Elie Saab Fashion Designer Profile

He has long been a leading name in haute couture in the Middle East and some
anonymous with opulence is fashion designer Elie Saab.

His romantic crystal-encrusted evening and wedding gowns are favored by princesses
and Hollywood stars and his ready to wear line which launched in 1998 in Milan holds
the same feminine esthetic as his couture dresses with brightly colored silks, pearl
beading and embroidered lace.

In 1982 while still a teenager, Saab opened his first atelier in Beirut under his own name.
It was just the beginning for the talented Lebanese designer and during the 80s his
reputation spread around the Middle East with the region’s super wealthy elite
commissioning his after evening and wedding gowns.

Since 1997, Saab has been putting on his runway show in Paris and Milan but it was the
2002 Academy Awards that turned him into an overnight success. When Halle Berry
became the first African-American women to win a best actress Oscar, she was wearing
Elie Saab couture gown that was seen all over the world. It was the ultimate success and
his name was suddenly on everyone’s lips.

Known for his combining of Middle Eastern detail with European fashion, Saab’s designs
has since become popular with Hollywood and is seen on Beyonce and Marcia Cross and
Allison Janney. Berry, the woman responsible for his Hollywood emergence is still often
seen in his couture. Romanticism and softness are the dominant aspect in Saab’s designs.
His collections were often inspired by great Hollywood icons with soft, floral tops or the
ruffled skirts and soft floral dresses that flow from softly gait and waists.

Saab’s evening wear is constantly elegant with deep jewel colors like violet, emerald and
ruby with embroideries sequenced and delicate lace, beaded sheet dresses have come next
by assuming and lets a fabric that fall from hips down to the beat. Saab is well known for
his haute couture bridal gowns as he is for his ready to wear designs.

His wedding collections are a tribute to the feminine shape. A seductive and romantic
collection combining opulence and luxury with the richest of fabrics covered with pearls,
crystals, diamonds and silk threads, Saab’s bridal wear is exquisite. Saab has shown his
designs in the world’s most fashionable cities, dressed Hollywood stars to perfection and
has opened a boutique in Paris.

The shop which is his second after his Beirut boutique is next to the line of Chanel and
Louis Vuitton proof that hard work does pay off. His later collections have shared a new
shopper direction breaking away from the usual cocktail outfits in favor of looks that are
more active. Body skinning lines and slim skirts are the defining elements with some of
the color infused with touches of violet and emerald green. It is taking the designer into a
different realm than he has explored before. Elie Saab has long been a leading name in
haute couture in the Middle East and with his collection is now a hit all over the world, it
seems this designer reached the top of his profession.