A Chocolate Miniskirt?

[Guest guest]

Models

Caked in Chocolate Ooze Down Catwalk

By Nikla Gibson

http://news.excite.com/news/r/011105/09/odd-chocolate-dc

 

PARIS (Reuters) - It's slinky. It's

sexy. But above all, that side-laced miniskirt and barely-there bustier top

being paraded on the catwalk are truly edible.

World-renowned French fashion designers

indulged in their passion for chocolate this week, ditching their usual chiffons and silks in favor of mouthwatering ingredients in what has become a yearly

celebration of the cocoa bean.

Model after model emerged on the catwalk

wearing stunning evening dresses, tailored suits, glamorous ensembles and

natty beach wear that on first inspection would not be out of place in the

world fashion capital's ready-to-wear collections.

However a closer look revealed that

the cowboy-style chaps were made of dark, milk and white chocolate, the over-sized bows on that bikini were delectable and the delicate beading on that evening

dress would make a tasty snack.

In fact, every outfit in the appetizing

collection contained some element of chocolate.

For the seventh year, the French passions

of food and fashion have combined to showcase the variety and versatility of the cocoa bean and its products at the annual Salon du Chocolat, visited

by some 100,000 visitors over its four days.

CHOCOLATE BIKINIS

French designer Chantal Thomass, best

known for her sexy lingerie, thrilled the audience with humorous outfits

with a nautical theme. Models sported starfish and fish-shaped handbags,

chocolate bikinis and even an anchor made of solid chocolate, positioned

to maintain a degree of modesty.

"I wanted to create something fun because

a chocolate fashion show is a chance to play. My idea was to create pin-ups,"

Thomass told Reuters Television.

Designer Olivier Lapidus took a more

sober approach, creating an evening dress with tiered layers of brown material encrusted with hundreds of chocolate pastilles like diamonds.

Meanwhile Paco Rabanne, the 1960s king

of chain-mail and plastic, set white and milk chocolate discs into pockets

sewn all over a transparent plastic knee-length dress.

For all the tongue-in-cheek frivolity

of chocolate couture, the Salon du Chocolat is also a serious commercial

event for chocolate-makers large and small and cocoa producing countries.

"Chocolate is the end product. From

an economic point of view, the cocoa bean yields some 20 percent of gross

domestic product for the Ivory Coast's budget. That's no small thing," said

Ivory Coast Agriculture Minister Alphonse Douady.

WHY DOESN'T THE CHOCOLATE MELT? The

issue perplexing the majority of spectators at the fashion show was not one

of economics but simple logistics. How was it that the clothes weren't melting

off the models under the extraordinary heat generated by catwalk lights?

"For a confectionery chef, it's a challenge

to work on a body whose temperature is 37 degrees. It is nearly impossible," Thierry Bridon, the head confectioner at Paris's luxury Lutetia Hotel who

worked with Thomass on her designs, told Reuters.

The feat is made all the more exceptional

by the fact that these same outfits will be transported across the Atlantic

to be worn again in the New York Salon du Chocolat show.

Confectioners use "little cheats" to

ensure the clothes withstand the heat, such as substituting cocoa butter

with grape seed oil and adding large quantities of sugar and other oils.

Teams of confectioners are on hand backstage to carry out last minute repairs.

"The heat is extraordinary. Even with

the best preparation there is always a risk the chocolate will begin to melt

-- particularly underarm and around the waist as the models walk," said Jean-Luc

Decluzeau, who has been a chocolatier since he was 14 years old and who created

the skimpy bustier top and mini skirt that graced the catwalk.

"The skirt is a little worse for wear

but I will leave it because it looks like old leather now rather than new,"

he added.