"It was a magical event, they were so proud to have an Egyptian-Dubai brand and to see an Egyptian Cleopatra collection."

Those were the first words of Sara Hegazy, the engineer-tuned-designer, describing her recent show in Paris.

The show displayed an Egyptian-inspired collection by the young designer as part of Tiffany Fashion Show, specially dedicated to young rising stars of the fashion industry.

AO: How is Tiffany Fashion Show affiliated with Paris Fashion Week?

SH: It is a seasonal competition held as a part of Paris Fashion Week's main event. It is mainly for international young designers to display their collections in Paris and to get exposure to media and buyers from all over the world.

Tiffany's Fashion Week Paris was held at the Marriott Hotel, Avenue des Champs Elyse, from 26 to 28 September.

Photo: courtesy of Sarah Hegazy

AO: What is the main inspiration behind the collection?

SH: Couture evening and wedding gowns that take you back to the glory of ancient Egypt's last queen. Cleopatra is the main inspiration behind our fifth collection, which is fully crystallised.

AO: What were the materials used in the collection?

SH: Chantong was one of the main fabrics, as it’s a luxury style. Also pleated tulle, silk and muslin. All dresses had specific crystals designed and produced specially for this collection.

AO: What were the criteria that stood behind your choice of designs?

SH: Being an international emergent designer is not easy. I started in Dubai in 2010, and since then my motto has been: going global.

My designs have showcased in UAE, London Fashion Week 2013, and Hong Kong. And recently, before Paris, I participated in Moda 360, an artistic exhibition in New York.

Then there was this new collaboration with First Company in Paris, a showcase for international designers from around the world during the Official Paris Fashion Week 2015. And they chose especially the Cleopatra collection to represent my brand as the first Egyptian designer to hit PFW, particularly for the huge publicity of Cleopatra.

AO: How was the response of the audience?

SH: It was hugely successful. The audience fell in love with the collection. We received congratulations from all the attendees, from a diverse number of buyers and VIPs from France, USA, Iran, UAE, Bolivia, Jordan, Italy and Russia.

One of the greetings I will never forget was from a fashion show producer and company owner in the USA who said: "You have to work with Hollywood movie makers."

They fell in love with the queen's entrance. The queen followed by two queen runners who held her 20 kilo fully crystallised Horus-shaped terrain. We did many interviews with French, USA and UK media, and we had a spectacular welcome dinner party for the international designers at 58 Tour Eiffel restaurant. It was like an introduction meeting for all the fashion show team.

I am proud and happy representing Egypt and Dubai at the same time