Italian Fashion Watch

The Age of Aquarius finally arrived for the Italian couturier, Giorgio Armani, in Paris last night (Wednesday), exactly a week before his 73rd birthday.

As the actress Cate Blanchett, sitting front row, murmered “this rocks”, Armani, once known as ‘Mr Beige’, swapped from minimal to magic.

He unleashed a fireball of fluorescent colour and bling-bling metallics in his.Privé couture collection, shown in the Palais de Chaillot by the Eiffel Tower.

Models, with switches of orange, lime and pink hair dangling from their braided locks – unfettered by strange Smurf-like hats for the first time in decades - appeared in neon-lime taffeta puffballs, shock-croc pink bustiers with velvet pencil skirts, rainbow-feather cloaks and tight, cleavage-jackets worn with floral dance-dirndls, all accessorized with crystal boots and fluorescent, platform stilettoes.

Armani called the collection, which was inspired by David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust era, “the beginning of a new age.”