How about this? Paco Rabanne is hosting a party for fashion week.

Yes, Paco Rabanne.

Did your eyebrows raise? Because mine sure did when I got the invite. I was a bit perplexed since I wasn’t sure what they have been up to recently. Mostly I just think of men’s cologne.

The invitation’s tiny insert was what made me think it might actually be a big deal. The party is going to be DJ’d by none other than Lady Bunny, one of my favorite fashion week partners in crime, but get this—VV Brown is also going to perform.

The invite doesn’t say at all what it’s for, but we shall find out when we arrive and of course report back.

—REBECCA SUHRAWARDI AUSTIN

The designers at Topshop have spent a bit of time this summer on the music festival circuit. Well, at least their clothing has. Like with so many of their other collaborations, they are the first high street line to create custom stagewear for the music set.

This past weekend at the V Festival, VV Brown and Shingai Shaniwa of The Noisettes wore their creations. And earlier this summer Florence Welch of Florence and the Machines and Natasha Khan of Bat for Lashes (my current obsession) got the Topshop treatment.

In the five hours since I’ve arrived in London, I’ve gotten my hands on a copy of LOVE, (three actually, don’t know why), been proposed to by a cab driver, run into Br(It) Boy on the street, learned the BFC’s done away with standing room, blown a fuse at my hotel, been carded to buy beer (the drinking age is sixteen here), poked my head into Topshop and managed to make it to one show - Ashish.

And if that one show is any indication of what’s to come, London just doesn’t know what recession you’re talking about.

Ashish Gupta showed his Fall 09 collection at the Hippodrome in Leicester Square. Pre-show entertainment included an acrobat a la Cirque du Soleil while the show itself featured a fantastic performance by V.V. Brown, the up-and-coming British singer who’s just been shot for Vogue UK’s May issue.

And the clothes? Well, they were sequined. I don’t mean sequin skirts or sequin tops, I’m talking all sequins. He showed sequined jeans, sequined gloves, a sequined hoodie, sequined Nordic print sweaters, sequined zebras - it was more sparkle than I’ve ever seen, and you should consider that I did recently attend Richie Rich. There were also pompoms and leopard print tights and the American flag and crowns of thorns.

It was actually the perfect thing to jerk me awake post-red-eye.

PS Tune in over the weekend for more London Fashion Week!