Fall/Winter Haute Couture

Have you been following haute couture autumn/winter 2013 fashion shows that are taking place in Paris right now? I've been all over Instagram following some fashionable ladies and living vicariously through them as they post pictures and videos from the shows (yes Instagram does videos now, which is extremely useful if you want to get a quick glimpse of the fashion week!)

Haute couture fashion week is not nearly as hectic as ready-to-wear fashion week because the number of shows is much smaller as there are only select designers that are certified to do haute couture. Below are some interesting facts about haute couture label:

- Haute couture clothes are made-to-measure by hand resulting in extreme craftmanship and superb fit.

- In 19th century haute couture was a necessity for high-class Parissian ladies, who had to make sure that they will show up in one of a kind evening dress to a social occasion.

- In order to have haute couture label a designer has to be approved by French Ministry of Industry, and meet specific criteria on the number of employees, two shows per year, atelier in Paris and personal fittings.

So getting back to the shows that are going on right now. I really loved Giambattista Valli - his dresses are so dreamy (to view the collection go here), and Chanel show was spectacular as always - set in a torn down theater with a vision of a futuristic city as you can see in the photo above (the set was built within Grand Palais). And, of course, I have been anticipating the show of Ulyana Sergeenko, who is a newcomer in haute couture world but who has been dazzling Paris with her shows. I like that she always tries to tell a story, and this time it was all about the sleeping beauty who just woke up from the magical kiss of the beloved prince. The centerpiece of the set was a magical mirror (picture above) through which each princess would enter reality. Below are some of the looks from her show, and if you are interested to see more, please, go here.

Ulyana Segeenko couture show // Chanel couture show // Ulyana Sergeenko couture pieces

Images are from vogue.it and madame.lefigaro.fr

Info via fashion.telegraph.co.uk

If you are interested to see first-come pictures via Instagram, I'd suggest following Miroslava Duma (@miraduma). And, of course, feel free to follow me @lunarka45 ;)