THE AMERICAN DESIGNER OF THE FRENCH ORIGIN MONIC LIULIER IN AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW SHARED THE SECRETS OF CHOOSING THE MOST Freshest WEDDING DRESSES AND THE LATEST ALEXEILEZEILEZEIELEUZEI GOLES.
Monique, what are you presenting today at the Harvey Nichols - Dubai multi-brand store?
Monique: Today my spring-summer 2014 collection of ready-made clothes is presented there. Its main characteristics are rich colors, light textures, layering and drapery. The collection turned out to be incredibly organic, light and not overloaded with unnecessary details.
We know that in recent months you have been incredibly busy - preparing for the wedding collection in New York, charity projects in the Philippines, meeting with Middle Eastern clients and presenting the pret-a-porter collection with Harvey Nichols - Dubai. How do you usually organize the release of models?
Monique: I like to start the show with day dresses that you can wear for a business lunch, then go to cocktail dresses, and by the end of the show reveal the main theme of the collection. The whole drama is for dessert! Tell us about your latest fall-winter pret-a-porter collection, which has so many elements unexpected for your style. Monique: I'll tell you honestly - this dark side has also been revealed in this collection. It has more sensuality. For example, in the decor I used leather, coupled with lace. In general, the collections of the fall season always turn out to be more mysterious, more sexy.
By the way, you first used skulls!
Monique: I like to intrigue the audience and reveal to my fans new facets of their personality. I don’t take things literally, and fashion - too seriously. Skulls have become only a means of self-expression. In some places, they are upside down or enlarged, and instead of teeth, glass beads or beads sparkle in them.
Why in the "dark" collection did you suddenly decide to present a dress of delicate peach color?
Monique: I didn’t want to load the audience with only drama. The “angel in darkness” - as I call this exit - has become a symbol of self-irony. I really wanted to make the youth collection. And my main task was to show people alternative evening dresses, because not everyone prefers a dress to the floor for a formal exit.
The main hit, perhaps, was your lace boots. Did you create them specifically for display?
Monique: Actually, this idea came to me four months before the start of work on the collection. The fact is that I constantly work with lace and more than once thought to utilize those stocks of material that remained during the cutting of patterns for dresses. Lace in itself is not easy to imagine in the light of the youth collection. Nevertheless, in the Chantilly lace, the legs look chic - this effect cannot be achieved with any other material. And for autumn, boots are an indispensable and, by the way, my favorite accessory. And although the shoes are usually chosen to the collection in the last turn, in this case the opposite happened to me.
Which dress from the collection was most liked by customers from the Middle East?
Monique: In Kuwait, for example, a black cape dress made a splash. It hung on a mannequin, and one of my clients immediately bought it, without even trying on it!
Are you going to move further towards pret-a-porter?
Monique: I never wanted to be considered a designer only for wedding or evening dresses. As a fashion designer, I want to develop in parallel with the desires and interests of my audience. Now women need to quickly and easily change images from daytime to evening. Therefore, as a mother and a businesswoman, I perfectly understand the desire of thousands of women to always look beautiful, and always correspond to the event.
How do you deal with this amount of work?
Monique: It’s not easy, but I love my job. To create beautiful clothes and accessories for me as a breath of fresh air. It's harder for me to go through business trips around the world when I have to part with my children.
How is it that you decided to create your own wedding dress yourself?
Monique: I got married in 1995, and already a year before the wedding I started looking for a suitable dress. When my engagement took place, I just graduated from the Institute of Fashion and Design in Los Angeles, and from my own experience I was convinced that the choice of outfit is not so great. Therefore, getting married, I already knew for sure that I wanted to release my own collection of wedding dresses. A lot of time has passed since then, and I am very proud that it has become part of the evolution of the world of wedding couture.
And part of that happy moment when a girl gets married ...
Monique: And this is an incredible honor for me! This is the exclusive part of the wardrobe that a woman will keep as a memory of the beginning of a new chapter in her life, of her wedding - a day filled with hope and love. By the way, the anniversary of my wedding (19 years) took place in May, and on the 20th I think to wear a wedding dress from Monique Lhuillier.
How amazing! And in what dress do you see yourself?
Monique: I think it will be ecru color, but certainly something unconventional.
How did the work on the latest wedding collection go?
Monique: The Spring-Summer 2014 collection, presented in New York, is special, “weightless”. At the beginning of the work, I paid special attention to the design of the dress. It is very important how it is tailored, because the base for the dress must fulfill two conditions: create the illusion of an elegant waist and give support to the body, since the wedding dress is much heavier than usual.
How important is the silhouette of the dress?
Monique: The silhouette depends on the tone and atmosphere of the celebration itself, so you need to understand where the ceremony will take place: in a large hall, in a garden, on an island or somewhere else. To create a dress, you must also consider the type of figure of the bride.
What advice can you give our readers who are planning to get married this year?
Monique: Always start your wedding preparations with a dress. Explore the market, but do not pay attention to trends. Then start picking up the veil, although simple and concise hair ornaments, such as a headband or mesh, are sometimes more appropriate. In terms of accessories, I am a supporter of minimalism. They should be miniature, earrings and a necklace can be skipped altogether; don’t wear massive gems. And I also advise you to abandon the big bouquet: because of it, the graceful curve of the waist is very often lost. Shoes should always be worn on the heel, because gait and posture on this day should be impeccable!
