Perhaps it was a tongue-in-cheek response to fashion's mad merry-go-round of late, or to its increasingly frenzied pace, that Marc Jacobs decided to present his spring '12 collection for Louis Vuitton on a pristine white carousel.

Perhaps it was a tongue-in-cheek response to fashion's mad merry-go-round of late, or to its increasingly frenzied pace, that Marc Jacobs decided to present his spring '12 collection for Louis Vuitton on a pristine white carousel.A white curtain lifted to reveal all the girls, in cotton-candy colors, perched and spinning around on identical white ponies. All irony aside, the collection was meant to represent a joie de vivre, a gentleness and a sense of enjoyment. All traces of last season's fetishism was discarded for a sugar-coated sweetness and ladylike demeanor.

The supple construction of the clothes was exposed through luminous plays on transparency. Bell skirts and pastel dresses stood away from the body in a slightly 50s, early-60s voluminous silhouette. While the clothes were intensely decorated, there was a propriety and delicacy in the use of broderie anglaise. Boxy tops, meanwhile, were left open at the back, providing a rare glimpse of skin in an otherwise demure collection.

Jacobs transformed motifs from past Louis Vuitton collections, as well as his own line, but here rendered in a lighter way. The toughness of a motorcycle jacket was removed when realized in pale, powdery crocodile; handcuffs from last season were replaced by musical, bell-shaped silver bangles. In fact, silver replaced gold as the dominant metal throughout. Small and ladylike minaudières came with a drawstring closure.Change for Marc Jacobs, whether going to the house of Dior or merely in spirit, was signaled in his exit. His trademark kilt was switched for a crisp white slacks.