Paris fashion: freak and unique

We thought it would be illuminating to show the less glamorous side of the catwalk ... Photograph: Mehdi Taamallah/EMPICS Entertainment

There was a very 'crafty' feel to the Chanel collection. Here Lagerfeld got creative with a felt-tip pen Photograph: Ian Langsdon/EPA

Then he got his hands on the crepe paper Photograph: Jacky Naegelen/Reuters

Here, he returns to the sewing machine Photograph: Mehdi Taamallah/EMPICS Entertainment

The Valentino show had lovely vintage-looking fabrics Photograph: Pierre Verdy/AFP/Getty Images

At Jean-Charles de Castelbajac's show the models all looked like muppets Photograph: Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho/WireImage.com

We liked the oversized holey jumpers at Junko Shimada. We weren't so sure about the dodgy performance art Photograph: Benoit Tessier/Reuters

We think Alexander McQueen's show was inspired by a Marilyn Manson video Photograph: Dominique Charriau/WireImage.com

It was the stuff of nightmares Photograph: Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho/WireImage.com

The clothes were amazing, but the makeup was frightening Photograph: Dominique Charriau/WireImage.com

More oddities ... Photograph: Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho/WireImage.com

We saw a lot of houndstooth and waists that were either nipped in over a flared skirt, or hidden by boxy jackets over pencil skirts. This was set against a backdrop of twisted, blackened scrap metal Photograph: Francois Guillot/AFP/Getty Images