Paris Fashion Week: Wet and Wild

Snoop Dogg raised the pulse at Paris Fashion Week with a surprise concert and DJ set at Etam's bikini-themed lingerie pool collection that went on into the early hours of Wednesday - heralding competition for the famed, celebrity-filled Victoria's Secret shows.

But the first full day of the French capital's fall-winter 2015 collections was also as much about the artistry of fashion as it was about the celebrity buzz.

Here are the highlights, including reports from Dries Van Noten and Rochas:

SNOOP DOGG "DRIPS" IT LIKE IT'S HOT
Set in a famed, drained-out Art Deco swimming pool, the U.S. rapper had crowds - including model Natalia Vodianova - in glee when he made a surprise cameo at the fall collection of the Etam lingerie house.

The 43-year-old performed hits such as "Drop It Like It's Hot," against a projection of the Union Jack as gorgeous models showcased an eclectic array of underwear and red, blue and white bikinis adorned with chainmail, bubbles, feather headdress and even an inflatable dolphin.

But would "drip" it like it's hot, not have been a more appropriate lyric?

DRIES VAN NOTEN'S CULTURAL SYMPHONY
What do you get if you mix a "symphony of cultural references" with "obsessional fabrics?"

Dries Van Noten gave us the answer in his passionate, colorful and unconventional fashion show Wednesday, which mixed up encyclopedic references from across continents and the ages with typical artfulness.

Geisha styles, literally, rubbed shoulders with elbow-length ruffled "Pompadour sleeves," 18th century full skirts and peplums - while bomber jackets gave the collection a contemporary twist.

The Asian musing produced some very enviable silhouettes - such as one silken coat in ochre and khaki with a decorative disc print, and a high-cinched waist and high-collar.

Above all, it was the color that made this collection shine.

Spun sugar pink, sky gray blue, buttercup and coral fluttered stylishly by alongside what the program notes evocatively described as "shadowy darks," ''Raj khaki" and "Eau de Nil."

A cultural symphony at its best.

ROCHAS CELEBRATES 90 YEARS SINCE BIRTH OF HOUSE FOUNDER
Iconic fashion designer Marcel Rochas - who died in 1955 - was born 90 years ago this year.

To mark this, Rochas' current designer Alessandro Dell'Acqua delved deep into the house's retro DNA and modernized it with very creative results.

As if sifting through the 1950s look-book, the show opened in a post-World War II donkey brown. A fabulous oversize heart-shaped "sweetheart" neckline - a classic shape of the house - was worn alongside a high waist, nipped-in with a thick buckled belt. What made it so much more than a cut-and-paste job was its looser, softer, modern shape.

The fusing of '50s with a contemporary looseness continued throughout.

A billowing "duster coat" - another retro piece - was slightly draped and hung down, warrior-like and worn with a dress with a crew-neck and sporty details.

A '50s neck bow also made a recurrent appearance alongside contrasting styles - and shows that Dell'Acqua should raid gran's wardrobe more often!

CEDRIC CHARLIER'S ART OBSESSION
Former Cacharel designer Cedric Charlier gave a neat Modernist makeover to sartorial and sportswear silhouettes.

The Belgian designer is clearly an art-lover - in previous collections he has channeled references as diverse as the 20th century "Art Brut" movement and Dutch Master Brueghel.

In Wednesday's show, he continued his signature architectural musings, but with more than a whiff of Dutch painter Piet Mondrian's color-blocking.

Funky, contrasting colors - such as cobalt and royal blue with flesh pink and white - appeared on ensembles with clean, sanitized lines, such as a statement wool coat with oversize curved lapels.

Elsewhere, there were flashes of Modernist geometry - in one blue and pink sports dress with curved lines that optically accentuated the female body, or, then, on a sweater and skirt with horizontal and vertical lines that perhaps fared less well.