Paris dons its gladrags for France's Fashion Week

Paris Fashion Week kicks off on Tuesday, with an extravaganza of 91 catwalk shows, glamorous parties and late-night events designed to attract the industry's in-crowd. For the first time in two decades, the Paris ready-to-wear shows have outgrown their traditional venue under the Louvre Museum for a giant tent at the foot of the Grand Palais and a vast exhbition hall near the River Seine.

Reuters

Day one, as dictated by tradition, will put the spotlight on young designers: Aganovich, from London, and Anthony Vaccarello, who was singled out for attention by Vogue's influential doorstep-thick September issue.

After that, all fashionista eyes will be on the handful of classic houses - Balenciaga, Balmain, Celine and Givenchy - that have received a burst of fresh energy with the arrival of talented new designers.

At 88, Pierre Cardin is returning to the catwalks after a long absence, while fresh faces coming to Paris include the US designer Zac Posen and the New York-based duo Proenza Schouler, whose show is reserved for invited guests only.

While Kenzo will mark its 40th birthday with a show at Paris' Winter Circus, there will also be some notable firsts: Sarah Burton, who has stepped up to replace Alexander McQueen following his suicide in February, is unveiling her first collection to the Paris crowd, and British favourite Giles Deacon makes his debut for Ungaro.

A Japanese trio, Junya Watanabe - who claims US First Lady Michelle Obama among his fans - Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto join forces with Australia's Collette Dinnigan to defend Asia's colours in the world capital of fashion.

The spring/summer 2011 fashion shows wrap up on Wednesday 6 October with collections by Hermès, Louis Vuitton and Miu Miu.

In addition to the official schedule, there'll also be several off-calendar and showroom events showcasing the work of smaller designers.

Find the full schedule online here.