Paris Couture Week: How Chanel, Fendi and Dior make our fantasies come true

Couture is all about that fantasy, a dream that transports the wearer to a better world that is more fascinating and optimistic. This is something the late Karl Lagerfeld championed. “Couture should be couture, really differentiated from ready to wear,” the fashion virtuoso once said.

The first Chanel couture show by new artistic director Virginie Viard, his deputy for 30 years, is an intellectual tribute to two of the brand’s most revered figures, founder Gabrielle Chanel and Lagerfeld himself, who died in February.

Taking place at Chanel’s permanent show venue, the Grand Palais, the green-boned and glass-ceilinged architecture is decorated as a circular library, filled with books. The inspiration comes from Gabrielle and Lagerfeld’s shared passion for reading. “Books are my best friends”, Gabrielle told writer Paul Morand. Lagerfeld, who once described himself as a living Google, collected over 300,000 books and opened a Paris bookstore, 7L, that offers works about art, design, architecture and fashion.

Viard expresses her own voice, with a collection that is more subdued and down to earth. The show is less fantastical than those her predecessor used to flaunt unapologetically – case in point: transforming Grand Palais into an extravagant casino or a humble supermarket. Compared to Lagerfeld’s youthful girls, Viard’s editions have matured into sophisticated women; 17-year-old Kaia Gerber does not appear underage any more. The models sport optical glasses, reminiscent of poets, writers or activists.

The house’s iconic elements have been reinvented: tweeds and embroidered wool mix and match with delicate materials such as duchess satin, georgette pleats, layers of chiffon and velvet. Small collars, layered feuilleté cuffs and flared trousers with earthy colours create a sophisticated new image. The redesigned classic two-toned shoes, adorned with black bows, are reminiscent of the shape of the footwear worn by men at the French court in the 18th century.

What remains the same, though, is the striking craftsmanship from the house’s acclaimed ateliers. The nude-style make-up, created by Chanel’s global creative make-up and colour designer, Lucia Pica, underlines confidence with masculine eyebrows and elongated eyeliner.