Spring fashion: From Louis Vuitton's fluttering fabrics to Gucci’s florals

Our mild December means you can frock up in designers' choice get-ups without catching your death

It's worth paying attention to Nicolas Ghesquière because he is invariably leading the pack (Corbis)

Spring doesn't start for a while in fashionland – they call this "cruise", or "resort", or variations thereon, consisting of clothes for warm climes sold at cold times – unless you're rich enough to sun-chase each winter. Luckily, our mild December means you can frock up in designers' choice get-ups without catching your death.

The "resort" of choice? Nicolas Ghesquière's for Louis Vuitton (1 - see gallery below). It's hot, for sure. It also ticks all the boxes of next season's must-haves – quite an odd bunch of boxes, granted: fluttering fabrics, maxi-length silhouette, and some kind of weird accessory. Ghesquière's favourite? A cross-your-crotch stud belt.

Not into S&M harness as holiday attire? Phoebe Philo's Céline popularised the notion of weird-fistful-of-metallic-gewgaws as jewellery. Last winter, it was an earring; it's a necklace (2) this time. Lanvin (3) offers a rather more conventionally pretty notion of overblown hibiscus blooms as earrings.

But back to tricky Nic-y, and his sometimes tricksy clothes. It's worth paying attention to Ghesquière's goings-on, because he's invariably leading the pack. Those maxi-frocks find reflections all over the shop (Gucci (4) has some of the finest); and he also experimented with prints – swirling chains and ruptured florals – so other designers don't have to. See the Topshop Unique take in an ochre-on-navy sort-of-seaweed, vaguely viney graphic, best worn matchy-matchy in a blouse and shorts combo (5) reminiscent of CZ Guest, and best suited to a yacht or private Aegean island. See, that's where the "cruise" bit comes from.