STYLEWEEK JAMAICA BRINGS FRENCH HAUTE COUTURE TO THE CARIBBEAN

Fashion history will be re-written when Saint international stages its annual StyleWeek Jamaica/Kingston Fashionweek spectacular May 28-31.

A look from a Couture collection of Eymeric Francois in Paris.

This year, the agency will take the bold step of presenting Haute Couture Collection from Paris, the long acknowledged home of high fashion.

This year, fashionistas will be treated to a special showing of the collection from respected French couturier Eymeric Francois will be on show at the International Mecca Of Style on May 30.

"This is a coup détat, it's the first time real haute couture-the super exclusive range accessible only to a handful of the world's super rich will be seen on Caribbean soil,' admitted an understandably beaming Deiwght Peters, head of Saint International, producers of the event.

According to Wikipedia, Haute couture (French for "high sewing" or "high dressmaking"); refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finish, often using time-consuming, hand-executed techniques.

StyleWeek Jamaica has always been about creating exceptional points of reference for our Jamaican designers to understand the finer points of design-fabric technology, silhouettes or structure, styling.

This year, the best point of reference is the designs of Paris haute couture. This will strategically coincide with Saint International's StyleWeek Jamaica project.

In France, the term haute couture is protected by law and is defined by the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Paris based in Paris, France. Their rules state that only "those companies mentioned on the list drawn up each year by a commission domiciled at the Ministry for Industry are entitled to avail themselves" of the label haute couture. The criteria for haute couture were established in 1945 and updated in 1992.

Another couture piece.

What is couture?
To earn the right to call itself a couture house and to use the term haute couture in its advertising and any other way, members of the Chambre syndicale de la haute couture must follow these rules:

. Design made-to-order for private clients, with one or more fittings.

. Have a workshop (atelier) in Paris that employs at least fifteen people full-time.

. Each season (ie, twice a year), present a collection to the Paris press, comprising at least thirty-five runs/exits with outfits for both daytime wear and evening wear.

However, the term haute couture may have been misused by ready-to-wear brands since the late 1980s, 
Haute couture is considered the epitome of high fashion glamour and opulence. With jaw-dropping prices, these very rare creations are only patronised by the top two per cent of the world's elite. These typically include the wives of Arab sheiks or billionaire business moguls.

This is an opportunity for Jamaica to shine as StyleWeek Jamaica also called Kingston Fashionweek unfolds May 28-31 with a series of runway shows, fashion summit, networking soirees and glamorous after-parties.

Source: The Jamaica Observer; May 5, 2009