Of course, Largerfeld wasn’t the only one vying for the couture crown—the new heavyweight favorite, Riccardo Tisci, put on a powerhouse showing, despite giving the boot to runway theatrics. Instead, the new kid on the block went back to basics, retreating to the gilded salons of l’hotel d’Evreux (former love shacks for kings’ mistresses) to present his 10th outing at Givenchy. The super-concentrated ten knockout looks clearly demonstrated that basic doesn’t necessarily mean minimal. The shimmering spectacle was the type of opulence usually reserved for royals, tycoons and the conspiracy priests in The Da Vinci Code. Modifiers like “luxurious” and “rarefied” seem superfluous, so we’ll simply say there isn’t enough gold on Delancey to pawn for a single beaded sleeve. The aristocratic showing left editors fawning, and maybe one or two considering drag.