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Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquière can do more for your bottom than any StairMaster or running program.

What to Buy Right Now Tina Gaudoin 2012

Several top names, including Lanvin's Alber Elbaz and Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquiere , have turned down the job, according to a person close to the process.

Galliano Fined for Religious Slurs Christina Passariello 2011

Balenciaga's raffia-and-leather tote bag, balenciaga.com Take a tube of Bobbi Brown's Beach shower gel, too—it will transport you straight back to the summers of the '70s, with its smell of Coppertone and Bain de Soleil.

From Scent to Sun Bed, Perfecting Poolside Chic Rita Konig 2011

And then one or two "defining" designers will emerge, setting the bar for the others—think Dior, Chanel, Claire McCardell, Yves Saint Laurent or, for the past decade, Miuccia Prada, Alexander McQueen, Alber Elbaz for Lanvin and Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquière.

Fashion's Great Confusion Tina Gaudoin 2011

But if you can find one of Balenciaga's raffia-and-leather basket bags on sale, snap it up!

From Scent to Sun Bed, Perfecting Poolside Chic Rita Konig 2011

Good thing Balenciaga's Spring 2012 collection was met with rave reviews - the guests of the French house's latest show were forced to give a standing ovation before the models even walked the runway.

Benches Break At Balenciaga Show: Famous Front Row Forced To Stand (PHOTO) 2011

That exhibition demonstrated the ways in which Spain's sartorial inheritance—the matador's embroidered bolero, the flounces of Flamenco, the lace veils of Catholicism, the stark outerwear of shepherds—had been absorbed and abstracted into Cristóbal Balenciaga's masterly and vastly influential Paris couture.

Between Heaven and Earth Laura Jacobs 2012

Fendi's cork wedges with turquoise, pink and aqua ribbon detailing (£635) are the best examples of the extreme wedge trend, along with Dior's "Eden" python and hessian wedges (£620) and Balenciaga's "Mamoulian" hessian and leather gladiators in navy and taupe (£485).

The Higher the Heel, the Harder the Fall Tina Gaudoin 2011

Wear the dress or pants with a slouchy jacket, like Miu Miu's leather-trimmed velvet blazer (£725, Net-a-Porter), Balenciaga's tweed wool jacket (£1,035, Matchesfashion.com ) or Acne's "Simone" wool blazer (£510, Matches).

Don We Now Our Gay Apparel Tina Gaudoin 2011

In recent years, Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquiere has ingeniously illustrated how sci-fi futurism can happily coexist with the traditions of a gilded past.

Zac Posen, Hakaan Yildirim among designers outshone in the City of Light Robin Givhan 2010