Sarah Burton remains faithful to McQueen in fashion debut

Sarah Burton had big boots to fill when she took up Alexander McQueen's mantle in May but she rose up to the challenge with her first solo collection presented at Paris fashion week on Tuesday, critics said.

Burton, who was McQueen's right hand woman before he committed suicide in February, had four months to produce and present a spring/summer collection and many wondered if she would remain faithful to the McQueen spirit and codes. Which she clearly did.

"I really liked it because what we saw was really McQueen," Alexandra Golovanoff, a well-known Paris-based fashion expert and TV presenter told Reuters. "This woman is intelligent and respectful of the heritage. She is a little less exuberant than McQueen and that is good. I think what she showed us tonight is encouraging."

Just like McQueen, Burton used unexpected materials. Striking pieces included a straw dress with rows of sprouting wheat round the waist, a ballgown in ostrich feathers, one in peacock feathers and a short dress made from a collage of fake butterflies, with assorted butterfly-decorated stilettos.

"I thought it was very emotional," said Robert Polet, Chief Executive of Gucci Group, which acquired 51 percent of McQueen 10 years ago. After McQueen's death in February, it was not clear if the brand would survive as the market was full of brands struggling to find a voice after parting ways with their founder. /Reuters