Valentino was born in Italy, but he struts at the front of France's fashion parade. His status was confirmed this week as he was awarded the French Legion of Honor medal, a day after presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection. At left, a model at Valentino's show July 5, 2006 in Paris.
Keep clicking for more from Valentino, Gaultier, Lacroix, Givenchy and Lagerfeld.
"I love this country like my own," said Valentino, who as a young man studied fashion at a prestigious Paris institute. He was to celebrate the award by hosting a party at his 16th-French century chateau, where the gardens boast an estimated 1 million roses.
A model wears Valentino during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 5, 2006.
The latest from Valentino is an opulent collection of evening gowns inspired by imperial Russia.
A model in a fur-trimmed Valentino during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 5, 2006.
A model wears a Valentino during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 5, 2006.
A model wears a Valentino during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 5, 2006.
A model wears a Valentino during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 5, 2006.
A model shows a Valentino during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 5, 2006.
Keep clicking for the latest from designer Jean Paul Gaultier. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
While many designers tapped into today's troubled times with armor-like clothing fit for an urban warrior, Jean Paul Gaultier escaped to a fantasy world peopled with princesses, witches and animals in his haute couture show.
A model walks the runway for Gaultier during the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
"I think it's marvelous," said front-row guest Catherine Deneuve, who might have helped inspire the collection back in 1970, when she starred in a film adaptation of the French fable "Peau d'Ane" ("Donkey Skin"). "They are perfectly wearable clothes but clothes that make you dream, nonetheless."
A model wears a creation by Gaultier for his fall-winter 2006/2007 collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
They can't all be hits. This hapless model looks like she's making a grab for her fake-hair top hat as she models an outfit by Jean-Paul Gaultier during the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 7, 2006.
A model wears a Jean-Paul Gaultier gown during the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris on July 7, 2006.
A model wears a Jean-Paul Gaultier creation during the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris on July 7, 2006.
A model wears a Jean-Paul Gaultier creation during presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris on July 7, 2006.
Guests including pop singers Kylie Minogue and Elton John gathered in a tent outside Paris for couture shows featuring outfits by Christian Lacroix and Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel.
At left, model shows a gown by Lacroix at the fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection July 6, 2006 in Paris.
Always-flamboyant Christian Lacroix wooed his audience with a dramatic Spanish-flavored parade. Celebrity stylist Rachael Zoe, whose clients include Nicole Ritchie and Jennifer Garner, said she thought it was one of his best shows ever.
A model wears Lacroix at the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
At his show, Lacroix unleashed an explosion of lace, silk and ruffles in Goya-inspired shades. He explained that he has just finished creating the costumes for a new production of "Cyrano de Bergerac" at the Comedie Francais in Paris, and had been immersed in the 17th century.
A model wears a Lacroix dress at the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
A model wears a Lacroix gown at the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
A model wears a Lacroix outfit at the presentation of his fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
Karl Lagerfeld showed gowns dripping with gold tassels that betrayed hours of painstaking embroidery, with boots decorated with elaborate jeweled crosses. The colors were sober; the details were not.
Models wear creations by fashion designer Lagerfeld for Chanel's fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection in Paris, July 6, 2006.
In a week of few surprises, Riccardo Tisci dazzled and disturbed with gothic chic at Givenchy. With Paris still buzzing about the new Quai Branly museum, a showcase for non-Western art, Tisci drew inspiration from far away Myanmar, Indonesia and Brazil.
A model presents a dress by Ricardo Tisci for Givenchy's fall-winter 2006/2007 haute couture collection, July 6, 2006.