Julie de Libran Couture Spring 2023

Guests arriving at Julie de Libran’s Paris apartment for her haute couture presentation were greeted by a fragrant log fire and a kitchen table piled with food. In her living room, the outfits were suspended from the ceiling or modeled by a gaggle of house “muses”: friends like Alexia Niedzielski, Mathilde Favier, Christine d’Ornano or Lorena Vergani.

“It becomes fashion when it’s worn,” de Libran explained. “They’re women that inspire me, that are around me every day. I think women today support each other.”

The designer works in a sustainable way, producing highly limited quantities of each style and using deadstock fabrics whenever possible. For spring, her signature lamé tunic came with a cape back, while her Elizabeth blazer in denim toile topped a silver sequin bra top and skirt.

“My collection is definitely about shine: that’s my color this season,” de Libran noted. “When you have a little bit of sparkle, a little bit of sequins, a little bit of shine, it’s a celebration.”

An icy blue sequined dress with split sleeves that joined together in the back made for a chic alternative to the traditional cocktail dress, although there were plenty of those, too, from a sparkly pink spaghetti-strap dress with matching jacket to a tiny black velvet rhinestone-trimmed vest dress that brought to mind Warhol muse Edie Sedgwick.

“I like to design for a variety of women: sometimes they like to get coverage for the legs, sometimes it’s about the movement,” de Libran said. “What’s so lovely for me is to spend that time on my models, to be able to drape and create a certain volume personalized on the woman.”

No doubt, it’s what keeps her loyalists coming back for more.