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The SS18 Paris Fashion Week Report Everything you need to know about the new season
From big macs and fluttery dresses to the return of the ball-gown; here’s our primer on Paris.

Words by Harriet Quick / Images by @declanchan

Big Macs

The everyday trench mac has become rather grand and, with it a bit wonderfully weird. Demna Gvasalia at Balenciaga made it rather René Magritte with three fronts fused together in plaid and plain for a layered up illusion. Phoebe Philo at Celine spliced macs with jackets that billow out and under from the thigh down while Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen nipped and tucked rose jacquard and gabardine in coats that could go to the ball.

Flutter Dresses

Hemlines are on the up and flitter flutter is in, as a new chapter in the go-anywhere dress opens. Best in class include sacai’s divine patchworks in florals and crinkly silks with whorls and ruffles a go-go and Chloé’s embroidered cowgirl styles, which caused a stir as it debuted from new Creative Director Natacha Ramsay-Levi.

The Ballgown Bounces Back

Remember your first prom? 21st birthday? There’s an air of rebellious nostalgia in the ballgowns that stunned in Paris. There were great flying doughnuts of marabou feathers at Saint Laurent; fizzy concoctions of floral printed organza with explosions of tiered pleats at Alexander McQueen and racer back styles at Valentino with cosmic bejewelled embellishments. Take us to the moon and back.

Boots and Roots

Our crush on boots just got re-matched. Posh cowboy, twinkle heel storm troopers; galoshes will march through the Spring rains.

Really Real Clothes

If there’s one meta message from Paris, is that designers want to connect with the real world. So away with grandiose image-making shows and enter a refreshed and convivial sense of luxury - clothes that talk to us, seduce and befriend. Hurrah for that in a python Chloé shirt, a tartan pencil skirt from Balenciaga; a houndstooth jacket dress from Sonia Rykiel or a lemon sherbet coat from Haider Ackermann.

2017-10-06 00:00:00.0