With only these tiny, 2-D representations of of the clothing it can be hard to relate to reports of attendees crying at the sight of the hand-sewn creations gliding down the runway. Granted, the alleged crier was Monsieur Lesage, himself. The legendary couturier responsible for Chanel’s embroidery. Considering the upwards of 350 hours of work that go into the making of a single couture garment of this caliber, one can imagine the tear jerking effect of seeing your labor of love finally sashay down the runway on the slim hips of an underfed, underpaid model… And just imagine, they do this twice a year.

Indeed a haute couturier is a rare and strange bird. One who often guards it’s secrets like newly hatched eggs. “Mademoiselle Pouzeux, who does the braids for couture. She has a secret and she wants nobody to know,” Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld said in an interview. “We cannot find anyone to work with her. She does it all alone. She only works for couture because she cannot produce enough for ready-to-wear. And no one knows how she does it.” See the video of this interview below. But before you do that, enjoy some hi-res detail photos of the two looks from above. Still not like actually getting to put them on yourself, but they do better convey the astounding intricacies of the clothing. A sincere thanks to two of my new favorite tumblrs: pellucidus & Emmi Camille

The below image is of the 1927 painting “Kiss” – a work by the French artist Marie Laurencin, whose art Lagerfeld references in the interview (and in the collection, apparently). As the designer implied, the murky color palette is really the only thing that’s reflected in the Chanel collection. There’s something about Laurencin’s paintings that strikes me at the soul level. Aesthetically it’s not a style that I would choose, but it somehow provokes nostalgia for a time I never experienced. It resonates with me in a way that’s not entirely pleasant, but I suppose that’s the sort of bittersweet attraction that good art often has. See more Laurencin works via kroshka_50369.

About Elie Saab
“Born in Beirut on the fourth of July, Saab’s interest is dressmaking started at the young age of 9… In 1982 Elie Saab opened his firt atelier in Lebanon at the age of 18 with ten employees…

Saab’s breakthrough moment came in July of 2003 when he showed his Haute Couture collection in Paris as an officially invited member of the Chambre Syndicale. The response from the press and retailers was overwhelming. Two years later in Ocober of 2005, Saab launched his expanded ready-to-wear collection on the Paris runway and has made his second there.” Quoted from ElieSaab.com

Elie Saab Fall 2010 Couture

Elie Saab Fall 2010 RTW

The fashion industry seems to be wrestling with whether haute couture is still relevant to the modern fashion model. On the one hand vets like Oscar de la Renta say it’s outdated and useless; on the other, business trackers note a marked spike in couture purchases – largely due to new customers from the far east. In any case, couture houses are responding by tweaking their approach. With designer Riccardo Tisci at the design helm, Givenchy opted to take its Fall 2010 Couture presentation off the runway and into the excessively ornate rooms of a Paris salon.

“I want to make couture even more special than it is, and not just another catwalk show,” Tisci told WWD “People can really experience the couture moment: See it, touch it.”

via Style.com

According to Tim Blanks, the designer was inspired by artist Frida Kahlo and her fixation on anatomy and mortality. From our commoner’s perspective, one might think Tisci was just trying to capitalize on the Google-powered Frida Kahlo internet search spike this week Yet if were able to get up close and personal we’d see zipper pulls made of little bones and porcelain belts shaped like spinal columns. Very apropos for a Kahlo inspired collection.

The Broken Column, 1944. Oil on canvas. 15 11/16 x 12 in. (40 x 30.5 cm). Collection Museo Dolores Olmedo Patiño, Mexico City. © 2007 Banco de México Diego Rivera & Frida Kahlo Museums Trust

via About.com

Another season of Haute Couture has just closed and the fashion ultra-elite are placing their orders. The market for the highest form of fashion is smaller than ever these days, with a mere 200 women bestowed with the means and access to don the most honored vestments of the Fashion Cult. My how I wish other clergy would operate in this way: lead by example, not violent proselytizing. Above: a look from Zuhair Murad Couture.

Our Daily Bread: Everyday couture for the discerning young woman. Jean Paul Gaultier has always been one to push the limit of fashion into a realm of sartorial poetry. This year his metaphor evoked a feeling of armor meets vulnerability. I’m not sure if the hardness was meant to be coming or going, but the blue dress below, for example, is that perfect medium. A comfortable solution that would standout in its impeccable appropriateness for wherever the day takes you. Similarly, Thimister’s caped dress in military green is packed with structure but flows with the body so as not to distract the wearer from the mission at hand (groceries, bookstore, mani-pedi…). Thimister’s collection leaned heavily on the going trend of making us all into soldiers of one sort or another. If you’re among these troops, elegance is as honor on the list of priorities.

