Images: Imaxtree
Four weeks, four cities and Paris Fashion Week has come to a close. If there’s anything we can take away from the past week, it’s that the designers who showcase their wares during PFW are in a league of their own (or at least some of them). Jacquemus kick-started the week with another “immensely beautiful” showcase, while Natacha Ramsay-Levi gifted front row attendees a “simply stunning” second collection at Chloe. Anthony Vaccarello’s Saint Laurent collection was shown with an illuminated Eiffel Tower in the background (because what could be more quintessentially Parisian?), while Karl Lagerfeld erected an enchanted forest in the middle of The Grand Palais for Chanel and Nicolas Ghesquière’s Louis Vuitton set was clearly inspired by the Millennium Falcon.
According to our forum members, Maria Grazia Chiuri deserves a firing after unveiling yet another questionable Christian Dior collection, Miuccia Prada needs to take a long vacay away from Miu Miu (as well as Prada) and Altuzarra simply doesn’t cut it to show in the City of Light.
Despite a few misses, this season has, without a doubt, been the most enjoyable yet and throughout the week, our feisty and unfiltered forum members have been on hand to dissect each and every show. Without further ado, here are theFashionSpot’s hits and misses of the Paris Fall 2018 season. Over and out — until Spring 2019!
[ Next: 11 Hits and 7 Misses From Milan Fashion Week Fall 2018 ]
PFW Hits & Misses
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HIT: Chanel
"I'm in love! It was worth the wait and anticipation. The flow and pacing is amazing, and I love the coherence." [Benn98]
"Best Chanel collection since the cruise he did in Havana a few years ago. Loved everything about this...the set, the styling, the cast, the attention to detail in every aspect. High level stuff. Stunning just stunning..." [Scouting Snapper]
"Best collection he's done since Cuba. Loved the metallic boots and the outerwear was to die for. The set was sublime!" [maxlinden]
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HIT: Louis Vuitton
"Oh man, this is the first time since his first collection for the house that it resonates with me! Aside from the obvious need for a stronger edit, this is great. The set is amazing, looooove the colours, that navy blue, yellow, beige and white, super sexy. I feel some sort of focus that was really lacking lately. It feels like a clear offering." [Norden]
"I like it. I am glad he stopped doing Japan-influenced collections. This one was rather dark, mysterious." [Nocturnal]
"Very nice, I love the bags and the various pants. Some suits look a little Chanel-esque but he pulls it off. It's a thumbs up from me." [KKnardi]
See all the looks from the Louis Vuitton collection. -
MISS: Balenciaga
"The androgynous models don't convince me of anything (just reminds us Ghesquière had such a knack and ease when it came to androgyny during his time at the house), because the designs are insipid and dated! The World Food Programme fake propaganda is revolting -- don't care if the funds go to support it. Annoyance of the highest proportion for this." [HeatherAnne]
"The charity factor is always welcomed; but putting T-shirts with a charity organization logo at a Balenciaga show feels like a tasteless parody. But for Demna this is always easier than actually designing some interesting garments worthy of Balenciaga." [jeanclaude]
"Please can we move on from this and Gucci now? I'm getting very tired." [gossiping]
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HIT: Givenchy
"Love it. I am probably biased because I was her champion to take a job at Givenchy but I really like where it is going. It is very different from Tisci's Givenchy but I feel like this is very close to the house codes. I always enjoyed more of her tailored pieces at Chloe and I think with the Givenchy atelier behind her she takes great advantage of that." [TaylorBinque]
"It's funny that I disliked her work at Chloe so much, and absolutely love her work for Givenchy. The gowns are spectacular in this collection. This is made for a strong-minded, sexy, tailored woman; this will be raved about -- which I hope signals death for the oversized trend." [HeatherAnne]
"It was fantastic, as a whole it had that great cinematic feel going on. There was just the right amount of the archives and there was something special about the motion of the clothes. The faux fur looked great and luxurious, too. In my opinion it is the best collection of this lackluster season - it's a wearable, charming proposition with distinctive attitude." [perhydrol]
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HIT: Valentino
"It's a very cute stylish collection without looking too infantile therefore it appeals to all sorts of women across the globe. I'm in love with the floral looks." [FashionMuseDior]
"I think it's freaking gorgeous, as always. He's really soaring here without the dead weight." [Marc10]
"I absolutely love this, actually. I love the roominess of these garments, the colour palette is exquisite, I love his flower interpolation at the beginning. Excruciatingly gorgeous and exquisite." [StoneSkipper]
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MISS: Miu Miu
"Ugly and boring - just like Prada. Miuccia needs help." [Nocturnal]
"Terrible from the cast to the clothes and the styling. Bad, bad." [thatsfierce]
"A tragic mess that will be praised by the press even if it won’t stop the decline of Prada brands. Acid denim in a Miuccia designed collection...unbelievable!" [Lola701]
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HIT: Maison Margiela
"Never disappointed! This is such a visual feast and I love it." [Nomar]
"Thank God for John Galliano to save us from a sea of mediocre copycats! I like that we're moving into a degree of consistency, the trench, the silhouette, and it looks remarkably cohesive!" [Benn98]
