In the shady cloister of an ancient convent lined with marble statues and Parthenon friezes, now part of the Beaux Arts School of Architecture in Paris, Irish designer Sharon Wauchob presented her spring-summer 2005 collection yesterday, marking the first day of Paris Fashion Week.
Her move from an offbeat location in the Marais, where she has shown up to now, to the beautiful arcaded garden of the Cour du Murier made its own statement about her progress and steadily increasing importance as an innovative, independent fashion designer. Her collection was her most assured and adventurous to date, combining elements of streetwear with elaborate drapery, all curves and scooping lines, sometimes almost Grecian in appearance.
"I like to put femininity into clothes in a more challenging way," she said backstage. "I wanted elegance and glamour, but with an edge."
Her approach has never been a safe one and her clothes have always been complex in construction with elaborate and intricate use of detail. Having been an accessories designer at Vuitton no doubt had its influence on her use of stud fasteners, zips, buckles and buttons in all sorts of experimental ways.
A pink canvas jacket was cross-fastened, multi-zipped and bound with tiered belts. Skirt hems anchored at hip level created draped derrières that were a recurring feature in the show. Materials were light and flyaway, like chiffon and silk combined with cottons and soft jerseys. Wauchob has not lost her playful spirit and white trousers with flying panels, trailing zippered pieces were softer, gentler versions of youthful street garb.
Sometimes, despite the skilled cutting and precise finish, there seemed too much detail; but a soft grey jersey top and a skirt gently draped at the back were the stuff of modern womenswear, and a white dress buttoned on a belly curve rather than a traditional vertical seam created its own womanly effect.
Ropes of big glass beads were not merely decoration but an integral part of a number of draped, vest-like summer dresses that had a sporty touch. The last three seasons have been particularly successful for Tyrone-born Wauchob, with production tripling and exports growing in 15 different countries including Russia, France, Japan, the US and the Middle East.