Gaultier's new BF

Jean Paul Gaultier has a new best friend. Her name is Kateryna Yushchnenko, wife of Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko. The pair first met in Kiev in May during the Eurovision song contest. "We hit it off," said Kateryna. "And when he said he would do a collection about Ukraine, I knew I had to be there."

Kateryna made a point of attending Gaultier's show during the Paris Haute Couture week last week. His collections were indeed inspired by Eastern European patterns. Flashes of trch colours, gypsy skirts, cossack trousers and Ukrainian and Romanian embroidered materials contrasted with the structured lines of silk outfits bordered with sable.

Kateryna told WWD that she plans to bring a group of Ukrainian designers to the Paris haute couture platform. "We may get them here as early as October, "she said. "It's a great moment creatively for our country right now."