Linda Fargo, senior vice-president, fashion office and store presentation at Bergdorf Goodman, will be filing her picks from the European shows. What did she like from Paris? Balenciaga's prep-school chic, Nina Ricci’s overcast palette, and Lanvin's easy fit.

Balenciaga
After so much black, polished dressing, there was suddenly an independent free spirit in our midst. Here was an exuberant mix of color and unconventional style — a shrunken, boyish prep school jacket, slouchy khaki jodhpurs, and crazy snowboard sandals, completed with a bouillon-fringed Arabic neck scarf!

Watch a slideshow of the Balenciaga collection.

Nina Ricci
Olivier Theyskens’s debut was like a winter's dream with all the varying shades of cold gray skies, bare trees, and snow-dusted ground. This young megatalent delivered a vision that was ingeniously cut, all spiral bound in shape and light, feathery and floating in construction.

Watch a slideshow of the Nina Ricci collection.

Lanvin
This modern collection was cool, relaxed and covetable. Alber Elbaz’s seemingly casual external seam work was dressed up without being prim. And never too tight to be vulgar — the silhouettes were beautifully slim.

Watch a slideshow of the Lanvin connection.