La Lohan: the French are not impressed

Here in the U.S., we've become accustomed to celebrities taking charge of clothing lines. The flimsy pop album was once the go-to vanity project for young actresses and girls-about-town -- now, they'll toss off a batch of scribbled T-shirts or shapeless dresses.

The enablers of these indulgences are usually mass chains like Wet Seal or H&M. One would never expect to see a high-end label turn over their creative direction to a starlet with a blank fashion resume. But that's exactly what one couture house did -- a Paris couture house, no less.

Emanuel Ungaro announced a month ago that it let none other than Lindsay Lohan control its spring 2010 collection, and the looks she designed marched down the runway this weekend.

Shocker: the French were less than thrilled with her bandage dresses and ruched leggings. Front-row guests at the show were even photographed in poses of mock-horror, according to the New York Times.

It's likely that neither Ungaro nor Lohan is too upset about the collection's harsh reception. The collaboration was a pure play for buzz; as they say, all press is good press, and no one knows how to get it like Miss Lohan.

Just witness the campaign for her latest fashion endeavor stateside: Lohan posed against a stripper pole in ads for her 6126 line of leggings. Sacrebleu.