Haute Right Now // Couture Fashion Week S/S 2014 Favourites

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My favourite week of the fashion calender has come and gone, I have a real soft spot for Couture Fashion Week, although I know it's completely unwearable and the chances of me getting even close to wearing some of these gowns and outfits is zero, I can't help but to be taken in by the complete fantasy world that these designers envision and daydream of ornate gowns encrusted with jewels and impossibly complex silhouettes that I find myself coveting. Couture Fashion Week is an escapism from every day fashion, you can't help but to anticipate every look that saunters down the catwalk knowing you could be shocked and captivated at any point, this makes Couture Fashion Week especially enthralling as you really do delve into the complete unknown. I suppose my head is in the clouds as even on the high street I find myself automatically drawn to beautifully bold and embellished pieces - that are often very impractical unless I was attending glitzy events, but I can't help but adoring these from afar and appreciating all the intricate details. Couture Fashion Week kicked off for a 5 day extravaganza of luxe fabrics, outlandish designs and statement pieces that everyone will be pinning and retweeting and I've brought together my favourite collections from this week of couture.

Atelier Versace 




Versace opened Couture Fashion week in bold royal purple, black and oyster with some contrast pastel and acid colours thrown into the mix. Almost the entire collection had a Grace Jones-esque hood incorporated into the strong power dressing tailoring and draped statement gowns - adding that all important fierce Versace attitude. Opulent fur coats and wraps added an air of sophistication to Versace's staple body con outfits, even the floor length gowns left little to the imagination with thigh high slits, fitted bodice draping and deep necklines. Detailed crystal patterns created intricate cut out detailing on bodices and contrasted against the muted shimmery and metallic fabrics, even on closer inspection the simplest of outfits were adorned in tiny beading and sequins. Versace's couture collections are always daring and have a sexy edge to them, always guaranteed to make am impact and split opinions, but I love the sassiness and strength this collection portrays. Donnatella's latest muse Lady Gaga was also sat front row at the Versace show, I think the collection would definitely match Lady Gaga's persona of being striking and bold; the colour way of the collection even matches the latest Versace advertising campaigns that Lady Gaga starred in herself.

Christian Dior



For as long as I can remember when John Galliano was at the helm of Christian Dior, his couture shows were always by far my favourite, they were always the boldest, most creative, outlandish and each season the collection portrayed a distinct theme and was easy to distinguish from the rest. When Raf Simons took over at Christian Dior, I always felt his couture collections fell a bit flat, they were far from mind blowingly creative, extremely understated and just didn't scream couture to me at all; it was almost as if Raf's couture collections resembled a regular ready to wear collection, his take on couture was almost a complete contrast to John Galliano. But over the past couple of collections, I seem to be warming more and more to his Dior collections and understand that he is showcasing a modern, more wearable form of couture, that would fit well on the red carpet and is almost more realistic compared to John Galliano's previous triumphs. 

This couture collection has been liberated from previous couture constraints and offers a fresher and younger approach to the craft. Each outfit I can imagine on the latest Hollywood starlets and young socialites, Jennifer Lawrence will be right at home with this collection and has already been spotted on the red caret in several Christian Dior gowns. Again, this collection is just more modern and relevant to twenty-something stars with a mix of easy to wear cocktail dresses and tailoring to flowing ball gowns full of texture and embellishment. Texture is the key with this Dior couture collection, with perforated - almost honeycomb-esque jackets and dresses, frilly floral applique and pin tuck structuring. There is a lot of volume in this collection with textured bustles, peplum jackets and skater skirts; exaggerating the female form, but not over the top. The colour palette is light and frothy with pastel purples, mint and coral amongst navy, blacks and whites, adding a contrast and freshening up the palette so it's suitable for spring. Although the collection is extremely feminine, the biggest fashion shock will be the juxtaposition of sending couture gowns down the runway with a range of embellished, sparkly trainers, another way that Raf Simons is trying to appeal to the younger market and is making couture more accessible in this modern age. Aside from the trainers, there was also some mod style court shoes with straps all the way up to the knees rather than round the ankles. Either way, I'm intrigued to see how Raf Simons' couture collections will proceed in the future and whether he will continue with this modern and young approach for Christian Dior.

