Ready-to-wear (RTW) – also called prêt-à-porter, or off-the-rack or off-the-peg in casual use – is the term for garments sold in finished condition in standardized sizes, as distinct from made-to-measure or bespoke clothing tailored to a particular person's frame. In other words, it is a piece of clothing that was mass produced in different sizes and sold that way instead of it being designed and sewn for one person. The term off-the-peg is sometimes used for items other than clothing, such as handbags. It is the opposite of haute couture.
Elsa Schiaparelli was an Italian fashion designer from an aristocratic background. She created the house of Schiaparelli in Paris in 1927, which she managed from the 1930s to the 1950s. Starting with knitwear, Schiaparelli's designs celebrated Surrealism and eccentric fashions. Her collections were famous for unconventional and artistic themes like the human body, insects, or trompe-l'œil, and for the use of bright colors like her "shocking pink".
Christian Marie Marc Lacroix is a French fashion designer. The name may also refer to the company he founded.
A fashion week is a fashion industry event, lasting approximately one week, where fashion designers, brands or "houses" display their latest collections in runway fashion shows to buyers and the media. These events influence the upcoming fashion trends for the current and approaching seasons.
Balenciaga SA is luxury fashion house founded in 1919 by the Spanish couturier Cristóbal Balenciaga in San Sebastian, Spain. Balenciaga produces ready-to-wear footwear, handbags, and accessories, and licenses its name and branding to Coty for fragrances. It is currently owned by the French corporation Kering.
Elie Saab is a Lebanese fashion designer.
Love Marie Payawal Ongpauco, known professionally as Heart Evangelista, is a Filipino actress. She is currently an exclusive artist of GMA Network and represented by Alice Talents Agency in Paris, France.
Rochas is a fashion, beauty, and perfume house founded in 1925 by French designer Marcel Rochas, the first designer of 2/3-length coats and skirts with pockets and one of the two designers, along with Elsa Schiaparelli, who launched the fashion for padded shoulders in 1931. Rochas had been known primarily for its signature perfume, "Femme," which was packaged in a pink box with black lace.
Paris Fashion Week is a series of designer presentations held semi-annually in Paris, France, with spring/summer and autumn/winter events held each year. Dates are determined by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. Paris Fashion Week is held at venues throughout the city.
Louise Chéruit, also known as Madame Chéruit and often erroneously called Madeleine Chéruit, was a French fashion designer. She was among the foremost couturiers of her generation, and one of the first women to control a major French fashion house. Her salon operated at Place Vendôme in Paris under the name Chéruit from 1906 to 1935. She is best remembered today as the subject of a number of portraits by Paul César Helleu and for the appearance of her name in two celebrated works of literature, Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past (1910) and Evelyn Waugh's Vile Bodies (1930). Her name is also frequently associated with the fashion photography of Edward Steichen, whose favorite model, Marion Morehouse, often wore gowns from the house of Chéruit for Vogue magazine in the 1920s. One particular Steichen image has become iconic – Morehouse in a jet-beaded black net Chéruit dress, first published in 1927.
Pierre Balmain S.A., trading as Balmain, is a French luxury fashion house that was founded by Pierre Balmain (1914–1982) in 1945.
Tatiana Sorokko is a Russian-born American model, fashion journalist, and haute couture collector. She walked the runways for the world's most prominent designers and fashion houses, appeared on covers of leading fashion magazines, and became the first Russian model of the post-Soviet period to gain international recognition. After modeling, Sorokko worked as contributing editor for Vogue, Vanity Fair and Harper's Bazaar. Her distinct personal style and her private collection of historically important haute couture clothing were subjects of museum exhibitions in Russia and the U.S.
Haute couture is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design. The term haute couture is French, "haute" meaning "high" or "elegant," and "couture" translating to "sewing" or "dressmaking." The term haute couture generally refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the 18th century, or to the upper portion of a modern dress to distinguish it from the skirt and sleeves. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became the centre of a growing industry that focused on making outfits from high-quality, expensive, often unusual fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable of sewers—often using time-consuming, hand-executed techniques. Couture translates literally from French as "dressmaking", sewing, or needlework and is also used as a common abbreviation of haute couture and can often refer to the same thing in spirit.
Count Renato Zavagli Ricciardelli delle Caminate, professionally known as René Gruau was a fashion illustrator whose exaggerated portrayal of fashion design through painting has had a lasting effect on the fashion industry. Because of Gruau's inherent skills and creativity, he contributed to a change in the entire fashion industry through the new pictures that represented the already popular designs created by designers in the industry. The benefits, including economic stimulation and enhancement of advertising are still present in the industry today via a new way of fashion illustration, fashion photography. Gruau became one of the best known and favorite artists of the haute couture world during the 1940s and 50s working with Femina, Marie Claire, L'Officiel, L'Album Du Figaro and an assortment of "high-style" magazines. Gruau's artwork is recognized and commended internationally in some of Paris and Italy's most prestigious art museums including the Louvre in Paris and the Blank in Italy. In addition to his international fame and recognition, "Gruau's artwork is known for its timeless and enduring style".
Ralph & Russo is a European, privately held company owned and founded by Tamara Ralph and Michael Russo. Ralph & Russo is a high fashion house that specializes in haute couture and ready-to-wear clothes, luxury goods, and fashion accessories.
Vionnet is an haute couture label founded by the French couturier Madeleine Vionnet. Established in 1912, the house of Vionnet closed doors in 1939. Vionnet was relaunched by Guy and Arnaud de Lummen in the mid-1990s with perfumes and accessories, and then in 2006 with ready-to-wear collections. In 2012, Vionnet was purchased by the Kazakh businesswoman Goga Ashkenazi. In 2023, Chimhaeres Investments purchased the brand.
François Lesage was a French couture embroiderer. Lesage was globally known in the art of embroidery and worked for the largest fashion and haute couture houses. His atelier is now part of Chanel through the company's subsidiary, Paraffection.
Paolo Sebastian is an Australian fashion house, founded by designer Paul Vasileff. The atelier is located in South Australia, and the label is known for creating designs featuring intricate details and honouring the traditional methods of craftsmanship.
The lobster dress is a 1937 dress designed by Elsa Schiaparelli. It features a large lobster painted by Salvador Dalí.
Daniel Roseberry is an American fashion designer. He is the creative director of the French haute couture house Schiaparelli.
