It’s that time of year again, one of the greatest times of the year. When all the best designers from across the world descend on the fashion capital to show off their incredible couture creations.
It’s difficult for us to pick a favourite, but one that really caught our eye was the Patuna House of Couture.
One question on everyone’s lips, and our own, when Patuna took to the stage was; where does her inspiration come from?
In a time of political turmoil when the subject of gender equality and empowerment is at the forefront of everyone’s minds, Patuna claims that her inspiration came from one of the most famous women in history: Eve.
The story of this collection stretches back to a visit to Versaille, where Patuna had the initial idea to design each piece in a different location across the city; taking influence from the characteristics and colour of the buildings she visited.
Eve’s story is one of power and struggle, as well as a need to continue on through the world. It’s clear in the images of the catwalk that we have seen that Patuna’s creations tell a story of women rising up, taking charge and doing exactly what they want, whilst owning it all at the same time.
But remember the other famous character in Eve’s story? Elements of the snake that tempted her to bite the apple are evident throughout the collection.
The strong use of silk and velvet satin, which emits a strong shine when it catches the light, is a clear replica of the snake’s glistening scales. The way that certain designs have coiling elements around their shoulders and arms is a beautiful yet slightly sinister addition that only enhances the designs.
This use of the snake’s physical elements in such a gorgeous manner raises a question that only Patuna herself would be able to answer; does she consider the snake the villain (as history has told us?) or is he the liberator that helps to free Eve to truly become herself? I know where I stand.
A little known fact about Patuna is that she doesn’t use zippers or buttons in any of her designs, the latter of which could be considered quite unusual in couture fashion where buttons can often be used as focal points on pieces. But Patuna likes to keep the garments free of any such restrictions, in order to ensure that the flow of the material is not hindered in any way. Ultimately her goal is to ensure that the fabric has the freedom to move as it would naturally with volume.
For those of us who weren’t sat front row at Paris Fashion Week (we can keep dreaming, can’t we?), we have some photographs of the gorgeous creations that Patuna was showcasing.
By Megan Crehan
