While all the guests sat front row only at Chanel, many of the girls carried the weight of the pearls on their shoulders. But what a tremendous burden to bear—numerous strands of pearls in varying sizes (some verging on ping pong ball proportions) swung and clicked to the rhythm of the models’ gait. The Grand Palais was transformed into a huge couture salon devoid of backdrop or props—a departure from the grandiose sets Mr Lagerfeld has come to be known for (supermarkets, casinos, airports and who could ever forget the iceberg of AW10?). A simpler, cleaner setup allowed the clothes to speak and the accent and vocabulary was undeniably Chanel. Tweed suits, pearls, printed camellias, tiered ruffles and Baptiste Giabiconi all made appearances, as did Hudson Kroenig who took a bow with Uncle Karl. Willow Smith (daughter of Jada and Will) was also in attendance and was announced as Chanel’s newest ambassador.
The Valentino runway opened with sombre, dark creations that breezed down the runway with movement; some evoked images of a dancer off duty, which was explained by Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaoplo Piccioli’s inspiration for this season—dance and the movements that takes place within the discipline. The moody tone was soon displaced by a series of ethereal, nude-hued dresses and tutu-inspired pieces, disrupted (beautifully) by contrasting looks of patent leather and velvet in between, while shapes are kept flowing and fluid. The dreamy tulle dresses that closed the show? Magic.
Humberto Leon and Carol Lim decidedly chose to do a quirky cultural mashup this season at Kenzo. Show notes referenced Sailormoon and the intrepid Kenzo girl who’s not afraid of adventure as the collection evidently brought on way more than just these elements. From extralong sleeves with ruffles to major print-on-print action via layering (read: neon tiger stripes, dandelion motifs and grid-like prints), it was sensory overload but not in an overwhelming, almost combustible way, although we think that exaggerated shoulders should seriously take a backseat this season already.
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