One of the most important events in the fashion calendar – Haute Couture Week – is upon us, and I'm here to fill you in on everything you need to know about the key collections and looks. From Chanel's diva-worthy, opera costume cupboard to Christian Dior's couture sportswear, these are the most magical moments so far.
Chanel
Chanel's Haute Couture collection paid tribute to Paris's Palais Garnier, in which it was held. Looks were shown in the corridors surrounding the auditorium, which were transformed into red velvet opera boxes.
Certainly, there were many looks worthy of an opera diva on and off the stage, from a diaphanous, black taffeta cape to a rose-pink tweed suit encrusted with jewels and spliced with metallic elements. There were feathers, tassels and duchesse satin in black, gold, fuchsia and celadon. Opening night has never looked quite so decadent.
Christian Dior
Maria Grazia Chiuri explored the relationship between performance and clothing with a Couture collection that celebrated the upcoming Paris Olympics. The Games' classical statutory was alluded to via draped and gathered tunics, bejewelled with a shimmering, tasselled belt or layered atop a super-luxe, sequinned tank.
It was a rebellious offering, a collection of couture sportswear that spoke to the political power of the female body, clothing it in pieces that enabled (and celebrated) movement, not restriction. If this is what Dior sports day looks like, sign us up.
Schiaparelli
Schiaparelli's couture show began with a breathtaking cape, made from velvet and liberally embellished with 3D chrome feathers. It was an homage to a look Elsa Schiaparelli wore to a gala in 1941 – a coq-feathered stole that was, incidentally, an homage to the great ballerina, Anna Pavola, who had died that year.
Creative Director Daniel Roseberry titled the collection 'The Phoenix' as an ode to this moment and a celebration of rebirth, adding phoenix-shaped shoulders to tops and dresses throughout. 'I was told recently that “People don’t buy Schiaparelli, they collect it,”' said Roseberry. We have no doubt that collectors will be clamouring.
Giambattista Valli
Giambattista Valli's love affair with flowers endures, with three-dimensional, silk-organza peonies, carnations, roses and marigolds bursting from gowns – upon bodices, trailing torsos and densely strewn across entire dresses. Many of the blooms were reminiscent of the garlands left outside Hindu temples, a reference to Valli's beloved India.
An ivory bustier dress with a cloud-like peplum and a trio of pink peonies was the stuff of bridalwear dreams. For unconventional brides-to-be – and daring red-carpet goers – there was a citrine-yellow, petal-adorned bodysuit, complete with a matching, thigh-length veil.
Tamara Ralph
Tamara Ralph returned to Paris for her seventeenth season of couture, coinciding with her namesake brand's first-year anniversary. The city of lights served as inspiration for the collection, with mirrored materials – including sequinned pearls and metallic lace – creating luminescence.
Some of our favourite looks included a silver lace gown liberally bedecked with bows – complete with an additional one in the hair – and a shimmering, striped dress with a pale-pink train, a super-luxe reimagining of the Breton tee.
Elie Saab
You can rely on Elie Saab for red-carpet glamour and the designer's Couture show didn't disappoint. There were dramatic gowns aplenty in black, burgundy and deep purple, many heavily embellished with crystal beading and light-reflecting sequins, and some adorned with blousy corsages.
Sweetheart, off-shoulder and asymmetric necklines – as well as extra-long opera gloves – put the focus on the décolleté, while semi-sheer elements (capes, sleeve panels, and more) showed demure glimpses of skin. Bring on awards season.
Balenciaga
Stuffy couture isn't Demna's jam. Balenciaga's Creative Director made use of materials not often seen at Haute Couture Week – or rather in clothing, in general. There was denim, nylon, even plastic bags and synthetic hair – all architected with Demna's obsessive attention to craftsmanship and detail. Punk couture, if you will.
A draped dress was made of a single piece of leather, devoid of darts or seams and held together by a giant safety pin. Oversized T-shirts were hand-painted and rendered in frozen-in-resin or lined in black scuba satin. The final, breathtaking piece: a wedding dress made of nylon, a nod to Cristóbal Balenciaga's signature gazar.