Armani Prive


Armani always seem to fabricate some of the most elegant and classic collections around, especially within the Armani Prive couture collections. Each look in this collection is red carpet ready from the glamorous floor length gowns to the silky two pieces to the classic tailored coats and jackets; everything from this couture collection just radiates glamour and opulence in classic couture style. Although there is nothing game-changing about this collection with regards to adding modern or younger twists like other designers have done to make their collections more edgy and contrasting, there is nothing wrong with classic Hollywood glamour and beautifully crafted gowns and tailoring; the sheer beauty of the collection makes the statement here. The collection just oozes sophistication, it's the perfect mix of being classy but not too demure with several translucent skirts showing a hint of leg and sheer panelling that doesn't look overly obvious and trashy. Like the previous collections I've mentioned, Armani has focused on hues of purple as well as pink, navy and pale gold with the majority of the collection in a range of beautiful metallic and iridescent fabrics - shimmering and radiating light as each outfit makes its way down the runway. Almost every outfit is adorned in intricate sequinned and lacy patterns in some way, often added as an extra floaty layer against the metallic fabrics underneath, even the suits can't avoid the glitz and sparkle usually seen on gowns. There are also silky metallic suits and tailoring pieces against floaty skirts and dresses combining structure and feminine frothy pieces together. Embellished head-scarves and turbans also add and elegant and regal look to each outfit. Overall this Armani Prive collection makes an subtle yet elaborate impression, the mixture of opposite and contrasting pieces covered in beautiful translucent and metallic fabric is just so beautifully classic and sophisticated and makes the perfect couture collection that's exuberant yet not over the top. 

Valentino



Ever since Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Picciloi took over as co-creative directors at Valentino a few years back, I feel the collections have taken a more sombre and ominous tone within the colour palette, even more so with this particular couture collection that does stand out against the other brighter and fresher spring collections; it's almost like this Valentino collection would be more fitting in the winter collection with its' dark and grungy theme, but nevertheless it makes a statement because of this. The whole collection almost has some sort of religious and medieval theme, with floor length caped tunic dresses, the iconic serpent and apple from the Adam and Eve story adorning one dress and patterns more often seen on the walls and windows of churches than on designer gowns. Although it has medieval influences, the collection is still very modern with tulle ballet gowns, sharp tailored outerwear and experimenting with translucent fabrics. The collections also feature an animal theme, from fluttery butterflies on coats and dresses to bold printed lions and leopards to feathery garments representing beautiful birds, a vast majority of the collection features the animal kingdom in some way. Although within this Valentino collection the designs are quite varied - almost like there are several micro couture collections, the colour scheme seems to bring it together and makes it flow seemingly despite having contrasting garments ranging from plain and tailored to voluminous and frothy to patterned and embellished. 

Chanel



Chanel probably provided the most talked about couture collection this season, which provided a young sports luxe themed collection. For the second time in couture fashion week, embellished and stylish trainers made an appearance alongside every outfit of the collection, ranging from tailored tweed suits to cocktail dresses and gowns, I can imagine that although trainers might not make an appearance alongside the gowns on the red carpet, embellished and stylised trainers will definitely make an appearance in street styling and blogs where the love and useage of trainers as a trend led piece originated, without street style there is no chance you would have seen trainers even in the same room as couture gowns worth tens of thousands - This is the perfect example of how trends have bubbled up from street style and influenced designer collections. The trainers were not the only unusual accessory to be seen in the collection, bumbags, elbow and knee pads also made an appearance; although very strange to be seen within such a collection this is couture and anything goes. The collection featured cropped tops and jackets complimented with high waisted skirts - showing off the waist but without flashing the flesh. traditional tweed two pieces with 7/8 trousers were also showcased as probably the cornerstone of quintessential Chanel design; this soon morphed into light and airy tea dresses and floor length sparkling gowns with dropped waists. Although the majority of the collection was portrayed in candy pastel colours, this was broken up by striking feathery dresses in bright and black hues. As with Raf Simons, Karl Lagerfeld looks like he is also taking notice of the youth culture and what us twenty somethings in the real world are wearing and incorporating this into the highest level of  fashion design - making the artistry of couture that bit more relevant to the modern age. 

What did you think to couture fashion week, which was your favourite collection?

Amie xx

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1 comment:

  1. My friends couldn't believe the price I paid for the amount of expensive French lace that was on my dress! I love it and am so excited to walk down the aisle in a couple weeks!

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