Couture is dead, long live couture! Our Wonderland roving photographer was on hand to capture all the beautiful aquatic-inspired gowns at Oscar Carvallo.

Most of us will never be able to afford couture in our lives – after all, we don’t live in a world where a £6,000 Giambattista Valli dress counts as a bargain. That’s why couture isn’t about clothes; it’s about fantasy. We might have grown out of wanting to be fairy princesses, but we’ll never grow out of liking a good princess dress.

As models strode down the runway to Florence + the Machine’s ‘What the Water Gave Me’, one thing became abundantly clear: Oscar Carvallo is very good at making princess dresses. The Venezuelan designer excels at soft, sophisticated femininity: gowns with scaled iridescent tops were overlaid with layers of soft tulle and chiffon, all in the sweetest and lightest nudes, pinks and greys. According to Carvallo, the entire collection was inspired by the sea and the “sensuality of the female fish”, with lace fabrics inspired by pearls and corals and delicate white seashell accessories.  We’re not quite sure how fish can be sensual, but there was definitely something sultry in the water at the show.

Words: Zing Tsjeng
Images: Hatnim Lee