"Love so much! After a great couture show this is awesome as well. Galliano's stuff at this brand has really grown on me." [gossiping]
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HIT: Alexander McQueen
"Pleasantly surprised. It's fresh, sexy and sleek." [FashionFanatico]
"Loved it, the fringe pieces are my fave. That pink dress on Rianne near the end woooow. This has to be one of the best of the season." [gossiping]
"It was a BEAUTIFUL collection. Stunning in person, if anyone can find the video you should see it in motion. The pictures don't do it justice." [maxlinden]
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MISS: Stella McCartney
"Love Stella, I think she's an amazing designer but this collection with the exception of a handful of pieces was plain ugly. Has she not gotten the memo? Women want to look sexy again." [maxlinden]
"The set was quite distracting but for me, the menswear was stronger than the womenswear. This is maybe her worst collection since her disastrous debut." [Lola701]
"Ugly. Seems to be her worst collection." [Fashionstuff]
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HIT: Yohji Yamamoto
"It's almost magical to me how he can add so much depth, so much texture, and so much visual impact to a complete black look. He makes black look like so much more. It's beautiful." [Marc10]
"This is absolutely beautiful. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I'd most likely spend most of it on this collection. The coats are incredible." [sore]
"I literally cried when I saw Yohji. This is his best collection in years. I loved every single bit of it." [EstefaniaAbaddon]
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HIT: Hermes
"This is definitely the most interesting Hermes collection I've ever seen." [Jay Lee]
"She's finally arrived at Hermes, it seems. Solid collection." [StoneSkipper]
"I love this! Everything is done to perfection to me, the colors, the styling, how luxe it is, even the cast look so French to me. It seems to me an update of classics and not overtly fashionable or gimmicky." [vetements]
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MISS: Christian Dior
"It's embarrassing to call this Dior." [apple]
"Crikey, yet another new low for her. We already have, and are quite content, with one Coach. Another isn't needed. Shocked to see such monstrosity paraded down a runway. Christian Dior must be turning in his grave." [Benn98]
"Boy she's gonna milk this contrived feminism shenanigan till it's dry huh? No respect for her for using something so serious as intellectual backup for her boring expensive clothes." [Marc10]
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HIT: Rochas
"This is good. Dell'Acqua is doing great things for Rochas. No more unnecessary gimmicks and frous-frous. He went for the essential and I love it." [Lola701]
"There are lots of beautiful pieces throughout this show. My first time taking a liking since Fall 2012 when Marco Zanini was still there." [TheoG]
"I love what he's doing at both N°21 and Rochas. He's filling the void left by Alber's absence. I feel like he's kind of slept on and that not enough people talk about him." [Yohji]
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HIT: Rick Owens
"I think this is one of Rick's strongest collections in quite some time. I feel like for the first time in recent memory, he's been able to infuse a real sensuality back into his show." [dior_couture1245]
"Love this! What a refreshing collection from Rick! It all feels very effortless and sensual (something that has been missing from Rick lately). It's really great and the prints are nice additions to the whole thing. I need one of those enormous coats." [Lola701]
"YESS, the coats! I love them too. Very good collection." [ghostwriter10549]
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MISS: Saint Laurent
"Another one-trick pony, he cannot move beyond that 80s party girl aesthetic and most of this is pretty much derivative of Hedi Slimane and Isabel Marant's take on that look but without the sharp tailoring. That parade of pansy print dresses at the end was awful." [disco54]
"By far his worst and weakest collection yet. So unoriginal. There's literally no direction here. It's a bunch of nothing, and it's all over the place." [guimon]
"His collections are starting to look the same." [mathiaskatz]
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HIT: Christian Wijnants
"Such an underrated designer." [IloveDiorHomme]
"Love this! Very sharp - I get the feeling that all of these pieces place themselves exactly where they're supposed to, if that makes any sense. Very vibrant and fun." [StoneSkipper]
"Not bad at all! Love the prints and the outerwear especially." [sore]
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MISS: Lanvin
"This looks so incredibly cheap. I hate the fabrics he used, it's clear he didn't know how to work with most of them. It's not bad in terms of concept, certainly lacking in creativity, but better than last season, but the execution is just a mess." [StoneSkipper]
"Somewhere Elbaz is laughing -- which makes me smile. Utter rubbish." [HeatherAnne]
"I just wish he'd have kept it simple! There are some really solid key looks here and there, especially the last two ones. These could've done with more expanding, but the collection as a whole is all over the place. Maybe get rid of all those sateen looks!" [Benn98]
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HIT: Issey Miyake
"Yess, Issey! Another great collection. I love that everything is very constructed and layered, but still easy to understand and it's very relaxed." [ghostwriter10549]
"Absolutely beautiful - so coherent and collectible!" [Not Plain Jane]
See all the looks from the Issey Miyake collection.
