Paris Fashion Week Fall/ Winter 2015: Our highlights

Alas, let’s all breathe a collective sigh of relief for the month long fashion season has finally closed its trendy curtains. Don’t even bother reminding us that our side of the world will be kickstarting fashion weeks next week with Tokyo, Seoul, India and Shanghai – we’re on it. But let us take a breather and for now relish in what the nonchalant Parisian city had to offer.

First things first, celebrities sure did make quite the splash with Kim Kardashian and Jared Leto both going platinum blond and Kimmie as usual, continued to step out in bold, everything-on-display looks. Beyond these brave souls, the shows itself were quite the conversation starters in the fashion world as well. For instance, Galliano’s first womenswear Ready-To-Wear collection for Maison Margiela, where mind you he did not step out to take his bow, sparking a call for ‘John!’ to emerge but to no success.

Beauty looks wise, Givenchy had models in extravagant face piercings while Jacquemus had their models painted with Picasso-esque faces on, which to be honest bordered on a tad bit creepy. As for elaborate stage sets, no one topples the grand Kaiser, Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel with his Brasserie themed show.

Finally, what truly broke the fashionable Internet was the epic walk-off from Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson as their Zoolander characters at Valentino – now that was one perfect way to remember PFW by.

However, beyond the mastery of setups and shocking appearances, one thing always gets us spinning in a tizzy at fashion weeks: the slew of trends emerging from the runways. While there were commonalities with the other fashion capitals, like 70s fringing, flared pants, caped crusaders and wide belts as the focal accessory, Paris still had its peculiarities. So for that, we’ve scoured through countless shows to bring the top trends of Fall/ Winter 2015 right here!

Deep Reds

Marsala may be the Pantone Colour of the Year but designers nonetheless went with a hue that was a lot more richer and redder than Marsala. In fact, Paris kept their designs largely in the darker, moody shades, other than for some quirky designers who experimented with an explosion of prints. From Hermes to Elie saab, Givenchy and Miu Miu, a deep shade of red was more pleasurable than bright injections of in-your-face colours.

Tiny Black Dress

The collections may be for Fall/ Winter but some of the designers clearly did not get that memo or just conveniently glanced past it – but good news for those of us who live in the tropics! By taking the distinctive and ever so classic, Little Black Dress, this season, runways were strewn with a version that was more tiny than little as hem lines went further up. From the rock-chic Saint Laurent to the always provocative Anthony Vaccarello, Tiny Black Dress is clearly next on the agenda.

High Shine

Rather than using swishy fringe to get attention this Fall, in Paris, it’s all about shining bright in the City of Lights. A lot like the 80s glam period, designers like Balmain, Louis Vuitton and Loewe amped up the shine factor with glossy finishes and shimmering sequins. You’ll definitely be the limelight with those pieces on.

Innovative Necklines

Rather than the usual round, plunging necklines or turtlenecks, a couple of designers like Stella McCartney and Mugler took it upon themselves to reinvent the off shoulder neckline with a variety of different cuts. Essentially, they add beautiful nuances to an outfit and may become the focal point – you wouldn’t even need to pile on necklaces.

Tarandip Kaur