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By Erin Skrypek
Fashion Wire Daily - Paris - It was Elie Saab's first ready-to-wear collection. What does that mean? It basically means he made his haute couture more affordable and slightly less red carpet. Exactly what you'd expect from someone whose sole purpose as a designer up to this point was to dress people for fancy events. Saab is used to being associated with celebrities, so it was only natural that he choreographed a swank show, complete with a glittery beaded curtain backdrop and a shiny, mirrored catwalk, with high-wattage models like Michelle Alves, Carmen Kass and Noot Seer. In making a RTW collection, one of Saab's goals was probably to create some key day looks, and it's clear that he tried, however the skirt and jacket combinations, pale colored peasant-frilled skirts and dresses and even the beige, jeans-style trousers Carmen Kass sported at one point looked so dressed up, the only day event they’d really work at is a wedding or some sort of formal garden party.Unsurprisingly, Saab also showed a number of obvious evening gowns. Shown in color stories - white, black, red, green, taupe and pink - these gowns looked shoddy in comparison with his couture creations. Florals printed on red or green-based silk didn’t look as expensive as they should and the final color story in bubblegum pink looked as if made solely with Paris Hilton in mind. In other words, it was not exactly the most tasteful shade.Saab showed such an incredibly large and interrelated collection, it is difficult to pinpoint which looks in particular were standouts. What can be said is that his glittery beading packed the biggest bang. There was one body-skimming black slip gown that truly shined. It appeared to be entirely covered in sequins as it flickered down the runway, however once it was within eyeshot, you could see Saab only partially covered the dress in gem-cut onyx beads. He used a large V-shape pattern that managed to maximize the gleam factor.But Saab also misused sparkle. In one case he bedazzled the cuffs of flowy black pants ensemble, pairing soft belled trousers with a strapless, black crystal-encrusted bodice and covered it all by a draped chiffon top that included a cape. It’s hard to imagine anyone other than Diana Ross in concert wearing this kind of costume.To say Saab’s collection was bad would be unfair. But it is fair to say that Saab needs someone to help edit his collection. By cutting out the looks that some might consider tacky, Saab would have had a much stronger collection.
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