Yesterday, on the opening day of the Paris Couture Week Autumn-Winter 2011-12 Christian Dior for the first time in 15 years had a Couture show minus John Galliano.
Bill Gaytten, Galliano’s assistant for 23 years stepped in to replace the maestro – and pulled off an impossibly difficult task with ease and canny sense of knowing what sells. In fact Gaytten took a dig at Galliano by stating that the atelier had spent time developing new techniques, rather than plundering archives. 
The collection started with a colourful, pop-art print with tutti-frutti embroideries on skirts and structured, embroidered mosaic-effect jackets before graduating onto romantic mille-feuille rose-petal effect taffeta fluttering ballgowns. Sydney Toledano, the boss at Dior gave Bill Gaytten a warm hug post show.