And so Haute Couture Fashion Week comes to an end, and with it quite possibly an era.
Valentino Creative Directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli showed what was their final collection for Valentino as a joint partnership.
Chiuri announced her departure from the Italian brand today and is expected to take the helm at Dior any day now, becoming the first woman to ever command the iconic fashion house.
So what did their final collection for Valentino offer?
Fittingly, a take on another wonderful era; that of the Elizabethan and the works of the period's pre-eminent playwright, Shakespeare (2016 also happens to be the 400th anniversary of the bard's death).
There were ruffs. Beautiful Elizabethan ruffs. (Nope, we never thought we'd say that either.).
And workmanship like no other....
Like this dress, which took 580 hours to bead and is embroidered with the quote: 'If you love me I'm in your heart, if you hate me I'm in your mind.'
It's taken from this quote, often attributed to Shakespeare: 'Love me or hate me, both are in my favour. If you love me, I'll always be in your heart, but if you hate me, I'll always be in your mind.'
Just us or is that some serious 17th Century shade?
