Through My Eyes...

                 

                 

                 

I know I'm a little late to be commenting on the goings on of the Couture shows but  was busy learning to be a Londoner and settling in and what have you, so please forgive my tardiness on posting on the subject. As regulars may know I am a huge fan of what Mr Raf Simons does as Dior, and the Fall 2013 Couture show he presented didn't disappoint in my opinion. 

Not only has he been using the opportunity to update the vision and aesthetic of the brand and bring his own style to the forefront of what Dior is currently offering but he also celebrates what Mr Dior was famous for, and celebrates many of the original house signatures. With this collection it was in the more classic silhouettes, the corsetry and gowns that you imagine the likes of modern day starlets Marion Cotillard and Diane Kruger wearing. But my main point is that you could also imagine the stars of yesteryear such as Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly and Natalie Wood wearing much of the looks that Simons created. 

But you'd be a fool for thinking Simons is a one trick/one shopper pony because that he ain't.. You need to understand that since his appointment last hear and first couture show in February, the haute couture sales at Dior increased by 38% and accounting for the fact tat the average dress can cost over a hundred grand and start off at about thirty or forty that is a massive increase. You see in recent years, thanks to interest from Russian oligarchs daughters, wives and girlfriends couture has become big business again and is selling better than it has in decades. It is still an industry steeped in secrets and private clientele but the young guard are splashing the cad, and the dreary, short hemlines and bold colour ways are only confirming this. And Raf is leader of the pack. 

A well as celebrating waspy waistlines, floor lengths fit for a princess ad silks and satins as heavy as a house, the Dior runway also included asymmetry on hemlines and shoulders, thigh high splits, sheer panelling and mid riff cut outs. Raf's use of edgy textures and fabrics are usually more at home with the avant-garde but it more than proved that he understands all kinds of women want a piece of the Atelier pie. Now someone cut me a slice...