TOKYO - The latest in dresses from one Japanese designer is feather-light, see-through and comes with an unusual warning: Watch out for needles.

It's a dress made from balloons - 200 of them, to be exact. The crystal-clear creation is the latest in balloon couture from balloon artist Rie Hosokai, who won international prizes at Belgium's annual "The Millennium Jam" balloon festival for her skill at twisting and weaving the light, latex toys into dresses. "There are latitudinal and longitudinal balloons to be woven together, so it's quite similar to fabric," the 35-year-old Hosokai said recently, as she deftly manipulated balloons into a transparent mini dress.

All the work is done by hand, and Hosokai said it can be hard to account for the amount of air when adjusting the size and volume of the dress. The garment, worn with white underwear and co-designed by Hosokai's husband Takashi Kawada, was modeled for photographers with the warning, "Watch out for needles".

Despite the inexpensive materials, 7 yen (9 US cents) for each of the 200 balloons she used, the bubbly creation came with a price tag of more than $1,000, reflecting Hosokai's determination to puncture the stereotype of balloons being something cheap. Most of Hosokai's dresses carry price tags ranging from 150,000 to 300,000 yen ($1,930 to $3,860), and she has sold one set of a balloon dress, headpiece and bouquet for 1 million yen.

Each dress lasts only 24 hours at most before it starts to deflate, while some change color depending on the temperature and humidity.

Hosokai, who began her career as a florist before expanding into balloon art and opening her "Daisy Balloon" office 10 years ago, said that she hopes to lift the profile of balloon fashion and attract customers eager for unusual party wear.

Reuters