PARIS (REUTERS) - Italian designer Maria Grazia Chiuri unveiled a fairytale-like debut haute couture collection for French fashion house Christian Dior, presenting flowing flowery dresses, capes and plenty of intricate craftsmanship.

Dior's first woman artistic director, who previously spent some 17 years at Valentino, took inspiration from labyrinths for the line on the second day of fashion shows at Paris' Haute Couture spring/summer 2017 week.

Amid a lush garden setting at the French capital's Rodin museum, models opened the show in Dior's signature Bar jackets in black, re-invented into capes with hoods and worn with lace tops, pleated skirts and wide-leg ankle-length culotte trousers.

"I think that we have to maintain this dreaming idea of couture but at the same time I don't want to lose the wearable idea," Chiuri told reporters.

"(A) labyrinth is a place where you go inside and it's also just a little bit dangerous... but at the same time you believe that it's possible to find a way. I think in some way it represents my new adventure in couture at Dior."

A selection of luxury labels, including Chanel, Giorgio Armani Prive and Valentino are showing their expensive creations at Paris Haute Couture Week, which runs until Thursday.