By Seán McCárthaigh
BLACK is definitely the colour to be seen in this season, if 18 of the top designers are to be believed. The exclusive fashion boutique, Khan, unveiled its autumn/winter collection at a special charity function in Dublin last night, where over 400 guests viewed featured clothes from 18 top designer labels.

The organisers of the annual fashion show hope to raise over £10,000 from the proceedings in aid of the National Council of the Blind.

Among the large audience was special guest, Orla Kiely, the handbag designer whose displays of leather suits, boiled wool skirts and cashmere knits were also shown.

Other interest surrounded exhibits from Fee - Stella McCartney's final collection for Chloe before she moves to Gucci later this season. It incorporated a broad range of denim and chiffon items as well as new, one-shoulder T-shirts.

Much praise was also heaped on the printed T-shirts and velvet, vintage look on show from the new Passion label from Voyage, the London outlet which became notorious for barring supermodel Naomi Campbell earlier this year.

Other garments on display came from perennial favourites like Louise Kennedy, John Rocha, Lainey Keogh, Rachel Mackay and Roisin Gartland as black proved the predominant colour among the various collections. Louise Kennedy provided a dramatic touch to the evening with her new printed coats as well as her trademark beaded trousers and cashmere knits in strong purple, while knitwear doyenne, Lainey Keogh, confirmed her reputation for sparkling use of familiar fabrics with an impressive new range of colourful crochets and cashmeres.

Another first-time label on show was Strenesse which specialises in black suiting and wool piped bustier tops. The collection is exclusive to Khan at their outlet in Blackrock. Among the guests enjoying the evening's show were Norma Smurfit, Sybille Rowan, wife of the artist Guggi, as well as former model Jackie Rafter and her sister, Louise Martin.