Post date: Jan 21, 2013 8:19:53 PM
Christian Dior designer Raf Simons presents an ethereal, airy and enchanting collection at Paris Fashion Week.
PARIS, FRANCE (JANUARY 21, 2013) (REUTERS) - Christian Dior's new creative designer Raf Simons unveiled his second haute couture collection on Monday (January 21) at Paris fashion week following his critically-acclaimed debut for the French fashion house last July.
Simons was poached from Jil Sander last year to replace disgraced John Galliano, who has since made a comeback at Oscar de la Renta.Simons' fairytale-inspired Spring/Summer 2013 collection was airy and ethereal.
Despite the snowy weather outside, the set inside featured a topiary garden of green hedges and trees. The models, with their pale skin, dark pixie crops and sequinned red lips, looked like fairies flitting around in an enchanted garden.
The silhouette was undeniably Dior with nipped-in waists and voluminous full skirts. Simple bustiers, peplums and jackets were layered on top of one other to offer a modern take on couture.
Daywear consisted of Matador trousers and fitted blazers in a fresh colour palette of aubergine, orange and mint. Luxuriously-embellished and embroidered silk bustier evening gowns were rendered in hues of blue and pale pink.
A-listers who attended the show included actresses Sigourney Weaver, Jessica Alba, and Rosamund Pike, top models Laetitia Casta and Natalia Vodianova, as well as former French First Lady Bernadette Chirac and the current French First Lady Valerie Trierweiller.
Weaver who admitted she wasn't usually a regular in the front row at Paris Fashion Week said she felt privileged to have been invited.
"It's always fun to come. I've been to a few Chanel shows, but it's my first Dior show," she said.
"(Haute couture) is something that I think that French culture really understands and does for the rest of the world. And so I'm very excited to be here for the theatre of it and for the beauty of it," she added.
Jessica Alba, a fan of Simons' work, described him as "very cool, very cutting edge." "
Versace opened Paris couture week on Sunday (January 20). The four-day-long schedule will feature some of the most exquisite and expensive creations of the season from the biggest names in the industry including Chanel, Giorgio Armani, Elie Saab, Valentino and Jean Paul Gaultier.