Beloved by Gwyneth Paltrow, who wore a pink, one-sleeved number to the Oscars, Beyonce, who opted for the label on her Mrs Carter tour, and Angelina Jolie, who donned a pale blue suit to receive an honorary damehood from the Queen, it’s fair to say that Aussie design duo Ralph & Russo are hot property.

But Tamara Ralph, originally from Sydney, and Michael Russo, from Brisbane, aren’t just celeb fodder – they’re also well-respected designers.

As the first British-based fashion house to be invited to the Paris couture shows in a century, the label has in nine years grown from a single sewing machine in a shoebox office to a base in a magnificent mid-19th-century.
The couple now dress some 700 paying designer clients.

This change of status was in full evidence at their Paris Spring 2016 Haute Couture collection show this week, which featured the 27-year-old couture darling and Australian model, Alexandra Agoston.

The front row included both Uma Thurman (wearing a billowing black-sleeved Ralph & Russo gown) and Rita Ora (who opted for a tight, gold lace option from the label).
The clothes were beautiful: Multi-storied, ruffled ball gowns, trains, peplum hems and floral, lingerie-style clothes dominated, in beautiful pastel shades and floaty, frothy feathers.

The gown that got everyone in the audience talking, though, was the showstopper finale, as worn by Isabeli Fontana. An enormous, heavily-detailed wedding dress, it featured kimono sleeves and a three-metre-long train.

While Fontana herself wasn’t much of a fan (‘I hate it, I look like an old lady… Like a grandma getting married,’), the gown was designed for maximum impact and achieved it.
Always looking to mix things up and adopt new techniques, Ralph & Russo recently also announced that shoes are now available on the website, while handbags will arrive later in the season.

Rita Ora and Uma Thurman were the major celebrity guests at the show, where Thurman hinted at the fact that she might reprise one of her most famous roles in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill 3.

Meanwhile, fellow Australian and Sydney-dweller Astrid Holler also carved out a bit of a name for herself this week, walking in the Dice Kayek show at the Paris couture shows.