Paris Fashion Week: Tsumori Chisato and Issey Miyake at the Carrousel du Louvre

The Carrousel du Louvre is the epicenter of Paris Fashion Week, and it's always a bit of a circus. A constant stream of fashion editors, buyers, sponsors and special guests pass from one show to the next, and the lobby is packed with photographers jostling to get shots of the random models and celebrities that pass through. Pass the security gates and you'll find several large rooms where the shows take place, a high-tech press room and a chic upper lounge where connections are made, business deals are brokered and women in precarious footwear rest their aching feet.

I spent Tuesday morning at the Carrousel checking out shows from two Japanese designers, Tsumori Chisato and Issey Miyake. While both shows incorporated the Oriental roots of their respective designers, they otherwise couldn't have been more different.

The Tsumori Chisato show was quirky, colorful and a tad bit fantastical. The designer, who once worked with Miyake, showcased a vibrant collection that seemed to take inspiration from all corners of the world. Each ensemble featured a kaleidoscope of colors, patterns and textures – stripes, florals, polka dots, madras and even feathers – which taken all together was slightly overwhelming. Somehow, though, the models pulled off the looks as they jaunted down the runway in funky bright eye makeup and outlandish hairdos.

The Issey Miyake show was a lot more zen. Miyake, who has developed a reputation for incorporating the latest technological trends into his designs, decided to go back to nature for this collection. He took his inspiration from the jungles of the Amazon, working with a color scheme of muted greens and browns, with an occasional shock of fluorescent. The models seemed effervescent, floating down a spare white space that featured a curtain of reed-like cords that extended down the runway mid-show. The music was new age.

The shows left me with two very different feelings; the Chisato show invigorated and inspired me, while the Miyake show brought me back to earth. Then I returned to the Carrousel and it was all just a circus again!