Raf - Raf Simons' Natural Dior

Raf Simons' Natural Dior

Raf Simons believes his debut collection for Dior was about ''beauty in a natural way''.

The Belgian designer took over from John Galliano as the creative head of the label this year, and he admits he was ''challenged'' to find a balance between his own image and that of the French fashion brand.

He said: ''I know I was seen as avant-garde. Maybe that's why I look at it a little more differently. I'm not frozen by it. I make suggestions. My challenge is to find a beautiful balance: to make women beautiful, to make a woman dream to wear a beautiful outfit.

''The show was about beauty in a natural way. It was very freeing; it offered a lot of possibilities. That's why I didn't want it story-based. Think of it as a blueprint.''

Raf admits he wants to make Dior appeal to people who are young ''in mind''.

He told Style.com: ''I want to make it more dynamic, appeal to a person who has a different energy - a younger person, in mind, not necessarily in age. And I think couture is very much about curating something unique for women. Fashion is so mass-produced now; I Hope there will come a refocus on how people see couture. And I would also hope for a new focus on The Craft.''