Oh, this tireless sorcerer Karl, the inexhaustible fantasy of whom can envy any twenty years old designer! Each new season we are looking forward to the Chanel show that always prepares for us pleasant, full of creative magic surprises! At this time, the great Kaiser of fashion sent his models to… an Art Deco casino, into which the exhibition space under the glass arches of Grand Palais was transformed.

The talent of Lagerfeld lays is, among others, in the ability to play up classic tweed suits – the best seller and a signature of the fashion house – each time in a new manner, in a thousand different ways. Even couture collection, the initial objective of which is to support French craftsmanship and experiment with materials and forms, is not complete without the obligatory tweed set. Fortunately, the number of looks usually presented on the podium (at times going up to … 80) allows to put it n altogether. Pearl embroidery, optical illusions (trompe-l’œil), and other feather, tulle and lace delights always come after. By the way, in the new collection they are great.

Wiles and unnecessary flattery aside, the quantity often determines the quality, in the sense that among the huge number of presented looks a dozen would surely hit the target, causing universal admiration and instant orders, as they say, “without leaving the first row.” In this context, I’m pleased to note that in the fall-winter collection, even taking into account a mandatory component of tweed, “hit the target” if not all (67 looks) but certainly two-thirds. Just take that trouser bride suit that recalls the wedding dress of Bianca, the first wife of Mick Jagger. One would want to get married in it again and again, perhaps only changing it for a cozy tweed in cold winter evenings by the fireplace in a mountain chalet.

Photo credits: CHANEL