Couture news and archive

Patrick McDowell and Sparxell pioneer dresses coloured with plant-based cellulose

Sustainable luxury brand Patrick McDowell has announced a new collaboration with colour platform Sparxell to create a printed couture gown and a commercially available shirt dress, thus integrating Sparxell’s innovative colourants for the first time into fashion. Sparxell was founded by University of Cambridge scientists Benjamin Droguet and...

Featured

Fashion |Interview

The magic of the Pet Gala - fashion’s feel-good show by pet couturier Anthony Rubio

A twist, a turn, a rainbow of glittering sequins followed by a flash of camera lights. A smile and then … a bark. Wait, what, a bark? Yes, because the model is a dog! A debonair chihuahua in a top hat. This is the annual Pet Gala in New York City, brain child of pet couturier extraordinaire, the designer who coined the term - Anthony Rubio....

Culture|In Pictures

Dolce&Gabbana exhibition opens at the Grand Palais in Paris

The Grand Palais in Paris has opened a new exhibition dedicated to Italian fashion house Dolce&Gabbana exploring its “creative universe” as seen through its Alta Moda, Alta Sartoria, and Alta Gioielleria collections. The ‘From the Heart to the Hand: Dolce&Gabbana’ exhibition runs until March 31 and is described as an “open love letter to Italian...

Fashion

Tamara Ralph opens couture showroom in Paris

British designer Tamara Ralph has opened a new couture salon in Paris to act as the brand’s permanent client and media-facing location, outside of the brand's London-based atelier. Nestled in the iconic 8th arrondissement of Paris, the Maison is located at 1 Rue Francois 1er and spans nearly 2,400 square feet with views of the city, including...

The contrast between haute couture and ready-to-wear

Ready-to-wear and couture present two different approaches to making clothing. While haute couture refers to handmade, unique and custom-made garments, ready-to-wear is clothing produced in large(er) quantities in a factory – which incidentally still always requires human hands – and is accessible to the general public because of its lower...

Fashion: from catwalk to closet

What is fashion exactly? What influences are there on fashion? What role do Fashion Weeks play? How do trends arise and how do trends find their way into our wardrobe? FashionUnited explains. Contents • Definition of fashion and trends • Trends and acceptance • What influences fashion • What role do Fashion Weeks play? • How fashion trends find...

Fashion |In Pictures

Georges Hobeika unveils couture collection designed with son Jad

Georges Hobeika has unveiled a new chapter at the fashion house with the first official collection designed by the storied couturier and his son Jad Hobeika, who was recently named co-creative director. The autumn/winter 2022-2023 couture collection, entitled ‘Eternal Gifts’ was inspired by the natural world and humanity, capturing waterfalls,...

People

Olivier Rousteing confirmed as the next Jean Paul Gaultier couture guest designer

Balmain creative director Olivier Rousteing has been confirmed as the next designer to take over Jean Paul Gaultier couture, following in the footsteps of Glenn Martens and Sacai’s Chitose Abe. In a series of posts on the official Jean Paul Gaultier Instagram account, Rousteing was seen taking selfies and photographs at the brand’s headquarters...

Culture

Fondation Azzedine Alaïa announces new exhibition

The Fondation Azzedine Alaïa in Paris is to host a new exhibition ‘Alaïa Afore Alaïa’ in honour of the couturier, created by the designer himself some years before his death. Under the direction of Olivier Saillard, ‘Alaïa Afore Alaïa’ will analyse the designer’s formative years between the 1950s, just before the budding couturier would leave...

Fashion

Pyer Moss Couture show postponed

If you were patiently waiting for Kerby Jean-Raymond to debut Pyer Moss Couture yesterday from New York as part of Paris Couture Week, you will have to wait a little longer as heavy, persistent rain forced the designer to postpone. Jean-Raymond, a guest designer of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture this season, chose to showcase his...

Featured

Fashion |In Pictures

Dior presents first physical haute couture show in 18 months

After two seasons of digital haute couture fashion films, Christian Dior returned to Paris Haute Couture Week with a physical catwalk showcase for its autumn/winter 2021 collection. In the show notes, Dior’s creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, said that the catwalk showcase with a large audience was her way of “reclaiming the values of haute...

Featured

Fashion |Interview

Ostwald on the craftsmanship of couture bags

When you think of couture, most people think of clothing from the likes of Chanel, Dior and Louis Vuitton, however, there is a growing appetite for one-off pieces in accessories and leading the way is German independent Ostwald merging subtle luxury and traditional craftsmanship to produce unique handbags from high quality tanned and refined...