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Fashion January 28, 2018

12 Couture Dresses That Took the Longest to Create

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Chanel. Hours taken: 750 for the feathered dress, 400 for the waistcoat, pants and cape Number of people on the team: Two different ateliers, Lesage and Cécile, worked on this dress Fun fact: the feathers used came from both cockerels and ostriches, and were accompanied by 550 silk organza camellias and 450 plastic camellia petals.

Maison Margiela Artisanal. Hours taken: 160 Number of people on the team: 3 Fun fact: The special ‘trench’ effect was developed especially for Margiela.

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Dior. Hours taken: 800 Number of people on the team: 8 Fun fact: Thousands of pale gold sequins were hand embroidered onto this look.

Schiaparelli. Hours taken: 500 hours of embroidery and 250 hours of atelier work Number of people on the team: unknown Fun fact: This look required 54,795 synthetic pearls.

Iris van Herpen. Hours taken: 260 hours of 3D printing alone Number of people on the team: unknown Fun fact: PolyJet technology was used to print onto ultra-fine fabrics, and a parametric model that translated 2D patterns into 3D data was also developed for this look.

Jean Paul Gaultier. Hours taken: 442 Number of people on the team: 3 couturiers Fun fact: This look was inspired by the work of Pierre Cardin.

Giambattista Valli. This dress required 350 meters of fabric to be completed

Ronald van der Kemp. Hours taken: 180 Number of people on the team: 5 different artisans Fun fact: This look’s sleeves were padded with various leftover couture fabrics

Armani Privé. Hours taken: 300 Number of people on the team: unknown Fun fact: The look also needed 50 meters of fabric and around 100 crystals to be completed.

Zuhair Murad. Hours taken: 1,500 Number of people on the team: 12 Fun fact: This look was inspired by Indian-American heritage.

Viktor & Rolf. Hours taken: 2 weeks Number of people on the team: 3 Fun fact: The complex design of the flowers was conceived using the shibori technique in addition to other traditional artisanal techniques.

Azzaro. Hours taken: 480 Number of people on the team: Unkown Fun fact: This look features 15,000 pearls.

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A demonstration of savoir-faire and creativity, Haute Couture Week showcases incredible designs, each more spectacular than the last. Some of the couture dresses and creations take hundreds of hours to complete, using only the best materials and embellishments, as well as a particular attention to detail, leaving nothing to chance. Look back at some of the most time-heavy looks seen at Couture Week Spring 2018.

First publish on Vogue.fr. Written by Eugénie Trochu and translated by Helena Baron.

Related Read: 53 street style looks from the haute shows

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