Haute couture with a heart goes on display in city studio

Sep 19 2008 by Alistair Houghton, Liverpool Daily Post

Haute couture with a heart goes on display in city studio

PAUL Weller may have sung about his peacock suit – but supermodel Naomi Campbell went one better with this £25,000 dress that goes on show at an exclusive event in Liverpool today.

The green peacock feather dress, which she wore at a charity fashion show she held in London this week, is the star of the show at a display of haute couture clothing in the city today.

Ms Campbell organised the Fashion for Relief show on Wednesday to raise money for the White Ribbon Alliance, which campaigns for better care for women in childbirth in the Third World.

The event saw stars from Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Cole to Cilla Black and double Olympic gold medal winner Rebecca Adlington strut their stuff on the catwalk.

The peacock dress, modelled by Campbell herself, was snapped up on the night – but all the other outfits, by designers from Stella McCartney to John Galliano, are now being auctioned online by Liverpool company Fashion Exchange.

The clothes, including some of the highlights from this season’s shows in London, Milan and New York, will be on show today at a private party in the Grey Space studio in Water Street. They will then be packed away before the online auction opens tomorrow.

The auction will stay open for two weeks at fashionexchange.co.uk.

Grey Space director Ian Richards said: “It’s wonderful to be able to host a show of such a high calibre in Liverpool during Capital of Culture year – and we know Liverpool is the fashion capital of the UK.

“It’s a golden opportunity for people to bag themselves some of this season’s designer bargains. Some of these dresses normally sell for £4,000-plus.

“This event is a piece of fashion history really. It’s a cross between a museum and a salesroom and a snapshot of this season’s fashion collections.”

One of the highlights of Wednesday’s Fashion for Relief show was 65-year-old Merseyside showbiz legend Cilla Black, who donned an Yves St Laurent top hat, shirt and tails – and little else – to strut down the catwalk to the sounds of her hit Anyone Who Had A Heart.

Other models included Rod Stewart’s daughter Kimberley, who wore a Stella McCartney dress.

The Sugababes – including Aintree-born Heidi Range – also took to the catwalk, as did model Erin O’Connor, artist Tracey Emin and designer Dame Vivienne Westwood.

Rebecca Adlington’s Ben de Lisi black dress is among those prominently displayed at Grey Space, though without the two gold medals she wore with it on the catwalk.

The audience included the Prime Minister’s wife, Sarah Brown, actress Mischa Barton and Nancy Dell’Olio.

Fashion Exchange is run by Zara Grey, one of the directors of Grey Space. Grey Space was set up earlier this year in a former banking hall to provide a venue for fashion shows and photoshoots.

alistairhoughton