Recently in Haute Couture Category

I can't stop staring at this dress.  There is so much going on, kind of like Disneyland-- if you blink, you see something entirely new.  I have been digesting this dress for a week now and have decided, I freakin' love its Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club flair!  And mad for the chintzy brocade Decarnin used.  It's all genius and crazy fun, what fashion should be about.  It wasn't until I actually bought a Balmain piece that I understood its price point.  Each piece of garment is treated like couture (which in that case, you're actually getting a bargain).  The details are insane and the fit, forget about it.  Unfortunately, my husband does not get it so I'll have to love this from afar....

BALMAIN - BROCADE DRESS for $22,225.50

In what was one of his very best couture collections--and the first since announcing his stepping down as creative director at Hermès--Jean Paul Gaultier channeled his home turf of Paris for inspiration, capturing the essence of French tradition and couture style (note the Eiffel Tower outlined on the back of fishnet stockings on one model).

Right off the bat there were two key silhouettes: the first was one Gaultier dubbed "manta ray," or a bat-wing-like shape made into a trenchcoat, soigné evening gowns and cardigans. The second, and you couldn't miss this one, focused on oversized, power shoulders. Dita Von Teese, meanwhile, emerged mid-show to formally unveil one look from Gaultier's forthcoming new high-end lingerie line with La Perla.

Karl Lagerfeld triumphed once again, staging a sunset Chanel couture show that roared--pun intended--with power, energy and some fabulous clothes. The proof was in the pudding, you could say, considering that a stunning 8-ton, 40-foot-tall golden lion, its paw perched on an enormous pearl, stood gallantly beneath the Grand Palais glass dome. Turns out Coco was a Leo. Go figure.

The most obvious missing entity from the show? Long evening gowns. But that was done on purpose. "In the Twenties they wore short for evening," Lagerfeld offered. Out came a spiffy collection of tweeds redone in new proportions (think shrunken, short, short sleeve jackets with an overwhelming amount of chains, pearls and stones piled on). But it was at night where Lagerfeld, once again, succeeded. The romantic trapeze cocktail numbers were an utter delight and even a it of a throwback to his earlier design days. The last few looks, paired with individual pairs of exquisitely embellished boots to match each outfit, were a testament to the house's masterful couture skills: the Indian- and baroque-accents stunned, even more so an incredible dress handmade entirely of pearls.

Call him Galliano the gardener. Never has a fashion show and its venue complemented each other as beautifully as when John Galliano staged his horticulture bonanza of a Dior Haute Couture show Monday in a see-through tent on the grounds of the Musée Rodin.

Inspired by the cliff top garden of "Les Rhumbs," the Granville, Normandy childhood home of Monsieur Dior, the show, set against a backdrop featuring massive orange and red parrot tulips, was an extraordinary technicolor fashion garden: skirts shaped like tulips; jackets emblazoned with silk hydrangeas; coats festooned with petal-collars; dresses were printed with delphiniums and lilacs and lest we forget the models with their towering "peony" hairdos--encased in cellophane wrapping by Stephen Jones. It was yet another spectacular sight to behold. And how about the tasty names for the hues: iris purple, hollyhock yellow and a nowhere-in-nature turquoise.

As the grand finale gowns came parading out in what Galliano described as a "floral dance," each exquisite work of art--with their corseted bodices, hand-painted and embroidered blooms, and vividly-colored, silk-tulle crinoline skirts trailing like parachutes along the floor--it left front row guests Lily Cole, Jared Leto and Jessica Alba in awe.

Having conquered New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Venice, on Tuesday night Karl Lagerfeld commandeered a small port in the Var region of St. Tropez to host Chanel's 2010-2011 Cruise collection. At dusk, guests were escorted to red lacquered tables at the iconic Café Sénéquier, mingling with Diane Kruger, Vanessa Paradis and Anna Mouglalis.

Opening the collection, models basking in sun and sea arrive in mahogany boats to walk joyfully along the port, looking for a table on the terrace. With micro-minis, high-waisted dresses and light blouses, Lagerfeld brought to life his idea of St. Tropez today. While punctuated with black and white, color was everywhere: amber browns, absinthe and mint greens, sky and navy blues and bright pinks appeared in block-colors as well as in prints. Light little dresses were presented with infinite different proportions--some showed knees and others flirted with ankles, a play on seduction at any hour of the day with delicately sequined ruffles, tweeded gossamer and fringed chiffon.

A pastel palette mixed with brights in cotton silhouettes with lightly flared pants and pleated blouses worn with large belts. Jeans remained an essential piece--whether colored or washed, crystal-studded or fringed, they were worn as a second skin. Beachy dresses, frilled bikinis and little sweaters with short sleeves have touches of vichy prints. Tweed jackets and cardigans were worn with chiffon blouses, and the famous Chanel suit saw another reinterpretation. Embroidered, trimmed and chiné, tweed was this time worn with bare legs walking in low heels or gold leather Grecian sandals.

Left: Christian Lacroix Haute Couture  Right: Gucci RTW

Gucci is said to be launching their Haute Couture collection but will not be showing in Paris at the Couture shows and will instead offer the line by appointment only.  I wonder if they've even been accepted by Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Paris yet. In France, the term haute couture is protected by law and is defined by the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Paris and only the members accepted each year are allowed to call themselves as such. To earn the right to call itself an Haute couture house and to use the term haute couture in its advertising and any other way, members of the Chambre syndicale de la haute couture must follow these rules:
* Design made-to-order for private clients, with one or more fittings.
* Have a workshop (atelier) in Paris that employs at least fifteen people full-time.
* Each season (i.e., twice a year), present a collection to the Paris press, comprising at least thirty-five runs/exits with outfits for both daytime wear and evening wear.