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MISS: Balmain
"My eyes hurt. No direction, no message, just a pile of totally different clothes." [FashionFanatico]
"80s retro-futurism? No, thank you! Ghesquière already did it; and way better than you, Olivier!" [jeanclaude]
"I can't help but feel that he is screaming to get Chanel and Versace's attention. It's sad. Sadder than the fact that he still can't show a cohesive, beautiful collection." [EstefaniaAbaddon]
See all the looks from the Balmain collection. -
HIT: Dries Van Noten
"GREAT collection! Finally something sophisticated and wearable among the sea of Gucci ugliness." [liberty33r1b]
"Dries is usually a show where I want everything and this is no exception. He knows how to do eclecticism but in the most refined way." [orchidee]
"This is eclectic, colorful, playful, eccentric even but at the same time it's extremely elegant and refined. Every look works, this is the sign of an actual designer versus someone who entered a thrift shop blindfolded, threw some clothes together and called it a day." [mistress_f]
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HIT: Vivienne Westwood
"This is freaking COOL!!!" [Not Plain Jane]
"This is very very good, once you get past the messy presentation (and well, not too fond of the stripper shoes, either). The clothes are amazing. All the Alessandros and Demnas of the world should take note and see that you can do an eccentric collection with an over the top styling AND STILL deliver great clothes." [mistress_f]
"Besides the very tacky 'fashion student' presentation (which I kinda love BTW) the clothes are very good. It's the first thing tagged with Ms. Westwood's name that I like in years. It has so much more energy than Balenciaga and Vetements' clothes together and very less pretentious." [ghostwriter10549]
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MISS: Junya Watanabe
"I had to check twice the designer name at Vogue.com, because I thought this was Vetements instead of Junya Watanabe...oh my god! What happened here??" [jeanclaude]
"This and Undercover are pretty much the same collection to me this season, not loving this at all. Those Buffalo platform sneakers are killing me, I don't think anyone could convince me that those need to come back, not even Junya." [Psylocke]
"The sneakers are very much like the Frankenstein clown shoes by Balenciaga." [margielamike2004]
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HIT: Thom Browne
"Thom always knows how to put on a fantastic show and this is no exception, what a spectacle." [Nomar]
"He effortlessly goes from strength to strength. This is the ultimate visual feast. There’s so much to take in, and it’s never overwrought or loud. So disciplined and still so wild." [Phuel]
"THAT'S what I call a collection! Creative and energetic!" [john2elmejor]
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MISS: Nina Ricci
"Why is everything so boxy? And what's up with those fabrics? I really don't understand what he's trying to do with this brand." [StoneSkipper]
"What a shiny, unflattering mess." [FashionFanatico]
"I hope the rumours are true and that the Nina Ricci x Guillaume Henry collaboration is over. Never liked him, never will. The first part of the collection is hideous, the styling I don't think there is any and the cast is just OK..." [GivenchyAddict]
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HIT: Sacai
"I want it all." [FashionFanatico]
"I see a perfectly executed collection. Loving these deconstructed looks!" [Valentine27]
"Sublime as always." [giorrie]
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MISS: Altuzarra
"This was really unexciting. I wish he would do more like what he did in NY..." [gossiping]
"Showing in Paris elevated his clothes indeed, some coats are decent and the mini bag is cute, but still the same soulless NY brand. We really don't need Altuzarra." [ghostwriter10549]
"The thing is, if he had shown this collection in NY, it would definitely be seen as one of the (few) highlights of that week. It's pretty good. But when you show this in Paris, next to all the heavyweights, it really pales in comparison. This move didn't do him any favors." [Marc10]
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HIT: Akris
"Great collection, love the colors!" [liberty33r1b]
"Such a great color palette. Akris is so underrated. Go Albert!" [FashionFanatico]
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MISS: Redemption
"A reductive Christophe Decarnin." [reese06]
"It literally looks like a Topshop version of Decarnin's Balmain. I can't decide what's more offensive: the blatant lack of originality, how piss-poor cheap it looks, or the fact that from all looks you have to copy you pick one that is super dated. Pathetic." [Marc10]
"This is weird and bad at the same time. There’s no finesse at all. This is just excessive for the sake of it. Terrible!" [Lola701]
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HIT: Jacquemus
"It's beautiful in a season of tackiness and ridiculous shoulder pads, I'm living for this." [disco54]
"It was really smart for him to build this on from last season which was his most realized collection yet. It has that same breezy, womanly, simple and sexy aura, but unlike last season where the woman was at the beachfront having wild fun, this season she's back in the big city. Great day clothes for the active life, a bit more elegant and put together, great colors and accessories." [Marc10]
