Best of Paris Couture Week Fall 2017
Doesn’t it seem that we are always in the middle of yet another Fashion Month?  It’s been a month of nonstop Resort and menswear shows, Couture weeks just wrapped up and the Spring 2018 collections are just around the corner. But I digress. We are here to talk Paris Couture Week Fall 2017, which – as always – was filled with glamour, ball gowns and unique points of view that make Couture so exciting.
We’ve been keeping track of the best looks and most noteworthy moments, starting with Dior and the second couture collection under Maria Grazia Chiuri. Madame Dior took us  on a trip around the world, with a collection inspired by a 1953 photo by Albert Decaris depicting Monsieur Dior’s trips. But one of the best parts of the collections was the fact that Chiuri continued her feminist approach to design and showed mid-length dresses in Dior grey with men’s tailoring, like men’s brogues and ankle boots and heavy menswear fabrics.  #GirlPower [sce emoji=”praying”/]
Other designers also borrowed from a mannish wardrobe and re-imagined it in a feminine way.  John Galliano has always been a favorite and once again he managed to capture the pure essence of couture by presenting a “new glamour†Margiela collection based around a  few wardrobe staples – the trench, and old-fashioned men’s coats. Of course paired with high heels and backless dresses, the new glamour was as imaginative as they come. Needless to say, it’s our favorite out of couture this season.
Ulyana Sergeenko also didn’t disappoint. She got inspired by the way her grandmothers dressed back in Communist Soviet Union, and produced a collection of feminine frocks and elaborate coats that captured the essence of mid-20th century Russian bourgeoisie. Quite couture.
Over at Chanel, we saw the Eiffel Tower (or parts of it)  be erect in the Grand Palais, and Karl Lagerfeld get adorned with the Médaille Grand Vermeil de la Ville — the highest honor for a resident of Paris.  And the fashion was just as memorable – feathers, embroidery, pleats, skinny body jackets over lean skirts, and the classic Chanel canotier hats worn with every single look, made for yet another spectacular Chanel couture show. Is that a surprise?
What was surprising was the dullness of Velentino‘s collection. Yes, it’s hard to even type these words.  Yes, Pierpaolo Piccioli made an unexpected move and looked at the church and the Vatican for inspiration, but I just couldn’t get moved a bit by the simplified hooded capes that resemble the robes of priests. As Vogue Runway aptly put it: Most women do not want to dress like extras from The Handmaid’s Tale, no matter how relevant it may be.
MORE: See the top looks from Paris Couture Spring 2017
Elsewhere in unpleasant surprises, were the more-of-the-same couture collections of  Elie Saab and Zuhair Murad. Yes, there are a lot beaded skirts and sparkles,  and see-through creations that  JLo would appreciate, but the fact that I couldn’t differentiate between two haute couture collections is, well, a problem.
But, beauty if the eye of the beholder, right? And with that, I leave you with the top looks from Paris Haute Couture Fall 2017 in the slideshow above.
What do you think? Do you have a favorite look or collection?
