From denim to dreamworlds on display in the City of Lights
Paris Fashion Week closed out fashion month with more than a few surprises. A runway crasher made it to Chanel’s catwalk, Christian Lacroix collaborated on Dries Van Noten’s collection, and Issey Miyake’s models were dressed by drones in front of the audience. Themes that ran through New York, London, and Milan were continued, including joie de vivre, environmental and political commentary, and powerful feminism. Prior to the week’s shows, we wondered how Celine, Lanvin, Off-White, and Maison Margiela would drive fashion forward with their Spring 2020 collections. Here’s how they wowed us:
Celine was all about the denim
The fashion crowd has been clamoring for “old Celine,” and for Spring 2020 Hedi Slimane gave them just that—except instead of referencing the design influence of former creative director Phoebe Philo, he took things back to the Seventies, when the brand was a go-to for young members of France’s bourgeois society. Feminine silk blouses were paired with ladylike skirts with tiers or pleats. And there was lots of denim: jeans, jackets, A-line skirts, and even a dark-washed suit, the nonchalance of which stood in practical contrast to the delicate silk and chiffon pieces in the rest of the collection. The showstoppers were the champagne sequined tie-neck dress and the textured gold lamé dress with a high neck and side pockets. While most of the collection works well for everyday wear, those two dresses are perfect for spring party season.
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Lanvin brought dreamworlds to life
Bruno Sialelli’s second collection for 130-year-old fashion house of Lanvin was stunning in its ambitious and fantastical breadth. The designer aims to recontextualize the historic brand, and the key, he shares, is to “play with emotions, more than to design couture.” His resulting 64-look Spring 2020 collection was a compendium of concepts including childhood reminiscence, surrealist fantasy, and architectural tailoring. Standouts included the cape-back top that opened the show, the ruched, rainbow-check dress and skirt, and a kaftan and wrap dress emblazoned with graphics from the early 1900s comic strip “Little Nemo in Slumberland.” Of most interest, however, were the glimmering dresses that closed the show. Some featured mukaish, an old-world form of embroidery from India, while others had Grecian draping with intricately applied sequins. And the shoes—metallic-pieced leather flats with extended square toes that resembled a sort of foot armor—are sure to show up on more than one must-have list.
Off-White was an ode to girl power
Virgil Abloh took streetwear to new heights for Spring 2020 with a collection titled “Meteor Strike.” According to Abloh’s lengthy show notes, the concept was to “illustrate a woman’s power,” while also giving a tongue-in-cheek nod to Wisconsin, the famous-for-its-cheese state where he attended college (sports fans there are affectionately called “Cheeseheads”). These notions were interpreted into a collection full of circular cutouts that resembled both meteor craters and the bubble holes found in some cheeses. The street-style set is sure to love the oversized tee shirts and sleeveless sweatshirt tunics with asymmetric hemlines, as well as the relaxed-fit jeans and leather wide-leg pants. The ankle boots with hole cut-outs will also be highly coveted, as will the high-shine rain slicker featuring a computer-generated line pattern.
Shop trendsetting streetwear from Off-White at italist.
Maison Margiela made old new again
John Galliano is known for his skillful tailoring, as well as his strong sartorial social commentary. His Spring 2020 collection for Maison Margiela continued this legacy with an eye on hope through the lense of resistance, as in the French Resistance during World Wars I and II. To that end, his models were clad as nurses, soldiers, and spies, either ready for a mission or fresh from duty. Short party dresses were trailed by poufs of fabric in a nod to female secret agents who parachuted into enemy territory, and they’ll no doubt be perfect for scene-stealing missions to come. There was also an army green cocoon-style evening wrap, tied at the neck with a pretty purple ribbon. The style most likely to appear on A-listers, though, was a green Forties-inspired midi dress with an Eighties-inspired pouf and ruffles. On this one, polka dots were created by a perforated sheer overlay. It was pure runway magic.
Shop Maison Margiela’s signature tailoring and tabi-toe boots at italist.
Get a jump on Paris Fashion Week Spring-Summer 2020 trends
Spring 2020 will be a season of rainbow brights, uniform dressing, luxury basics, and cutouts. italist makes it easy to get ahead of these trends and more with thousands of styles from your favorite Paris Fashion Week designers, including those mentioned above plus Christian Dior, Balenciaga, Balmain, and more.
The Spring-Summer 2020 runways of Milan, New York, and London didn’t disappoint, either. Be sure to check out our buyers’ faves, including Burberry, Etro, Missoni, Tom Ford, Zimmermann, and more.
Thinking of heading to Paris for your own fashion-filled getaway? Read our buyers’ insider tips on their favorite hot spots to stay, eat, drink, and play in the City of Lights.
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By: Nafeesa Saboor
Nafeesa is the founder and editor of Shoes N Booze, a blog that pairs shoes with cocktails and provides shoe and cocktail-related tips, trend information, and reviews. Her writing has also been published in The Source Magazine, xoJane, Sisters from AARP and other publications.