant we were able to see everything up close. What we saw were floor sleeping gowns cut high to those armour-like proportions that we are so used to seeing from Pugh. In snow white and with gold branches creeping their way up from the hemline, it felt like a gothic fairytale was revealing itself, especially when the gowns did eventually turn black and into periods of deep blue.

Turns out, Pugh was looking at a modern day girl power tribe called the Asgarda, who reside in the Carpathian mountains in the Ukraine, seeking autonomy from men and kicking ass whilst wearing t-shirts and billowing folk skirts. This set the silhouette blueprint for Pugh. What made those dramatic shapes seem tangible though were the army-blanket-esque fabrics, lending a papery quality, which toughened up the full skirts and curved proportions.

"We used lots of fabrics we had reams of in the studio. There's a make, do and mend thing which I quite like," remarked Pugh. "It goes back to Asgarda, creating and making your own outsider society." It was joyful to see DIY culture enter the fray again. The most potent sign that Pugh had returned to his trash couture roots, which thrilled London back in the day? Dresses made out of bin liners. Real ones, sourced from a pound shop in Stoke Newington. They looked like the opposite of rubbish, woven and cut into topiary-esque, haute couture formations. They got Cher's seal of approval.

The soundtrack at Dries Van Noten has always been emotionally stirring in the past but this time, it properly clued you into the show. 'Night and Day' and 'Cheek to Cheek' were classic oldies twisted into a mix. Exactly what Van Noten served up in this masterclass of a collection, teaching us all how the masculine and feminine can co-habit in pure harmony. Starting out with menswear elements such as straight-legged trousers (sometimes with an added kilt skirt), mannish Crombie coats, Savile Row fabrics and old world collegiate stripes. He then in his own words "invaded" them with feminine frou frou, derived from ice skating and ballroom dancing as the relationship between Fred and Ginger played its way into the collection. No dodgy sequins or spandex here. Instead, there was love in the air. "It’s about the love between men and women and in the end it becomes one!," explained Van Noten backstage.

Embroideries that were deliberately too bright, crystals were oversized and there was an abundance of ostrich feathers that swept their way in to adorn traditional menswear attire. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers would collectively nod their heads at a ballroom ready ostrich feather skirt and top in contrasting candy pink and acid yellow as well as a more demure trouser suit with a paisley embroidered jacket. You could tell Dries had a riot of a time coming up with these articulate gender clashes and every time Van Noten commits himself to whatever contrast he is playing around with he manages to propose a modus operandi of dressing that is difficult to resist.The waves of "Bravo!" echoing in the stately L'Htel de Ville at the end proved that once again, he had a hit on his hands.

If you're looking for infinity, you'll find it harnessed on the third floor in Dover Street Market. Hedi Slimane's Saint Laurent collection – menswear, womenswear and accessories – is reflected to the hilt in a cabinet of dress-up geometry.

Appropriating techniques and materials from French Art Deco with Bauhaus influence, repetitive vitrines are constructed in poli mirror, brass and extra clear mirror, playing the House code of silver and gold in unison. It's the ultimate frame for Slimane's youth quake tailoring, leather jackets, suspended Paris heels and blue jeans, an item Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent had great regard for, quoting, "They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity – all I hope for in my clothes". This installation remains equally as potent empty of the ritualistic wardrobe.

It's not the first time Slimane has exhibited at Rei Kawakubo's original concept store, however, as the creative showcased his F System furniture project back in 2007, a series of artisan crafted loveseats and tables transposed – and disrupted – from historical silhouettes in stainless steel and ebony.

Mayfair's the hotspot where the impetus of other eras meets the future, it seems. All those mirrors make sure the romance bounces the right way.

A series of religious Byzantine and Venetian murals made up the invitation to yesterday's Dolce & Gabbana's show. Many were taken from the walls of the Cathedral of Monreale in Sicily, where these gilded works, dating from the 12th and 13th centuries, cover almost seventy thousand square feet of the building itself. That same sense of iconographic excess and feeling of devotion became the very premise for the collection.

Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana printed these religious images onto dresses and separates, creating their own adaptation by adding texture, heavy beading and colourful embellishments. Models appeared on the runway wearing gilded crowns and large gold crucifix earnings, almost becoming religious icons themselves. Silhouettes ranged from longer evening dresses, to shorter skirts and box-like mini dresses. Then sheer black lace began to appear, peeking out under the hems of printed dresses or making up a top to sit alongside a corseted skirt.

Their colour palette began to narrate acts of religious devotion, white became a symbol of purity, black a representation of mourning, and the incredible bold red that closed their show a nod to power and passion. The duo even referenced their own archive, sending a sculptured metallic gold corset down the runway, heavily adored with big coloured gems. That's a signature piece, which seemed fitting for a collection routed in worship and the iconic.

www.dolcegabbana.com

Makeup: Pat McGrath

Models pictured: Sui He-@sui_he, Kate King-@KateKingg, Daphne Groeneveld-@daphgroeneveld, Suvi Koponen-@SuviMK, Fei Fei Sun-@FeiFeiSunSun, Karlina Caune-@kkkarlie, Bette Franke-@Bette_Franke, Chiharu Okunugi-@chiharuuu0515

Mixing a soundtrack of Oasis, Blur and a symphony of bagpipes – it was clear there was a real clash of references at Moschino this season. There were micro tartan kilts, double-breasted riding jackets and fringe-heavy suede coats, all given Moschino attitude with the inclusion of oversized gold earrings and gold studded embellishments.

The mini and at times, box-like silhouettes echoed the luxury teenage power dressing of the 90s. Shut up! We're, like, so talking the wardrobe of (now classic) movie 'Clueless'. Whilst this season's colour palette developed with each look, moving from pop reds, to forest greens into a monochromatic ending of black on white.

However, Clueless in the dictionary sense of the word, this was not, with a very considered take on the extra details; the bow ties, the pussy bows and embroidered gold Moschino crests. The fringed leather pouches slung round the waist and the tartan trimmed hats told the story of an Italian Highland fling.