Stars come out for Cavalli at decadent Milan show

Italian designer Roberto Cavalli cast an air of elegant decadence at his Milan Fashion Week show on Monday with stars including French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo and US rocker Courtney Love in attendance.

Models swept past in silk tulle dresses decorated with delicate hints of lace and embroidery in designs that had a Baroque inspiration and featured frequent alternations between shiny gold patterns and black fabric.

There were hints of colour too including Cavalli's trademark jungle-style designs and animal print patterns like leopard and tiger on jackets and heel-length skirts that billowed out to reveal transparent stripes.

The summer/spring 2012 collection also included the new square handbag "Florence" - in honour of Cavalli's native city - in crocodile and black with a large golden metal padlock engraved with a snake scale effect.

Chandeliers, red lighting and transparent mesh screens on the runway underlined the decadent feel of the collection, which included little shiny gold dresses reminiscent of the flapper designs unveiled by Gucci.

"I design for those who love life and the positivity of colour, for women who know how to captivate a man," Cavalli said, adding that the collection was intended to portray "an extremely sophisticated and feminine image."