There is a name in « The Haute Couture” history that should not be omitted is that of Charles Frederick Worth. Indeed, this man came to Paris in 1845 and is the founder of Haute Couture.

In 1858, he opened his Couture house at 7 rue de la Paix where the elegant women from Paris came to dress; he attracted customer as the wife of the Australian ambassador and the Princess Metternich, who introduced him to the Empress Eugenie Bonaparte. She admiring his work and that is what allows him to become famous. Worth was also a good friends with the Empress Sissi, which encouraged its social progress.

He had a great sense of business, which allowed to transform the Culture in a luxury industry. Work around a dress was very important; it allowed him to sell his designs at very high prices.

Its original and innovative glow makes his designs as a works of art and display them in salons. Finally, he began to present a new collection once a year on real models parading, thus introducing a constant promotion of his sales. In fact, before Worth, the cloths were displayed on iron mannequins and customers walked around like a sculpture exhibition. He is the first one to work with models. But he didn’t call them models at the time; he called them “doubles”.

“French Haute Couture” entered formally triumphantly at the Universal Exhibition of 1900 in Paris.

Wishing distinguish the originality of its luxurious couture fashion, Worth protects the concept of Haute Couture in 1868 and founded an association of fashion houses to regulate and protect the creations of Parisian couturiers. Later, his son Gaston transforms the fashion house into “Chambre Syndicale of Parisien Couture” which nowadays still controls the Contemporary Haute Couture.

Chamber requires some rules particularly strict, everyone cannot use the label Haute Couture which is a legally protected appellation. Among this rules, there is an obligation to present two collections a year, 50 new and original street-wear and evening wear creations by collection, a team of minimum 20 full-time employees in the workshop home.

Yves Saint-Laurent, Chanel, Dior, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Givenchy, Lanvin, Hermès…the prestigious names in fashion display their elegant and refined showcases in Montaigne avenue, Champs Elysées avenue, Rue Saint Honoré, in Paris department store on Boulevard Haussmann, in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés…

Twice a year, the capital is in sync with “Fashion weeks“; much to the delight of people who loves to be in style and who eagerly await the new designs of these famous fashion houses.

Emblem of French luxury, Haute Couture is a Parisian icon.

Picture from Pinterest flipzoe.fr, indulgy.com and bcr8tive.com.