I am no expert (I only own two pieces of vintage haute couture-- a 1971 Yves Saint Laurent and a 1968 Christian Dior) but I think they should add, PROPER TRAINING IN THE ART OF HAUTE COUTURE.  I have nothing against Gucci, I love Frida Giannini but killer boots and leather jackets DO NOT HAUTE COUTURE MAKE. There, I've said and I feel so much better. What does this have to do with Lacroix?  Nothing really, I just wanted to point out what a travesty it is that a couturier of his caliber lacks the funding to continue his vision and talent.

Chanel Haute Couture on display at Flagship boutique in Ginza

WWD reported this morning that an influx of younger clients from fast-developing Asian markets is helping to lift Europe's few remaining couture houses. I was not surprised to read that Haute Couture houses are looking at Asia, specifically young Asian women in their 30s-40s, to save the fast shrinking industry. When I was home in Taiwan, many of my friends discussed collecting Haute Couture with me (peppered with discussions of crocodile birkins!).

What's interesting of note is that Chinese consumers, long thought to be interested in accessories only, are quickly migrating to the height of luxury-- which includes, of course, haute couture. According to Sidney Toledano, president and chief executive officer of Christian Dior via an interview with WWD: "young Asian women want the global image of the brand: They look at the DNA, the heritage and the know-how. Couture is a vehicle to transmit the savoir faire and the codes of the house," he further elaborates: "One of the reasons for our success in China is our real, genuine story -- thanks to the haute couture."

The Haute Couture shows start today-- am looking forward to see who will rule the front rows, the old guard? Or the nouveau?

Via WWD

Beyond the superficial color trends of Sunday night's Golden Globe Awards--shiny metallics and blush tones anyone?--one theme reigned supreme: texture. The lovely ladies who walked the soggy red carpet embraced one of two options--beads and lace (Penelope Cruz's Armani Privé, Olivia Wilde's Gucci, Jennifer Garner's Atelier Versace) or oh-so-feminine fabric manipulation (Maggie Gyllenhaal's RM by Roland Mouret, Diane Kruger's Lacroix Couture, Drew Barrymore's Atelier Versace, Marion Cotillard's Dior, Kate Hudson's Marchesa).

Was it just me or did in-your-face jewelry of years past not rear its ostentatious head this time around? Don't get me wrong; I love a Cartier, Bulgari, or Van Cleef & Arpels bauble as much as the next Couture Snob, but it was refreshing to see them whittled down this season as elegant complements not vying for attention with the dress (perhaps the unfortunate Haiti earthquake had one positive aftershock). I think two of the evening's best examples of texture and fabric manipulation came courtesy of Carey Mulligan and Chloë Sevigny--both by designers that look like they're making positive comebacks after much designer shuffling. The former's elegant Nina Ricci gown, designed by Peter Copping, featured what appeared to be a crater-cum-floral motif, which perfectly suited the actresses' sweetheart persona while the latter's Valentino gown, masterminded by Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, fill both the dramatic and red carpet quotients to a tee.

I am SO OVER the entire fashion industry fawning over Christophe Decarnin of Balmain. Okay, so the gorgeous draped dresses with rock and roll hardware was very cool but it cost as much as a Mercedes! Let's get real here. I am reading the Golden Age of Couture right now and the beautiful couture gowns by Balmain in the 50's are tear inducing. The craft of couture has seriously declined in modern years yet the costs continue to escalate-- I don't get it!

My friend Chloe picked up a Balmain jacket from the FW 09 collection at a cool $22,000 and multiple t-shirts at $8,000 (yes, t-shirts, not even real blouses!?!?). She tried to convince me that the craftsmanship of Balmain bedazzle is much superior to that of my 8 year old goddaughter's but I beg to differ. You have no idea what an 8 year old with a bedazzle gun can achieve! But I'll have to take her word for it because I do not plan on finding out for myself. US Weekly Fashion Director Sasha Charnin Morrison agrees with me and eschewed the Balmain studded sandals for a pair at H & M for $179.

As for this belt (at a whooping $1,530)-- you can have the Hermes Collier de chien belt for less-- a way better look and investment. For me, it's also much wiser to invest in vintage Haute Couture-- I get mine from Cameron Silver of Decades. He knows my measurements and ships me items on approval overnight.   And seriously, nothing matches vintage Haute Couture from the golden age!

What do you think of Balmain by Christophe Decarnin? High Fashion or Craft project? Balmain at Net-a-porter.com

Pre-order your copy of the highly anticipated book from Claire Wilcox today!   The Golden Age of Couture: Paris and London 1947-1957 will delve into the long lost era when haute couture reigned and getting dressed was an art form. I am fascinated by the fantasy of the couture world; I dipped my toe into it last year when I was fitted for Armani Prive and am waiting to take a full dive into its fabulousness when I finally order my first piece as a 40th birthday present to myself.

This beautifully designed book reveals the skill and craftsmanship of haute couture along with the inner workings of the exclusive design houses, and the inspiration behind some of the most famous styles of all time.  Styles that continue to inspire designers today.