Paris designers whipped up a rainbow burst of colours this week as an antidote to the economic blues plaguing the luxury industry.

"Everyone wants to play in colour this season," said Ken Downing, senior vice-president and fashion director for luxury retailer Neiman Marcus.

French designer Sonia Rykiel celebrated her 40 years in business by sending dozens of models twirling down the catwalk in brightly coloured silks. Christian Lacroix let loose with a riot of clashing patterns, while Esteban Cortazar went tropical at Emanuel Ungaro.

Italian designer Riccardo Tisci hit the only sombre note with a Givenchy collection that stuck to his trademark palette of black, white and the occasional flash of nude.

The Associated Press

Sonia Rykiel

Roses rained on the catwalk as Rykiel celebrated her milestone with a star-studded party that proved she is still going strong at 78.

Guests, including fellow designers Jean Paul Gaultier and Lacroix, actress Emma Watson and burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese, were ferried in London black cabs to the venue in the park of Saint-Cloud outside Paris.

Christian Lacroix

Whoever said that polka-dots and stripes don't mix? Lacroix broke every rule in the fashion book, with outfits that merrily juxtaposed patterns and fabrics from bright silks to gold brocade.

A white organza blouse handpainted with a blue, yellow and black stained glass motif was paired with a gold lame skirt embroidered with carnations. Meanwhile, polka-dots large and small played hide and seek on a tulip dress with striped ruffles at the sleeves.

Emanuel Ungaro

Cortazar conjured flirty summer dresses in tropical hothouse prints in his collection for Ungaro. The 24-year-old, in his second season at the French label, said the outfits were influenced by his hometown of Cartagena on the Caribbean coast of Colombia.

Models paraded in thigh-grazing sheaths that trailed vaporous chiffon trains. A frilly black taffeta mini skirt was casually paired with a scooped-back T-shirt and a crinkled Panama hat. Cortazar, whose father is a painter, drew on a vivid palette of emerald green, fuchsia pink and deep turquoise. "I know that this type of work shows a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of positive energy, and I think that that's what we need to have," he explained.

Givenchy

Tisci has long tapped Catholic imagery for his designs, but his show for French label Givenchy walked a tightrope between good and evil.

The starched white shirts and flat bow hairbands neatly perched on models' heads were perfect for Sunday mass. Ultra-short dresses with see-through panels revealing lacy undergarments, however, would send you straight to confession. Tisci worked a bondage theme with cage-like waistcoats made of strips of black alligator leather or cotton embroidered with chunky black rocks.

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