QandAs: Buzz

What's the meaning of the term haute couture?

Answer:
Like most things related to fashion, the term haute couture

is French in origin and means high dressmaking. More specifically, haute couture refers to fashions that are made by hand and custom-fitted to the person who will wear it.

White the term couture or haute couture has become synonymous with any fashion, French law actually forbids any firm to use the term haute couture unless it meets the strict standards of the term.

Haute couture is the most sumptuous clothing available in the world because it is made to order for the wearer using the finest traditions in hand-made clothing and makes use of the highest quality materials and fabrics. Haute couture is a rather confusing term because it is used to refer not only to fashions but also to the fashion designers or fashion houses that create such fashions.

Any fashion house that wishes to use the name haute couture must meet the standards set forth in 1945 by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In order to qualify, the fashion house must have a workshop in Paris (such snobbery!) that is known in France as an atelier. The atelier (pronounced at-uh-yay) must have at least 15 full-time employees. The fashion house must cater to clients with made-to-order fashions completed through at least one fitting. Finally, the fashion house must present its collection to the Parisian press annually.

These stringent standards have ensured that while the term haute couture might be misapplied today, only the finest fashion houses earn the legal right to use the term haute couture. Historically the most famous haute couture fashion houses included such household names as Versace, Balenciaga, Pierre Cardin and Yves Saint Laurent. Today, there are only 10 officially sanctioned haute couture houses in existence.