Haute Couture Clients

[MissMagAddict]

Its true about elie saab, I really dont consider him HC- I myself have had a dress made for me by him- and the quality is horrible- the only reason i picked him was because i couldnt find anything i like din RTW, and his prices are rather cheap (for HC)- but I think he's a horrible designer and his materials look good- but they are cheap- so alot of people can afford him- and most of his designs are tacky- and we have alot of tacky people in the middle east- alot.

I have to agree about Elie Saab...I don't consider him HC either. It seems as though he just gives all the atelier workers Bedazzlers & says GO!!

 

[ettebe]

Melinda Gate's wouldn't buy or wear couture...it's just not her style at all & I don't mean that as a slap...it's just not what's she's about...She's very understated in her style & attitude.

Too a certain extent the 900+ elite (billionaires) could or couldn't be on the list.

We will never know?

I remember my teacher a few years ago said, there is only a handful of women that buy HC each and every year.

 

[adorefaith]

thanks for clearing that up UNIQ

 

[kimair]

i know in san francisco, one of the biggest names on the couture circuit is tatiana sorrokko...
she is an editor at vogue russia and a former model...
she's a friend of ralph rucci...her husband's gallery has hosted shows for his artwork and she has been featured in us bazaar often...
i know she's a big couture collector, mostly rucci and lacroix...

 

[LUXXX]

I have to agree about Elie Saab...I don't consider him HC either. It seems as though he just gives all the atelier workers Bedazzlers & says GO!!

Didn't he get famous because of Halle Berry wearing his dress to accept her Oscar? People were making a big deal about it but it was very tacky looking...

 

[UNiQFashionista]

so true- he started a long time ago- women from the middle east have been wearing saab for years- since the early 90s- he was an unknown lebanese designer...Halle Barry put him on the map- he was lucky...and it was Halle (who looks good in anything) and plus she won the oscar- if she didnt- he would still be unknown I think...

The thing is- if you go to lebanon- you would find- I kid you not, over 20 designers- claiming to be HC designers- and they are even worse than elie saab- and alot of ppl from there consider them HC- and brag about it- i swear if your driving down the main highway in beruit, you see signs of joseph whateverhisnamis HC, Elie whateverhisnameis HC- it goes on and on...its all about biddazzle...sequins...flash...and tackiness...

There are REAL HC clients left in the middle east- But I must say not as much as there was in the 70s and 80s- and I'm going to blame the lebanese so called HC invasion- so why pay $50,000 for CD haute couture when you can pay $20,000 AND a splash of sequins?!! they know how to draw in middle easterners...and that is with beads and over the top glamour...so they are satisfied and pay less than european couture houses..

thats my explination...
but as i said- the true HC collectors in the middle east wouldnt be caught dead in Elie saab and his likes....and that says alot ...

 

[fashionista-ta]

. . i'm sorry MMA . . of course i meant to write MMA and not mullet
my apologies !

UNIQ . . men never buy their wives dresses ?
do you mean the men aren't the ones there choosing the outfits, or that the women aren't using their money ? i can't imagine that in all cases the women are using their 'own' money (and i use that term for lack of a better one)

I noticed one of the articles above mentioned a man at an HC show who described himself as "a client for my wife" ... would be interesting to know more about that. But he certainly seemed to be involved in the process

 

[fashionista-ta]

Melinda Gate's wouldn't buy or wear couture...it's just not her style at all & I don't mean that as a slap...it's just not what's she's about...She's very understated in her style & attitude.

Agree ... just read the first profile of her ever, which is on newsstands now (Fortune?? Some financial magazine ...) I really admire Melinda. There was a picture of her & Bill wearing what looked like matching brown pantsuits

 

[cygnenoir]

Agree ... just read the first profile of her ever, which is on newsstands now (Fortune?? Some financial magazine ...) I really admire Melinda. There was a picture of her & Bill wearing what looked like matching brown pantsuits

I think she'd rather give her money (I'm not being snarky here) to people who need it through her foundation. She's just not that into fashion.

She apparently shops at The Gap and Old Navy for herself and her children. I don't know about Bill. I've heard that she's been spotted many times at those stores.

But back on topic, should Melinda ever decide that she'd like to buy some couture, I hope she calls me. I'd be more than happy to help her!

 

[SalemK]

Fantastic thread. I'm delighted that the HC clientele is growing, because it supports an art form I love! Consider couture clients as the Medici family of the Renaissance -- the Medicis commissioned tremendous amounts of great paintings and sculptures the world would never have had otherwise.

