THE FRENCH LOOK FROM CHANEL TO GAULTIER
by Virginia De Masi
MONACO. A crossing country of international beauties, this October Monaco will stand in ladies’ imagination around the world with a precise dress code: the French look. Of course accessories and basic items will be the iconic Hermes’ bags and foulards to begin with, but there is much more.
To start taking ideas for our winter wardrobe for a Parisian touch, it is necessary to go through the cult pieces of the Chanel wardrobe. 
Let’s start with a pair of pumps: contrasting toe, slingbacks with low heels, from the iconic beige shades to the colored ones with a black tip, are the favorites that Chanel has now made a must-have in every woman’s wardrobe. To be combined anytime, anywhere, to go to the office and ready for the evening aperitif, even better if focusing on a tweed midi skirt, which you can’t more Coco if you choose the total look with the matching cardigan, an iconic catwalk look. The birth of a real style and an openly French-style outfit naturally pass through Coco Chanel. A perennial mainstay of Haute Couture week, Chanel debuted a classic collection of tweed separates, intricate evening wear, and of course, a stunning bridal gown at the Palais Galliera. Continuing a common theme across fashion week, Creative Director Virgine Viard referenced the past while also presenting a picturesque glimpse into a post-pandemic future. Inspired by Impressionist portraiture and the iconography of Gabrielle Chanel, Viard employed iconic house codes for a memorable presentation completed by Margaret Qualley closing the show as a stunning Chanel bride. (see cover in evidence). The charm of the French capital remains in the heart for its wonderful architecture, its romantic squares, the river Seine views. But any traveller in Paris can’t forget to make a tour and visit the famous Faubourg Saint-Honore’ “carre’ d’or”.
From the clothes to the accessories Parisian fashion smacks of romanticism, lightness and sensuality, but also of class, audacity and elegance, from Chanel to Gaultier. In fact, as we will pay attention to the Coco’s detail as golden buttons, striped and bouclé fabrics, silk blouses, we cannot forget Jean Paul Gaultier. Of course, Chanel long gray oversized jackets and blazers are the must-haves that we find in an exquisitely French look, attentive to a refined femininity, which finds maximum expression in a red lipstick, pearls and gold chains on a blouse with an unmistakable and essential peach nuance as Coco teaches. But if we are also looking for something sexier and daring, it is he king of the bustier Jean Paul Gaultier who can suggest a French evening look, “osé’”, bold and irreverent, to give our wardrobe also must-haves that go beyond conventional garments. After 50 years of leading the fashion industry, Jean Paul Gaultier presented his latest show to headline his namesake brand. Last year, the designer announced that the firm would return to fashion as each year a new creator would be invited to seize the Gaultier codes and reinterpret them in their own way in a haute couture collection. Turning the French house that was always distinguished for its transgressive vision into a platform to boost creativity through the revolutionary collaboration between Jean Paul Gaultier and Chitose Abe was the 2021 catwalk’s challenge.
Paying homage to the legacy of the enfant terrible with a Japanese twist, the ideologies of the anti-fashion movement and street style are woven with Gaultier’s rebellion to present the Fall/Winter 2021 Haute Couture collection. The little black dress, for example, is revisited in a long version but with a vertiginous slit, to be combined with a pair of pointed pumps with a stiletto heel: a sexy and glamorous evening look. Abe presents her version of the Gaultier universe with 31 looks that have been refined to perfection.
Classic French silhouettes are reinterpreted in a deconstructed way.
Knitted or denim garments face oversized cuts with an avant-garde perspective that seamlessly translates to haute couture. A super cropped version bustier instead will be our investment for the winter season, to combine under a blazer or jacket, perfect with a pair of classic and straight trousers in a perfect mix of elegance and sensuality, like the haute couture suit worn from Miley Cyrus: a very glam – rock look with an original cut.
