The Best Front-Row Outfit Equation & 12 More Fashion Month Superlatives

This was the most anticipated show of the season, and perhaps the 21st century. Matthieu Blazy is only the fourth creative director at the reins for Chanel, and he took us all into the galaxy with his relaxed, contemporary, and generation-spanning show. There was a mature, studied ease that ultimately proved the ultimate luxury in fashion is not a price tag, but the payoff of experimentation and, above all, joy.

Twigs did Mother Teresa drag at Rick Owens and switched to a Dale Chihuly-inspired coiffure sculpture for Schiaparelli whilst in the car. Props to Louis Souvestre, her hair artist (stylist doesn’t cut it here), for his steady hand in Parisian traffic.

There were not many major makeup moments that bear repeating, but Zankov’s debut runway was made ever more convincing with the addition of foiled metallic eyes, complementing the unabashed glamour of his clothes.

At Chanel, Blazy dropped the classic skirt-suit waist down with a trompe l’œil cotton-yoke waistband, which hammered home a season of the midriff receiving unprecedented attention. Diotima made it a bit easier to create with a sheer silk overlay, which you can test-drive before buying this sublime blue-and-pink skirt.

Odhiang joins the likes of Adut Akech and Alek Wek as one of three Black women to close a Chanel show. It was high-fashion perfection: her smile was infectious; she pumped down the runway like the look was made for her; and during the finale walk, she broke rank to twirl, clap, and embrace Blazy as he accepted applause for his debut. The best moment of the month, bar none (I’m already on my sixth rewatch, BTW).

While King Kylie ruled at Schiaparelli and Maison Margiela, Chamberlain was at the most shows to show off her chameleonic range, sporting wardrobe classics at Balenciaga, robin’s-egg-blue club couture at Courrèges, and devilish leather at Mugler.

Don’t expect to see this on the rack at Dover Street Market anytime soon, but at least appreciate the fun Zomer is having on the runway.

Demna is in the house — the House of Gucci, that is. Instead of a runway, he opted for a short film, The Tiger, starring Demi Moore, Elliott Page, Keke Palmer, Alex Consani, and Kendall Jenner, proving his deft world-building crosses Hollywood, Milan, and the rest of the globe with unrivaled ease.

Jonathan Anderson’s debut collection had plenty of ideas in the clothing department, but his work with shoemaker Nina Christen is what everyone will be shopping for. This particular peep-toe-and-bow silhouette, and the green-blue plaid color-way, will be everywhere come February.

While Mrs. Prada used aprons as inspiration at Miu Miu and ‘50s swing dresses at Prada, August Barron (formerly All-In) gave the most modern take, and proved it’s going to be an ugly-floral spring after all.

Pierpaolo Piccioli’s debut showed he can rock with the cool kids; he continued Demna’s goggly vision with these jewel-encrusted specs that will no doubt show up on both Madonna’s face and many a fashion editorial.

Saint Laurent won the front-row battle yet again, but our favorite ‘fit was Kravitz’s. A flimsy jacket paired with a silk skirt and funny shoes (zoom in to see the little lemons on her ankle) is our late-fall must-try combo.

The necklace skirt is making waves (Tom Ford, last season at Alaïa), but Prada’s negative-space skirt hanging off models’ shoulders make us think twice about what clothes are — and can be.