"This is just immensely beautiful and so easy in a season of try-hardness everywhere. I love the construction of these pieces, for once - everything looks as if nudged by a gentle breeze. It's so fresh, and wearable, and romantic." [StoneSkipper]
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MISS: Haider Ackermann
"Everything looks sickly and without inspiration." [Nymphaea]
"Is it me or is Haider jumping (a bit late) into the 'Balenciaga tacky 80s' mood?" [IloveDiorHomme]
"Where is that beauty and elegance that we're used to seeing? The hair and styling are not helping, but the collection itself is far from his usual refined output." [MyNameIs]
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HIT: Lemaire
"This is so perfect that I don't even know what to say." [helmutnotdead]
"So fantastic that I don't know where to start! Loving the checkered wraps (and the jacket over blazer, oversize shirt and jeans is the perfect combo), the white lace all in one thing and the canary yellow coat at the end...someone is still keeping fashion alive thankfully." [Fiercification]
"What a fantastic collection and the use of colour is wonderful." [Nomar]
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MISS: Comme des Garçons
"As we all know...unfortunately, the star of the show will be the Nike Cortez platform sneakers. Personally, I'm really fed up with Rei and her collaboration shoes with Nike." [margielamike2004]
"It's awful, who wears this? Not even Lady Gaga anymore." [Fernini]
"It's a shame her collections are so comical nowadays." [Yohji]
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HIT: Ann Demeulemeester
"Oh I just adore this. Going back back back to the mid-90s for sinister Nick Cave-esque Ann. So lush and so sharp. Such restraint, but full of mood and effortless attitude." [Phuel]
"My favourite collection so far! Meunier never disappoints." [Machinegumm]
"Love it! The black and white looks are my favourite." [Nocturnal]
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MISS: Lacoste
"Just because you show in Paris that doesn't mean you're up to that standard. It's been proven time and time again that your work speaks for you, not your location." [GivenchyHomme]
"Felipe has been phoning it in since he's arrived in Paris. It's disappointing because he left NYC on a rather decent note." [TheoG]
"It's really sad because Felipe was making absolute magic in NYC, and this is just... not up to par." [StoneSkipper]
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HIT: Chloe
"This is very good! Great blouses, good dresses, good tailoring and eveningwear. It's great that she is taking risks in terms of shapes. The color palette and the prints are very Karl's Chloe!" [Lola701]
"I love it so so much. Love the jewellery, the bracelets over the knitwear, the lace-up boots, the blue print. The styling is fantastic and some wonderful bags too. Great stuff. This is how I want to dress!" [gossiping]
"I think this is simply stunning in all honesty..." [Scouting Snapper]
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MISS: Off-White
"Paris Fashion Week should ban this copycat. (Bella Hadid is perfect for this train wreck. You go girl!)" [Nocturnal]
"So, what do the last two Elie Saab dresses have to do with anything??? This guy's success is a perfect example of how hype can get you anywhere! Mediocre, from start to finish. Not sure how he's showing in Paris." [Benn98]
"I literally yawned while scrolling through the pics." [khyrk]
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HIT: Loewe
"This to me is easily one of his strongest winter collections yet! He’s finally found that perfect balance of wearability but still being fun and quirky! The outerwear is some of the best of the season for me! And the dresses are so innovative!" [GERGIN]
"I like this collection. A lot of good pieces." [Fashionstuff]
"I find this exquisite! It's miles better than his Spring 2018 collection. There are lots of long and lean looks I'm loving, as well as some sharp tailoring." [ToniOrtega]
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MISS: Paco Rabanne
"OMG, who styled this show?? Sorry, but everything looks messy and droopy. It's not so much the cut of the looks, but posture and those slippers!" [Benn98]
"Marie-Amélie Sauvé styled, but I don't think that it is a styling problem, the clothes are quite weak, only the skirts are doing something here, so there is not much to do here in terms of styling IMO." [ghostwriter10549]
"Julien's latest collection was way better than this one, it was sensual and full of energy. This is so... weak and basic, basic in terms of silhouettes and very basic in terms of interpretation of Paco Rabanne's codes." [perhydrol]
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HIT: Yang Li
"Absolutely fabulous. I love how these clothes cling to the body. It's obviously very precise and moody. Love it." [StoneSkipper]
"I love Yang Li and I love how much he respects art, in every form, but especially music. Unlike most designers nowadays, that steal and appropriate imagery/logos/visual content from alternative brands (like Vetements), he collaborates and showcases their work along with his own, respecting their creative content, work, career. I will be eternally thankful for that." [EstefaniaAbaddon]
"He has been my favorite since his first collection and he never disappoints." [girlandthesea]
