Hilary Alexander soaks in the luxurious, golden opulence at Paris Fashion Week
In pictures: Dries van Noten
In pictures: Sophia Kokosolaki
In pictures: Christian Dior
More Paris collections
Paris may not have been chosen to hold the next Olympics, but designers are certainly going for gold at this prêt-à-porter season.
In yesterday's shows for next autumn and winter, Belgian designer Dries van Noten created a golden path for his models at the École Supérieure des Beaux-arts.
His collection, inspired by the 15th century Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, featured embroideries based upon sultans' robes and kaftans.
Van Noten's signature triangular coats were as richly detailed as Ottoman carpets. The gold theme wove through the collection: elaborate, drop-waist and apron-tied floral silk dresses glistened with gilt thread; gold-appliqued cropped boleros and waistcoats; gold-embroidered deep cuffs on swing jackets, tied with a bow above the waist.
The London-based Greek-born designer Sophia Kokosalaki, doubtless inspired by her role as the official designer of the 7,000 costumes for the opening ceremony of the Athens Olympics, also raised the gold standard.
She used woven-metal yarn and silk for a series of bubble-skirted mini dresses and slim, mid-thigh sheaths, which were pleated into multiple waves of fabric or folded into convoluted shapes. Other gold cocktail dresses featured woven "bra" bodices or breastplates.
Hussein Chalayan, another London-based designer, also took the heavy-metal route with short slip dresses encrusted with gold beads and short, high-waisted smocks in red and gold-striped silicone and silk.