Jean Paul Gaultier & Thimister

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Power Dressing: Few of us marry the means to make couture a part of daily life; and even fewer are born into it. Rather, many a Priestess must use shrewd intellect and fierce intention to carve out a life of grace. Accordingly, the business meeting is an event (or skill, if you like) that must be approached with strategy and precision. John Galliano presented a Dior collection that will allow even the non-equestrian woman to enter the business domain on a steed of confidence. Paired with a black pencil skirt the jacket below is the best of business meets pleasure. The Armani Prive collection was the absolute embodiment of female power dressing and symbolized feminine virility with a series of moon shapes. The frock seen below utilizes a more subtle version of the shape, with strong shoulders and a daringly deep v neck. Divine. Remember ladies – it’s the boardroom, not the BORED room. Nip that waist in, powder your decolletage, and stride in to your spot at the head of the table – wiles and all

Christain Dior & Armani Prive

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A Social Calling: Like it or not, anointed ones, the World needs you. The Cult needs you. You may feel, sometimes, like shutting yourself away from most of the hustle, a majority of the bustle, and every bit of the falsity that is encountered with social duties. Still, the heavily blessed must in turn bless others – even if only by their presence. Elie Saab is a master at creating gowns perfect for the step and repeat. But the glamorous and sexy Saab-factor isn’t just for the red carpet. See yourself shining amongst a sea of floral shift dresses at your next luncheon or garden party wearing the adorable mini dress, below left. It has just enough coverage to be demure and day appropriate, without sacrificing a drop of glamour. Despite a largely disastrous collection (and since we prefer to focus on the positive, we’ll say nothing more of it), Valentino did muster one or two dresses that sparked some desire. The barely-there mini below is a fun and flirty alternative to ubiquitous cocktail party LBD.

Elie Saab & Valentino

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The Grand Occasion: There are times when a social call is more than just an event, it’s a Moment. On these grand occasions something extra special is required. We’ve been hard on Karl Lagerfeld in the past, but it can’t be denied that when the man is on, he’s dead on. The Chanel gown below is the type to make one draw in a quick, covetous, breath of surprise and awe. It’s quirky, yet supremely elegant; trendy, yet completely unique. For a gown like this I would organize some grand event just to wear it. Speaking of, the Alexis Mabille wedding gown below is similarly awe-inspiring. I would get married just to wear this dress. It is the ultimate in mysterious sexy. Despite yards and yards of fabric, the dress creates an illusion of lucious piece of wrapped fruit ripe for picking. I would wear it completely nude underneath – even barefoot – save a pair of silk, ribbon-tied panties. Hauteness.

Chanel & Alexis Mabille

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photos: Style.com

It’s here folks. If you are die hard you may have spotted it on the Web already, but Rihanna’s Vogue Italia couture spread has found it was to the illustrious pages of the Fashion Cult*. And where better to display the incredibly decadent shots of one of the world’s biggest pop stars? Thanks to the cult-like devotion to the Barbados-born performer at RihannaDaily.com, those of us out of reach of a timely copy of the magazine can gawk at these HQ scans.

In review, I’m somewhat underwhelmed. Don’t get me wrong! Every photo is gorgeous. The styling is fantastic and Klein photography is, of course, stellar. However, it’s definitely in danger of falling into the “one note” category. There are upwards of 20 pages in the spread and at about 8 I start to get somewhat restless. There’s no real story and yet each the mood is so similar in each shot. Thank goodness for the one splash of color and that shock of white in the corset dress. Peep my favorite shot, then a gallery of the full spread below.

Source

The Cult reported last spring that designer Thierry Mugler had been charged with creating pop star Beyonce’s look for her current world tour. Recall the sketches…

Well there must something in the couture water, because Jean Paul Gaultier showed something awfully similar for the Fall 2009 Couture collection. But we won’t hold it against him, though, because some of the other looks were magnificent. Afterall, who doesn’t need a trench bodysuit. See the gallery below:

As much as I prefer Fall RTW over Spring, I do Spring Couture over Fall. Still the couture hows in paris this week have had some stellar highlights, including a beautiful (if not entirely original) show from newcomer Alexis Mabille. See the gallery below for Cult picks from Mabille, Chanel, Givenchy, Christian Lacroix, Armani Prive, and Christian Dior.

They say the Lacroix show almost did happen. It would have been a tragedy, as it was a close second behind my favorite – Givenchy.

Another fashion patriarch has passed:

PARIS – Jean-Claude de Givenchy, once head of Givenchy’s couture and fragrance businesses, died on May 18 in Cannes, France, of cancer. He was 84.

De Givenchy was born in 1925 in Beauvais, France. He began working with his brother Hubert de Givenchy soon after the Givenchy fashion house was opened in 1952.

A former Air France executive in the U.S., Jean-Claude de Givenchy returned to France, where he was charged with running Givenchy’s haute couture business and its fragrance activities, which were started in 1957. Among the brand’s notable scents from that period were Le De, L’Interdit (which was created for Audrey Hepburn), Eau de Vetyver and Givenchy Gentleman.

Jean-Claude de Givenchy left Parfums Givenchy after it was sold to Veuve Cliquot in 1981. Givenchy’s fragrance and fashion businesses are now part of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton.

Source

Sad for the family, I’m sure, but he definitely a long and impactful life. I was first introduced to Givenchy, like many people, via the fragrances. Now, while I’m hardly a purveyor of the exceedingly high-end collections, I certainly am an appreciator. In fact the couture line for Spring this year was one of my favorites. Thank you Monsieur de Givenchy!

I don’t care for the makeup on these models. With the exception of the black girl, they all look three days dead. However, I did love the impressive range shown in this collection. It has a rugged by optimistic future feel to it. We love.

photos: nymag.com

Yes. This is the kind of fashion makes you catch your breath mid draw and want to kneel in reverence. Just look at the exquisite detail on the bodices. If only I could collect such art. And yet, there’s not a single piece here I would ever dream of wearing. Still, Valentino is vying the the Cult favorite collection among the Spring ’09 Couture.

photos: nymag.com