Nearly a fifth of the official couture slate belonged to Middle Eastern maisons this season.
Elie Saab played it regal with La Nouvelle Cour: eau-de-nil silks, ribboned corsets, and all the rococo romance of Marie Antoinette’s court. The craftsmanship was flawless, but the mood read more victory-lap than reinvention while younger houses elsewhere were busy warping silhouettes into the future.
Across town, Ashi Studio dialed up gothic glamour—razor-sharp boleros, spiraling fringe, and corsetry.
The real buzz, however, orbited Rami Al Ali. After years showing off-schedule, the Syrian-born, Dubai-based designer finally hit the Fédération calendar with Guardians of Light: restrained pleats and mashrabiya-etched chiffon that echoed Damascus architecture. A milestone moment, yes—but the true test will be turning that debut spark into long-burn brand heat.
Georges Hobeika’s ‘The New Order’ emerges from a clash ‘between self-doubt and determination’, drawing inspiration from past visionaries, humbly evoking them in the present. The elemental palette shifts from ivory white to earthly brown, moving deeper into shades of rich, sensous maroon and eclipse black. A standout piece in mist blue stuns, before diving back into monochrome, concluding with a veiled wedding gown that is nothing short of gorgeous.
Simply laying our gaze on Elie Saab’s ‘La Nouvelle Cour’, literally translated into ‘The New Court’, feels like setting foot into a world of faefolk and enchantment. Beautifully hand-crafted and intricately embellished, the collection fuses elegance with attitude. In Saab’s own words, it’s a “sumptuous playground for the modern queen—one who plays by her own rules.”
Ribbed velvet gowns and capes are sculpted into French corsetterie masterpieces, with delicate lace cascading down the silhouettes. The palette of ‘macaron hues’ stars shades like rose pink, water blue, and mint, contrasting gently with imperial gold and midnight black. Don’t miss the bows, of which there is an abundance – you’ll find them beaded across sheer chiffon and flowing behind feathered gowns.
Zuhair Murad took a sharp turn from the understated mood of his recent resort and ready-to-wear collection with “A Sheer Desire”, a luxe homage to Hollywood’s Golden Age and their beloved starlets, like Katharine Hepburn, echoes of whose broad-shouldered silhouette are seen in each piece, featuring faux fur stoles, wraps, and cocoon coats, with many embellished by ethically sourced beading and cabochons.
Ashi Couture stays breaking convention. He took a unique approach to constructing his show. Why you might wonder? “This collection doesn’t have a name, doesn’t have a title and you know me, I always have titles and stories,” said the Saudi designer. “I didn’t have it so I went to the flea market just to get inspiration and I started to just grab small things.”
Ashi’s architectural approach to his art shone through in his show, yielding sharply tailored jackets, asymmetrical pantsuits, and a sleek coat dress with a cascading fringe trim. Ashi delved into the story of the show, expressing how people usually focus on the conceptualization behind a show, instead of the craftsmanship itself.
