The thigh-high boot is back, and more takeaways from Paris Fashion Week | Canada Voices

Paris Fashion Week debuted in the Tuileries Gardens with Dior and ended with Louis Vuitton in the Cour Carrée at the Louvre, on the opposite side of I. M. Pei’s iconic glass pyramid. It was a week of visual drama, and a peek at what we’ll see in stores this coming fall and winter.

Here are the major takeaways and trends from the past seven days.

Stage of the game

Firstly, scenography is everything. Lacoste presented its new collection at the main court at Stade Roland Garros, but – surprise – when guests entered the stadium, they found that everything had been covered with clay-coloured tarp.

The show began with an announcement that, due to rain, the match was cancelled. This was all part of the show, of course, once the first seven models marched down the runway in beige trench coats (as well as trench skirts, trench shirts and trench pants), giving Burberry a run for its money.

Creative director Pelagia Kolotouros is shifting the brand away from its ubiquitous logo, forging a path that goes beyond any one-trick pony (or one-trick crocodile).

Lights, camera, action

Choreography seduces. In contrast to Tom Ford’s show last season, which unfolded under the cover of darkness, the stage was bathed in luminescent white this time around. Models didn’t step out one after another conveyor-belt style, but rather in small theatrical vignettes interspersed by models clutching duffel bags as if searching for their departure gates.

One scenario, featuring an octet of models with androgynous buzz cuts in head-to-toe cocoa brown, created a set of mesmerizing monochrome silhouettes.

It’s about time

Timing is everything. After years of its signature matinée show, Matthieu Blazy is leading Chanel into its evening era. The set for the designer’s second presentation since taking the reins last October was bathed in moonlight. A massive installation of primary colour-hued construction cranes soared up toward the Grand Palais’s gigantic atrium glass roof (a hint that a woman’s work is never done?).

In a move that elicited a double-take, Blazy invented a new elongated silhouette. Chanel’s 1920s drop waist dresses, which altered the course of fashion history, were reimagined with a waistline hitting way, way below the belt (below the bum, to be accurate).

All dressed up

Casting counts. Across the Paris Fashion Week calendar, we saw models that are more, well, human.

Actors Chloë Sevigny and Gillian Anderson walked the runway at Miu Miu. Meanwhile, Balenciaga’s lineup was an impressive multigenerational, multicultural affair. It suited the brand’s multipurpose collection, with options for everyone and every occasion.

And let’s not forget that celebrities are real people, too. Balenciaga’s Pierpaolo Piccioli invited Canadian boy-next-door Hudson Williams to join his first campaign with the label. The Heated Rivalry heartthrob was reportedly flown on a private jet from Vancouver to Paris to sit front row.

Emerging trends

Evolution of the corset

We saw lacquered bodices at Japanese label Issey Miyake, where washi paper and glue were layered onto 3-D moulds. Victoria Beckham’s evening looks – her most daring to date – took inspiration from Art Deco artist Tamara de Lempicka with sculpted, angular cutouts shielding the chest. And at Courreges, models wore delicate panels covering the chest to the collar bones.

Thigh-high boots

Hermès rolled out a stable of noble, equestrian-influenced looks, as per tradition. Being the hide masters that they are – leather biking shirts, leather shirt dresses, etc. – the house tailored riding boots rising up to the mid-upper thigh, a complement to their legendary Birkin bags.

Stella McCartney, who is also into horses, opted for a more bohemian interpretation with slouchy rolls and heels. Somewhere in-between was Balenciaga’s version, which clung above the knee and pooled at the ankle. It-girls will covet Chloë’s mousquetaire fold-downs in shearling and Givenchy’s tubular styles painted and embroidered with florals.

Statement coats

Designers sent massive coats down the runway. At Rick Owens, bare-kneed models snuggled in wild, hairy fabrics of Yeti proportions. Saint Laurent’s glamorous oversized fur was cinched at the waist with a drawstring, leaving a dainty skirt below. Issey Miyake’s belted options featured lapels that, when unfolded, transformed them into walking doorframes.

The consensus was clear: go bold or go home. Nicolas Ghesquière’s four opening looks for Louis Vuitton resembled walking billboards wrapped in wool. The global theme was only slightly eclipsed by celebrity attendee Zendaya’s rumoured wedding band.

Transparency and translucence

The sheer trend has transcended last year’s Spring/Summer shows, popping up on almost every runway in one form or another. Some designers took the concept one step further, using it as a vehicle to showcase the workings underneath. A transparent pencil skirt with black boning at Tom Ford revealed normally secret underpinnings: the tucked-in portion of a shirt, the hint of a lace slip and pantyhose. Victoria Beckham’s see-through dress framed an abstract art piece below.

Structured ruffles

Light and airy frills flowed at the hems of Chloë’s flirty farm girl dresses, but sturdy, extra large ruffles dominated the season.

At Dior, the once-ubiquitous peplum was refreshed with controlled waves. Oversized bands and multiple layers of frills lent volume to otherwise slim styles. Givenchy’s final look, featuring a skirt with tall ruffles swinging like a revolving door, closed the show on a high note.