"[It was] sublime," said Yves Saint Laurent's long-term partner Pierre Bergé - to whom the show was dedicated. "He respected the codes of Saint Laurent."
Yesterday's unveiling was attended by some of the industry's most famous names, from Kate Moss - who was overheard telling Mario Testino that that she wanted "everything" - to Vivienne Westwood, Marc Jacobs, Diane von Furstenberg and Alber Elbaz. Guests were given the skinny silhouettes that Slimane is known for, echoing the label's iconic Le Smoking look, as well as gypsy-inspired dresses with a rock 'n' roll feel.
"It was very Hedi and it was very Saint Laurent," said Elbaz.
"I completely identify with that look, and I think he did a great job," Diane von Furstenberg told The New York Times. "I think it was great, and I think Dior was great. Everyone is going on codes and the vocabulary of the brands."
According to Harrods' chief merchant Marigay McKee, the collection will be a commercial hit with shoppers next season.
"With all eyes on Hedi Slimane's ready-to-wear debut at Saint Laurent, he delivered a slick collection fusing his contemporary silhouette with rock-meets-Seventies-inspired styles that echoed an iconic era of the house drawing heavily on the archives," McKee told us this morning. "This strong aesthetic reflects the continued demand for a more paired-back look, which has been prominent over the last few years - with many women buying less, and picking clever investment pieces that can be mixed and matched. The focus was very much on the cut, fit and fabrication, and this was a collection that is perfect for our customer."
Karl Lagerfeld was one of the few fashion bastions not to be seen on the show's impressive front row, but it wasn't anything personal - in fact the designer wore a Slimane-inspired Dior Homme suit at the Chanel show this morning.
"I never look at other shows before the Chanel show," he told us backstage. "I don't go to other shows."
Horyn had not been invited to Monday's show - the pair have an on-going feud following a piece the journalist wrote back in 2004, in which she implied that Slimane owes his success to Raf Simons - and so had written her most recent review based on pictures of the show.
"I expected more from his debut," she wrote in her blog, adding that his clothes "lacked fashion spirit". She continued: "Meanwhile, its competitors - Balenciaga, Dior, Givenchy, Celine, Lanvin - are having a terrific season."
Slimane's scathing response came later in the day, with the designer accusing Horyn of being "a publicist in disguise".
"In conclusion, and as far as I'm concerned, she will never get a seat at Saint Laurent, but might get two for one at Dior," he wrote, in reference to Horyn's support of Raf Simons. "She should rejoice. I don't mind critics, but they have to come from a fashion critic, not a publicist in disguise. I am quite mesmerised she did get away with it for so many years."
Commenting that "her agenda is seriously thick and perfectly predictable," Slimane also went on to question Horyn's skills as a writer and her fashion sense.
"Miss Horyn is a schoolyard bully and also a little bit of a stand-up comedian," he wrote. "Insiders argue she is an average writer, and a bit provincial, but I disagree, she did some great things. Her biggest achievement so far is a book about Bill Blass, that I haven't read. It might be terrific, and I'll be happy to recommend it, if it helps the sales.
"I also often hear that her sense of style is seriously challenged, providing that she is meant to be an authority in the village. This is totally irrelevant, no one has ever asked for her to be an inspiration to others after all, and likely it would never happen anyway."
Horyn herself has laughed off the criticism: "It's just silly nonsense to me," she told WWD.
CTEDIT: Vogue News
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