LOS ANGELES, Aug 9, 2006/ FW/ --- Love the idea of couture but don’t want to pay $100,000 for a dress? Then demi-couture is what you want and Catherine Malandrino is the designer for you for Fall 2006.

Malandrino’s Fall 2006 collection, which is already available in stores, has the couture elements without the high tag price that goes with haute couture.

Quilted bolero jackets and coats with a pillow collar exemplify the creativity that goes in a couture atelier. A circular design that is almost psychedelic without the kaleidoscope of colors with the placket following the curves, the outerwear is distinctive and unique.

A fur vest with strips of mink and quilted beige trench coat with a wide collar and lapel oozes with elegance and style.

Still, it’s the day dresses that you will just fall in love with. Sheered sleeves on a lace blouse with a sheered peplum right on the waist is romantic. Paired with an A-line skirt that is quilted into small squares from the waist to the thigh line only to become mini box pleats make the look modern and contemporary.

And for evening, let us just say that the red carpet beckons. Sexy and sensual, the details such as embroidery and micro quilting make them stand out.

Demi-couture, a relatively new term in fashion, was perhaps coined by Suzy Menkes of the International Herald Tribune in 1996 to describe the work of Martin Margiela.

The term caught on and currently it is defined as ‘a new fashion movement wherein designers go for the richly detailed look of haute couture yet the clothes are still considered ready-to-wear.’

As New York-based designer Zang Toi had said, ‘demi-couture is a natural path for a designer to take as he or she takes on the quest of perfecting their craft.’ As a designer matures in his or her aesthetics, the tendency to be experimental and face the challenge of raising the bar unto themselves is a natural progression.

For a gifted designer like Catherine Malandrino, the lure of demi-couture is hard to ignore. Since launching her own label in 1999, she had gone from strength to strength, always coming up with innovative collection every season.

Her Fall 2006 collection shows her at the top of her form and solidifies her position as one of the most sought after designer from New York.

Malandrino

Malandrino

Malandrino

Malandrino