Paris Fashion Week is halfway through its fall 2026 shows, and the message from the runways is unmistakable: dress with intent, dress with pleasure, and don't be afraid to show skin. The season has been marked by blockbuster celebrity front rows, with Oprah Winfrey turning heads at Stella McCartney and Chloé, while Sissy Spacek, Julia Garner and Lil Yachty claimed front-row seats at Loewe.
At Saint Laurent, Anthony Vaccarello marked both his tenth anniversary at the helm and the sixtieth anniversary of the women's tuxedo. His parade of razor-sharp Smokings featured plunging necklines and elongated silhouettes, while daytime suits in fluid pinstripe fabrics with little interlining extended the tuxedo's transgressive energy around the clock. Lace stiffened with latex formed structured cardigan-like jackets and straight skirts, paired with smoky eyes, chunky gold jewellery and slingback heels.
Skin was a central theme across several shows. Vaquera's Bryn Taubensee and Patric DiCaprio staged a provocation-filled presentation inside a Paris church, with hip-cut trousers, leather pieces with strategically placed zippers and references to fashion's most boundary-pushing moments. At Courrèges, Nicolas Di Felice traced a woman's day from bed to club with body-conscious cuts and geometric cutouts on pinafore dresses. Isabel Marant's Kim Bekker went short and tight, offering tiny cut-off shorts, miniskirts and slim leather pencil skirts.
At Loewe, designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez presented their sophomore collection, a sensory jolt featuring inflatable channels pumped into outerwear, shearling sculpted to resemble prize-winning poodle fur and latex cast in 3D-printed moulds. The venue was drenched in taxi yellow, with pounding techno and stuffed sea creatures alongside Hollywood stars. Inspired by artist Cosima von Bonin, the collection included gingham accents and hand-painted floral prints. Their craft is so refined it erases the evidence of the hand entirely, with leather jackets skived to feather-thinness.
Fringe has emerged as one of the season's quieter but persistent trends. At Carven, Mark Thomas made it a signature of his assured sophomore collection, with fringed gloves, shaggy textures and paper-thin mille-feuille panels bringing movement to skirts and dresses. He layered gauzy organza with lace in tones of wine and chocolate, creating a romantic but purposeful wardrobe.
Courrèges, under Di Felice, continued its reliable slick Parisian minimalism with a fifth-anniversary collection of slim flared coats, A-line skirts and vinyl knife-pleated into dresses. Isabel Marant's Bekker sent models racing down the runway in distressed denim, reversible statement jackets and sparkly knitted minidresses with curved-heel pumps, capturing a mood that was fast, social and unapologetically fun.
