What To Expect From SS19 Paris Fashion Week

Dior, Louis Vuitton, Valentino, Dries Van Noten, Maison Margiela, Givenchy, Balenciaga ... there's no point in denying it: Paris is the real capital of international fashion, at least according to the biggest brands that choose PFW to present their collections. From September 24th to October 2nd, all these titans of style will challenge each other, putting on every time more magical and spectacular shows, more and more like a happening or an artistic performance rather than a mere series of dresses.

To get ready to the Parisian Fashion Week, nss has prepared a special guide to all the events you can't miss. Phones in your hands, the PFW has officially started. 

 

From Beauty to the Catwalk 

Among the most anticipated events of this season, the most democratic is the L'Oréal Paris show which, on Sunday, September 30th , in front of 200,000 spectators, not only celebrities but, above all, ordinary people, organizes a défilé en plein air. The beauty colossus has set up a 60-meter-long floating walkway on the Seine, on which Elle Fanning, Eva Longoria, Doutzen Kroes and the other testimonials of the brand will walk, wearing important pieces by Elie Saab, Giambattista Valli, Pierre Hardy or Sonia Rykiel.

 

The biggest

As for the real designers, the spotlight is on the debut of Hedi Slimane for Celine and on the new collection by Alessandro Michele for Gucci. Fashionistas are in fibrillation to see the first show, co-ed, of the Italian-Tunisian designer who, just arrived to replace the minimalist icon Phoebe Philo, has already implemented a small re-branding, eliminating the accent from "Celine" , prompting many to ask what other revolutions will be implemented. To find out, you have to wait for Friday, September 28th, at 8:30 pm, when Slimane will unveil his projects in "Show location in Paris", as he called the Hotel des Invalides in the 7th arrondissement.

This PFW is, in a certain way, a debut also for Alessandro Michele who, on September 24th at 7.30 pm, will hold the new Gucci fashion show in the Ville Lumiere, thus concluding a tribute to France in three parts, started in January with the pre-fall campaing that recalles students protests in May 1968, followed in May by the Cruise 2019 show in Arles. The last chapter of this French adventure will take place inside the historic Théatre Le Palace, a special place in Rue du Faubourg-Montmartre 8 that mixes vintage and underground culture, where in the period around the Nouvelle Vague, between gallons of champagne and masked party, were mixed fashion, luxury and art. Will the Gucci SS19 collection reflect the same mood? We'll see.

For the first time, Schiaparelli will present an exclusive line of prêt-à-porter, a project called "Story", capsules composed of a few dozens pieces and accessories, presented outside the official calendar. The first will be inspired by Man Ray. If, however, you love design and Virgil Abloh, you should know that only for one day, on September 29th, in an exclusive pop-up, you will be able to buy the first four Virgil Abloh x Ikea rugs. The next collection of women's clothing by Off-White, as he has just revealed through Instagram, is entitled "Track & Field" and is inspired by the sport as a metaphor. With almost 130 parades, presentations and events on the calendar , the hype around Paris is stellar, so if orienting yourself in this fashion ocean seems too difficult for you, nss has selected the three shows not to be missed and the three most interesting young designer to discover. 

 

Top 3 Not to be missed

 

# 1 Dior September 24th - 2.30pm

After having occupied the front pages of blog and gossip for having designed the wedding dress of Chiara Ferragni, Maria Grazia Chiuri returns with one of the most awaited moments of the year: the launch of the Dior SS19 women's collection. The Italian designer will kick off PFW with her show at the Hippodrome Paris-Longchamp. It will be an opportunity to see how Chiuri will continue hier speech made not of words, but of clothes, on female empowerment and if she will mix again poster tee with girly and dreamy dresses. An important clue in this sense is a mini video posted by Dior on its Instagram account in which we see a fragment of ballet, accompanied by the caption "The story comes from inside the body". This is a quote by Israeli dancer and choreographer Sharon Eyal, famous for her innovative, hypnotizing and provocative works. Who knows what they will be able to create together the world of the artist and Dior.

# 2 Jacquemus - September 24th, 4.40pm

Jacquemus continues to mature and expand, but in what direction? The success of the newborn men's line, presented a few months ago on the beach in Marseille, makes the curiosity towards the new women's proposal even more exciting. The last time Simone Porte took us around the "souks" of Morocco and this time? Perhaps the new collection will maintain the mood of the SS19 man, at least we imagine now that his title has been unveiled: "LA RIVIERA". Another element that makes us think so is the image posted by the French brand on IG, a shot that portrays the costume designer Umberto Tirelli with a group of friends in Capri.

#Louis Vuitton - October 2nd, 6.30pm

It is one of the most anticipated shows of every fashion week, but, this time, also one of the most mysterious. In fact, there is still no detail on what, nor on where the next Louis Vuitton project will happen. Of course it will not be easy for Nicolas Ghesquière to replicate the spectacle of the FW18 presented at the Louvre Museum, let alone equal the hype that has been around the debut of Virgil Abloh for LV man. What do you think: Ghesquière will suffer the street influences of the designer of Off-White?

 

Top 3 to Discover

# 1 Marine Serre - 25 September 10.30 am

This girl from a small town in central France, who studied fashion first in Marseilles and then in La Cambre Mode in Brussels, according to all those who count is the new talent to keep an eye on. Winner of the "LVMH 2017 Prize" with her graduation collection, she is noted for the unique and hybrid way in which she combines athleisure and feminine touches, made up of tight-fitting suits, almost second skins, all over prints and recycled fabrics, giving life to creations that have conquered everyone, from Karl Lagerfeld, Phoebe Philo and Nicolas Ghesquiere who have rewarded her for Lv to Demna Gvasalia who hired her from Balenciaga. The intent of the collections? Answering two questions: How can fashion connect to a world in pieces, and increasingly turbulent? How can a deep sense of identity be expressed without losing in contemporaneity and openness?

# 2 Mashama - September 30th, 7.30pm

Masha Ma launched her namesake label based between Shanghai and Paris in 2008. It soon attracted international attention with her looks that reveal a modern and futuristic femininity, also appreciated by several stars and celebrities. Her style is poised between romantic and sci-fi, refined by studying at the London Central Saint Martins and working with Alexander McQueen, will this time be too high?

# 3 ANREALAGE - September 25th, 4.30pm

Vanguard. This is the word that best fits the style of Kunihiko Morinaga and its brand ANREALAGE, a name that derives from a combination of ''A REAL, UNREAL and AGE". A choice that very much evokes its fashion philosophy: to its experimentation it recalls technologies that exploit reflective materials and shades that allude to depth spatial, atomic. The next project will tell us about its unique vision of the SS19.