Sarah Burton's Alexander McQueen collection a hit at Paris Fashion Week

 
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7 March 2012

If David Attenborough had been at Paris Fashion Week last night, he might have revelled in Sarah Burton's latest offering for Alexander McQueen.

With a show that at, times, felt like a luxurious version of one of the naturalist's famous time-lapse photography sequences, the designerunveiled a collection inspired by the "rippling underbelly" of the forest floor.

Citing mushrooms, fungi and the beauty of nature as her inspiration, Burton's objective was to create something that grew and sprouted before the eyes of those who looked on. Lit by a pulsating, fibre-optic light-fitting that hung above the catwalk, the show opened with a tiered white coat which was trimmed in Mongolian lamb and cinched at the waist by means of a large silver belt. A series of all-white looks followed. Delicate embroidery was layered on top of black leather to lend the clothes a feeling of depth, while a three-dimensional silhouette was made possible thanks to oversized peplum trims and clever folds.

Pale silk dresses adorned in thousands of tiny silk flowers were trimmed with flashes of pony skin. Further hammering home the fauna theme, a selection of thigh-high gowns came detailed with soft balls of feather and fur to recall the image of dandelions floating through the air. A fuchsia dress embellished across the shoulder with glistening silver floral studs was among the collection's many stand out pieces.

But it was the eveningwear on Burton's agenda for next season that was most memorable. While McQueen doesn't stage a show at the biannual -Haute Couture fashion weeks, the gowns in this offering might have seemed more at home on its catwalks. Floor-length and crafted from layers of silk in crimson, fuchsia and and blush silk, the dresses appeared to open like rose buds as the models walked.

Typically for the McQueen label - which loves to shock and delight in equal measure - was the hard, almost mechanical, details that sought to undercut the gentle, airy feel at work within this collection. Chrome visors and peroxide hair styles lent the show a tough, futuristic edge. Yet, this harsh undercurrent played little more than a supporting role within a collection that was amongst the most spell-binding at Paris Fashion Week thus far. "It wasn't meant to feel dark" said the designer backstage, "it was meant to feel beautiful."

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