For somebody who made a personal collection for the season that was seen as over-the-top, Jean Paul Gaultier created a very mature collection for Hermès in Fall 2008. Hermès for this season looks like a woman of the world – literally. The outfits are very travel-friendly, looking like the things you would expect any globetrotting jetsetter would wear. It’s grown up and refined yet very, very chic.

Garments in this collection were meant to travel well. There were a lot of loose skirts and pants that looked comfortable enough to sleep in, yet fashionable enough for, say, photo ops at a local attraction. It’s not a perennial fashion trend for designers, but it’s something you can’t help but appreciate on a 16-hour flight. There were a lot of loose pants, presumably to add that extra touch of comfort. If you’re looking for tight, form-fitting stuff, you’re not going to find it here.

Layering was a big thing for this collection, and the runway photos are telling. Most of the looks are defined by the outerwear – knit cardigans, car coats, crocodile-pattern blazers and trenches were the stars of this show. Heck there were entire looks that comprised only of a coat and shoes! This seems to be Gaultier’s signature for the season; his personal line was also very outerwear heavy, and made even greater use of shearlings and faux fur.

Once you get past that, however, you’ll notice that the collection is just a set of garments that any fashion-forward Frenchwoman would have on her fashion shopping list. It was fashionable and chic, yes, but hardly revolutionary.

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