Check, pleats and sporty comfort from Stella McCartney in Paris

PARIS (Reuters) - Known for mixing luxury and sport, designer Stella McCartney showed off bright summer dresses with polo shirt collars in a colorful offering for women's wardrobes next spring. Under the gilded chandeliers of Paris' Opera Garnier, the Briton sent out models in long dresses and skirts decorated in white and red, green or black check, as well as jaunty stripes. McCartney also presented asymmetric pleated tops and skirts combinations, and dresses in contrasting colors for the spring/summer 2016 collection, shown on Monday as part of Paris Fashion Week. She further experimented with masculine tailoring in sleeveless thigh-length jackets, worn over wide-leg trousers in pale pink, tan and black. On top of the stripes, check and pleats detailing, McCartney put swirl patterns on top-and-trousers combos and loose summer dresses. The final look of the show, attended by racing driver Lewis Hamilton and tennis player Maria Sharapova, was a mix of short and floor-length dresses in yellow, orange and blue, opened up with tiny panels of see-through eyelet embroidery. Accessories included sandals with sports-shoe soles as well as aviator sunglasses with brightly colored frames. McCartney said the line was dedicated to inspiring women. "We all have these incredible women that fill us with motivation and allow us to be who we are," she said backstage. "So this collection was sort of a tribute to them and their confidence and their incredible color that they give off." (Reporting by Johnny Cotton in Paris; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian in London; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)