 

[LUXXX]

im sure this has been posted many, many times in the past but it gives alot of insight into what goes on behind the scenes:

"The Secret World of Haute Couture" BBC, 2007
(part 1 of 6)

source: youtube

Thanks for posting this, it was quite interesting. It's all very discreet and secretive though...still seems like a very private club...

 

[fashionista-ta]

Fantastic thread. I'm delighted that the HC clientele is growing, because it supports an art form I love! Consider couture clients as the Medici family of the Renaissance -- the Medicis commissioned tremendous amounts of great paintings and sculptures the world would never have had otherwise.

Well, I've been to a museum show of couture, and trust me ... the dress someone wore every Christmas is a very different thing from Renaissance painting and sculpture, even when Balenciaga himself made it

 

[SalemK]

I've seen a good bit of couture up close and I find it as valid an art form as anything else. I'm not saying fashion's going to change the world, but I think it can be art.

Of course, I also believe it's actually more difficult to design well for a mass market. But I love seeing what great designers can do without many practical restraints.

 

[G86]

adore- I mean in arab culture- fashion is left to women- either they buy it from the money they earned "for the working women" or their husband's money, fashion, couture or not, in the middle east, is left to the women, men buy jewelery- but fashion, even if its $100,000 dress- is left to the females.

Its true about elie saab, I really dont consider him HC- I myself have had a dress made for me by him- and the quality is horrible- the only reason i picked him was because i couldnt find anything i like din RTW, and his prices are rather cheap (for HC)- but I think he's a horrible designer and his materials look good- but they are cheap- so alot of people can afford him- and most of his designs are tacky- and we have alot of tacky people in the middle east- alot.

anyway, I remember talking to someone who works for valentino saying- the russians are the new arabs!

i agree with what you said about Elie Saab. the amount of elie saab dresses you see when you go to events here in saudi arabia is unbelieable! the whole point of having HC dresses is to be unique and different but elie saab latest collections are seen at almost all weddings, partys, graduations.. etc here.

but i think the new generation "late teens and eary 20's" are going to change that. i'm 21 and alot of my saudi friends think elie saab is overrated, mainstream, dated.. and i see alot of girls in less known designers creations.

 

[Mota3089]

She apparently shops at The Gap and Old Navy for herself and her children. I don't know about Bill. I've heard that she's been spotted many times at those stores.


This makes them both Tightwads of AMERICA!

http://www.tightwad.com/

 

[LetThemEatCake]

Melinda Gates shops at Nordstrom in Bellevue. (which is the eastside of Seattle for non-Washington locals...Microsoft and money and they're putting a Neiman's there next year) My mother works there and still sees her quite frequently in Savvy. They have a couture section but I doubt she peruses it.

 

[LUXXX]

She apparently shops at The Gap and Old Navy for herself and her children. I don't know about Bill. I've heard that she's been spotted many times at those stores.


This makes them both Tightwads of AMERICA!

http://www.tightwad.com/

I've heard Bill is quite frugal when it comes to material possessions...his children don't seem to be traditional heirs/heiresses, in fact he has said he will be leaving the bulk of his fortune to charity which seems kooky to me, because his children may want to continue on with what he has done...they live in an amazing home but they aren't overly spoiled form what I've heard, at least not in a superficial way.

He and his wife aren't particularly glamorous though.

 

[cygnenoir]

Melinda Gates shops at Nordstrom in Bellevue. (which is the eastside of Seattle for non-Washington locals...Microsoft and money and they're putting a Neiman's there next year) My mother works there and still sees her quite frequently in Savvy. They have a couture section but I doubt she peruses it.

The couture section at Nordtrom is not couture Couture, if you know what I mean. It's high-end designer. $5000 Donna Karan Signature rather than French Haute Couture.

She does shop there as well. I should not say how I know so much about some of Melinda's shopping, but let's just say I have a friend on the inside.

 

[LetThemEatCake]

The couture section at Nordtrom is not couture Couture, if you know what I mean. It's high-end designer. $5000 Donna Karan Signature rather than French Haute Couture.

You're right. I havent been to the store in quite a while and I know the Downtown Seattle store has a bigger section with a Chanel boutique but I just remember seeing the word 'Couture' the last time I was visting mom @ work. For what it's worth, mom says that Mrs. Gates is a very nice and not uppity (like a lot of eastside women) type of person.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Just a reminder that we should probably stay OT & discuss those who are HC clients vs those who could be