Rapid-Fire Paris Fashion Week Reviews
All the hits.
Salut! I’m currently writing this from the Delta terminal at JFK, the most glamorous place on earth. No, I’m not coming from Paris Fashion Week, but it sure did look nice. (Minus the whole bedbug thing… Miss me with that!) There were so many shows to take in—some of them good, some of them less good. Below, the stuff that I thought was really, really good.
Dries Van Noten’s Shoes and Socks
Blisters are OUT for spring-summer 2024.
Undercover’s Sheer Beauty
Designer Jun Takahashi told reporters backstage that he was dealing with a sense of grief this season. The decision to use sheer tailoring to peel back all the layers of a person (some looks even revealed the contents of models’ pockets) felt especially moving.
I also recommend you watch videos of these glow-in-the-dark butterfly terrarium dresses from the finale! “He feels like he’s stuck in the world, but he wants to release himself,” said Takahashi’s interpreter after the show. Adding that the butterflies, “will be freed, of course.”
Loewe’s Take on “Daywear”
The sweater on the right looks like the weighted blanket I have on my bed and I wish I could be swaddled in it on the plane right now.
Hodakova’s Dress Made of Plastic Pens
If any writers out there need something to wear to the ASMEs next year…
Sarah Burton’s Final Bow at McQueen
Sarah Burton, Alexander McQueen’s right hand, stepped down this month after 26 years at the brand. Her last show looked very emotional (Naomi Campbell wiped away tears on the runway) and many mourned the loss of one of the few female creative directors at the helm of a big luxury house. (Kering brands are now designed exclusively by white men.) The idea of “for women, by women” may seem a little cringe, but looking through this collection, it’s impossible not to feel genuinely bummed.
Balenciaga’s Shoe Bag
A shoe that’s a bag slash a bag that’s a shoe (a shag? a boe?), plus a useful keychain hair tie were my favorite accessories.
Plus, Cathy!!! God, she looks cool. Anyone who thinks she should have turned this down for “journalism” is pas fun. (Also loved that she showed up in the back of The Row runway photos as well.)
Miu Miu’s Bags Stuffed With Shoes
This collection should come with a trigger warning for anyone who went to a private school with a dress code in the early-2000s. It was very Gossip Girl Takes a School Trip to the Beach. She’s the girl who bullied you in the locker room at swim practice, but also the girl who everyone said “would be pretty one day.”
Well, now she’s all grown up, and she’s kind of a hot mess. I don’t know where this woman is going, but I’m definitely following her.
Margiela’s Attitude
Be your own belt!!!
Kiko Kostadinov’s Kool Pants
Twin-sister womenswear designers Deanna and Laura Fanning get sharper and sharper every season.
Xuly.Bët’s Styling
For those of you wondering how to wear your new Travis Kelce jerseys.
Girl Put Your Red Dress On
Designers like Peter Do and Christopher Esber were able to take something as straightforward as a red dress and somehow make it interesting.
Also! PSA for Tribeca moms: I am begging you to trade your Hermès “Oran” sandals for these, instead.
Other Notable Moments:
A Diesel model dressed as a giant fur ball getting lost on the runway and running into Sam Smith.
The Rick Owens flower petal cannon (via
).Pamela Anderson absolutely *glowing* sans makeup in a suit!
NEXT TIME: My “Rat Diet,” followed by a story I think deserves a paywall, so sign up now!