What could be a more magical location for our first Haute Couture Fashion Week show than the Theatre National de Chaillot in Trocadero, a lovely marble abode with huge windows allowing a view of the fabulous Eiffel Tower. It’s clear that people have seen the preparations around the building, revealing that Lebanese fashion designer Georges Hobeika will show his Fall/Winter couture collection here. As crowds armed with camera’s start to gather around the entrance, the frantic flashes and sound of clicks are heard all over the place every time a fashionably dressed attendee walks up the steps to enter the venue. We must admit, we felt like true celebrities being welcomed in such a manner too!
Originally studying civil engineering, it was while he was helping his mother in her atelier when Georges discovered his innate passion for fashion design. Leaving Lebanon during the height of the war he moved to Paris, where he completed an internship at Chanel. After this, he returned to Beirut to establish his own atelier, debuting at Paris Fashion Week with his first collection in 2001. Since then, Georges has become very known for his romantic and feminine style, bringing forth very elegant gowns with a lot of details which truly make them statement dresses. The show note for this collection informs us that the swirling lightness of the Swan Lake ballet served as inspiration, illuminating and magnifying the beauty of gesture and the grace of movement enhanced by the spectacle of nature.
The curtains are drawn and the view of the Eiffel tower disappears while the lights are dimmed low. The first silhouette approaches the runway, sparkling like a diamond in the spotlight that follows her. A parade of shimmering gowns ensues, ranging from pretty sequined dresses in ivory and nude to more vibrant hues of turquoise and indigo. The very refined way sequins and other shiny embellishments are used maintains a restrained elegance throughout the looks without any of them feeling like it’s too much, even for the dresses for which an abundance of feathers is used. We personally loved the gown with the embellished nude illusion top and big feathered skirt with a blue ombre effect, the cascading layers of feathers really looked amazing. Other stand out pieces were the slinky and sparkling short fringed dress and of course the feather adorned wedding gown that closed the show. Once the cavalcade of glitter and glamour is over, the brightness of daylight pours back into the room reminding us that it was not a dream. It was sheer brilliance to say the least and Georges Hobeika’s star will definitely rise far beyond the celestial dome.
