Jean Paul Gaultier served up a fun, funky patchwork of outfits for his ready-to-wear fashion show in Paris on Saturday where a heavy emphasis on leather and rocker chic added to the anything goes Bohemian style.

Gaultier is a designer with many ideas in his head. His 2013/2014 autumn/winter season fashion show was no exception, where models sporting punky mullets evoked Ziggy Stardust with long, form-fitting jackets, gold lame leather pants or 1970s-era dresses.

The show evoked a late 60s televised variety show, with a backdrop of red, black and white block screens spelling out the designer's name in big letters, and accompanied by a 80s soundtrack from the Eurythmics to David Bowie to The Clash.

"I was playing with the idea of patchwork of fabrics, and with the hair I wanted patchwork as well," Gaultier said after the show. "It gave a David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust element, but more slender, fine with a masculine element."

In rich hues of brown, bronze, aubergine and black, the patchwork idea was literal. One multi-coloured dress featuring a side slit up to there was sewn together from an array of luxury fabrics, including velvet, embroidered cloth and sequins.

The idea was an extension of what Gaultier explored during his haute couture show in January where Rajasthan-inspired patchwork featured prominently.

The ready-to-wear shows largely determine what will be on department store racks and trendy boutiques the following season. In Paris, they follow on the heels of haute couture, the creme de la creme of fashion shows where only a select group of luxury names, including Gaultier, are allowed to show.

Fashion brands are concerned over weak European economic health that has crimped spending, yet the best-known luxury houses are still protected by demand from wealthy buyers in Asia, the Middle East and Russia.

- Reuters

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