Paris Fashion Week SS22: Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Giambattista Valli, and More

Helmed by Virginie Viard, Chanel’s Spring/Summer 2022 was reminiscent of Karl Lagerfeld’s revival of the fashion house. Sophisticated and sporty, black-and-white swimsuit sets opened the show, dripping in pearls. A co-ord set, made up of a white bandeau top and bottoms that suggested biker shorts, brought all the accessibility and ease of dressing from the 1990s to now. The show continued with signature knee-length skirts in leather and sequins, offering styles for going out in. Chanel packed on the nostalgia with skirt suit sets in checkered prints and the brand's iconic logo. The show ended in butterfly prints that flowed on skirts and dresses.

As the house of Louis Vuitton celebrates the 200th birthday of its founder, current creative director Nicolas Ghesquière was fascinated with the idea of moving time for Spring/Summer 2022. The collection explored day to night, pairing jeans with metallic, lacey tops in asymmetrical cuts and bowling bag purses. Feathery and frilly sheer gowns with capes had a kind of dimension that suggested the ability to take away and add to, moving through time without ever really changing your style. Dresses and skirts with ultra-exaggerated hips called back to a Victorian way of dressing, but in this case, were worn with more easily flowing tops, looks that hope to unite different periods of formal dressing. Despite a protester carrying a sign that read “Overconsumption = Extinction” making it to the end of the runway, Ghesquière’s show stood the test of time travel.

Giambattista Valli sensed a shifting in moods, from living in comfortable joggers and really only putting the effort in from the waist up, to a desire for dressing well. The collection featured voluminous skirts in lace patterns, cotton candy tops and taffeta gowns that introduced a new form of femininity—springy bright colors and effortless silhouettes that stand out on their own. Valli also created tweed skirts embellished with pearls and rhinestones, topped off with flamingo-pink feathers that lightens up the look. Valli allowed us to play dress up again in Barbie doll styles with all the qualifications of living in today’s world.

Maison Margiela’s Spring/Summer 2022 collection existed in a utopia where looks are inherently connected to the environment, but don’t seek to be a part of it, just to interact with it. Super shot cut-off shorts met thigh high rain boots, worn with chunky sweaters and draped with utilitarian denim jackets or trench coats. Hats or head coverings were mandatory. Fishnet dresses with metallic and ruffle accents acknowledged water pollution and our contributions to it. Shorts with wool sweaters and coats were a reaction to sudden shifts in weather. Patchwork shirts with cyan prints, and deconstructed overalls connected the wearer to their clothes, making them a more lively character in their environment.