Fashion Wire Daily – Poetry was an apt way to describe the fall 2009 runway show from the house of Valentino, an elegant visual dissertation on the art of haute couture on Wednesday, July 8, in Paris.

Reuters – The Paris haute couture shows opened with pared-down collections and sober comments Monday, as the financial woes of designer Christian Lacroix forced even the world’s most extravagant fashion scene to face economic reality.