When he was in the U.K. for a Net-a-porter party last November, Julien Dossena spent some time hunting for vintage tea dresses, one of his fashion obsessions. Judging from his fall runway, he struck gold at Portobello Market and the vintage shops of Brighton.

The 1940s styles were all over the Rabanne runway, paved with sequins, jangling with metal embellishment, sprinkled with crystals and layered over, or under, colorful knits.

Dossena likes the idea of contrasts, of loose-fitting, old-fashioned, everyday dresses glammed up with print and shine, paired with jacquard sweaters (a big trend on the Paris runways this season) that could have been knitted at home.

Those dizzying contrasts had a distinctive punk feel, especially when Dossena rolled out the checks. He slipped oversize plaid jackets in classic men’s fabrics over those shiny skirts and dresses, sent out wide, pleat-front Zoot suit trousers and trenches, some with two-tone furry collars.

He punked it up even more with cartoonish color and texture combinations, bright blue fur for the collar of a burgundy trench or highlighter pink for a brown jacket. The tea dresses turned punk, with skirts dissolving into swooshing thick fringe or metal mesh, while blazers came with oversize metal grommets like big piercings.

Dossena relished the moment. Not only was he able to subvert the look of his beloved tea dresses, he also set out to make a fashion statement.

“Luxury feels so conservative nowadays, and the last thing I want to do is live in this fashion bubble,” he said. “I think as a designer you have to address the moment, and your designs have to reflect something.”

He also likes the idea of his looks being unpolished — and free — and embracing the darkness and chaos of the moment. The designer said he just moved house and now lives around the Gare du Nord, and his new neighborhood was an inspiration.

“You see people walking around with a nonchalance, and they have a way of mixing things together that suits their own style. I like that approach — something a bit louche, good and bad taste side-by-side. I wanted to push that idea to the edge.”

There’s another reason he took a punk route: “I don’t know any women who are polished — my clients are working, they’re mothers, wives, daughters and they’re busy. I’m designing for them,” he said.