The languid tailoring at Lanvin, graphic floral prints at Dries Van Noten, and that mint green mac at Maison Margiela were among the day’s most chatted-about garments in Paris. It was a marked difference from the conversations around Instagram-worthy moments that dominated New York, London, and Milan Fashion Weeks. That’s not to say the Parisians don’t know how to bait iPhone wielders with a bit of drama—Dries Van Noten’s melting floral displays by Azuma Makoto appeared a hundred times over in Insta feeds today—but that they do it with the subtlety of a French ingenue. They make the clothes the star and whisper their sweet nothings rather than scream them from the rooftops.
Of course, when you have the cast of supermodels who strutted for Lanvin, the studied hand of Dries Van Noten, or the magpie-like sensibility of John Galliano, you barely need to say anything at all to woo fans. Even Rihanna, the reigning queen of the titillating Instagram, traded a fashion show of moments for a more intimate venue that let her offbeat mash-up of Marie Antoinette styling and Left Coast essentials speak for itself. Maybe Alber Elbaz, a designer we’re all missing this Paris Fashion Week, was right all along when he said, “I prefer whispering. I think it goes deeper and lasts longer.” In his spirit, read today’s biggest headlines in a very soft voice.
Bouchra Jarrar Takes the Reins at Lanvin
In the light-filled Hôtel de Ville, Bouchra Jarrar presented her debut fashion show as the creative director of Lanvin. The Jarrar signatures were there—see the feather trim and unstudied suiting—but the designer also imbued her collection with a bit of ease in the form of happy floral prints and some floaty violet dresses. The latter came so sheer they might qualify as negligees, but the models on the runway didn’t seem to mind. Decked out with crystal jewelry and comfortable shoes, even superstars like Karlie Kloss and Sasha Pivovarova couldn’t help but smile during the finale.
The Space Age Meets Flou at Courrèges
Sébastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant took Courrèges on a weird trip this season. No, it wasn’t to outer space, but rather to a fancy soiree, kitting out their mod girl with minidresses with a little more ease than was found in previous seasons. Still, the hit of the collection will be a half-zip top with the Courrèges logo front and center. Even a party girl can’t resist a little logomania.
John Galliano Finds the Common Ground Between Telemarketer Headsets and Yoga Mats at Maison Margiela
Now there’s a headline you never thought you’d read. But in the world of John Galliano, anything is possible. Perhaps inspired by water and water sports—we can’t know for sure, as the designer forgoes press interviews in the spirit of Martin Margiela—Galliano sent out everything from shapely mackintosh jackets to wet suits to tabi boots made to look like water shoes for Spring 2017. Models also sported pastel disco makeup and jutting crystal earrings. Maybe this creative rebus is best left unsolved . . .
Dries Van Noten Explores the Raw Beauty of Flowers
Dries Van Noten is a designer who can find inspiration in the subtlest things. For Spring, he turned to the graphics of flowers, stamping outlines and shapes of wild fauna onto his collection of signature structured pieces. Models with darkened eyes and knotted sandals stomped down the runway between melting ice sculptures that encased live—or formerly alive—floral arrangements. The message of beauty and decay wasn’t lost.
Colors Rule at Rochas
The artist Erwin Blumenfeld, who often collaborated with Vogue in the ’40s and ’50s, was the inspiration for the electric colors Alessandro Dell’Acqua sent out at Rochas today. Modern girls will be pleased—in a particularly dark time in the world, a pink lemonade dress is a real treat.
Lemaire Sends Out Girls on the Go
Models at Lemaire’s Spring 2017 presentation diverged from the typical back-and-forth of the runways, instead meandering around the show space like a pack of well-dressed city dwellers. The heightened motion only better served to show off Christophe Lemaire and Sarah-Linh Tran’s elegant ready-to-wear, which arrived in shades of tomato red, sky blue, and marigold. The duo even experimented with prints—a rarity in Lemaire-land—offering up patched-together pieces in dots, florals, and abstract paint dabs.
Bad Gal RiRi Takes Paris
What would it look like if Marie Antoinette hung out in Bushwick? Answer: Rihanna’s Spring 2017 Fenty x Puma collection. In Pepto pink, army green, bright violet, and ivory, the collection spliced Rihanna’s own wardrobe staples like hoodies and oversize jackets with those of the 18th-century royal. It might seem a bit mad, but the moment Lexi Boling stepped out onto the runway, all bad girl swagger swinging a Puma-branded fan from her fingertips, it all seemed right.
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