Valentino is nothing if not classy, though, and despite the tears among his audience, friends, and staff, he exited the stage without overplaying the sentimental moment. Maybe he felt the memory of his last haute couture—his legacy for the future—shouldn't be overshadowed. Right enough: What he showed was a fitting conclusion to 45 years of celebrating the happy side of femininity and—at least for one young woman in the audience—a lesson in technique, joie de vivre, and the principles of old-school glamour. The woman in question: Alessandra Facchinetti, the ex-Gucci designer who, from now on, will carry the Valentino flame.