Raf Simons’ paved the front of the Louvre’s Cour Carrée with a multifaceted mirror that distorted the immaculate lines of the building’s classical 18th century façade. The same kind of twisting occurred once inside the show, where the clothes were imbued with - at least in historic terms - a split personality. The 18th century provided fertile ground for Simons’ remixed influences, from the rural countryside to glamorous court palaces, which manifested themselves in a variety of silhouettes, cuts and materials. Circle skirts came reared with humped backs; dresses were trimmed in rows of microscopic fabric buttons; sleeves had the pomp of court dress; while velvet gilets tumbled to the ground like grand, sweeping frock coats. Most intriguing, however, were the more humble iterations of that period, like a calico print cotton that was cut into modern shapes and paired up with 1980s-style black tailored separates, or the old-fashioned nightgowns that found new life as crispy, airy cotton dresses. Simons anchored his looks with witchy-looking boots constructed from knitted sock uppers. The best looks in this collection, however, were those where Simons’ icy modernism popped out: the micro jacquard suiting was excellent as were the figure-hugging button-trimmed ¾ length skirts, paired with turtlenecks and lace tops.
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Wild sauna, anyone? The ultimate guide to exploring deep heat in the UK outdoors‘Wild Sauna’, a new book exploring the finest outdoor establishments for the ultimate deep-heat experience in the UK, has hit the shelves; we find out more about the growing trend
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Highlights from the transporting Cruise 2026 showsThe Cruise 2026 season began yesterday with a Chanel show at Lake Como, heralding the start of a series of jet-setting, destination runway shows from fashion’s biggest houses
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Behind the design of national pavilions in Venice: three studios to knowDesigning the British, Swiss and Mexican national pavilions at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025 are three outstanding studios to know before you go
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Summer games, from pétanque to pool floats, get a fashionable spinFrom a luxurious pétanque set to pool floats and playing cards, summer games and toys from the world’s best-known fashion houses
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‘Modern beauty’: Pieter Mulier on his new vision for AlaïaAs creative director of Alaïa, Belgian designer Pieter Mulier honours the timeless vision of the maison’s founder while rewriting the past anew. Here, speaking to Jack Moss, he tells the story behind his first year at the house
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Palace unites with Rapha to celebrate inaugural Tour de France FemmesMarking the first time women will compete in the historic cycling race since the late 1980s, this new collaboration sees Palace Skateboards and Rapha create uniforms for both on and off the bike – including an ‘outlandish’ pair of Crocs
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NYC fashion exhibitions to see right nowNew York City fashion exhibitions to add to your cultural calendar, as style stages a stunning takeover at The Met and more
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Mariella Bettineschi’s feminist artworks survey guests at Dior A/W 2022 showAs guests gathered at Dior’s A/W 2022 womenswear show venue in Paris, sets of duplicated eyes stared down at them from the artworks of Mariella Bettineschi
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Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022: Chanel to Miu MiuIn this extended report, Wallpaper* updates you live from Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022 shows, with rolling coverage as runway events unfold
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Scene-stealing runway sets from A/W 2022 menswear showsA Kubrickian space odyssey at Prada; a recreation of the Pont Alexandre III in Paris at Dior; and colourful, artist-created flags at Loewe: explore the best runway sets from the A/W 2022 menswear shows
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Dior recreates Paris bridge, Pont Alexandre III, for A/W 2022 showDior recreated Paris’ landmark bridge, Pont Alexandre III, for its A/W 2022 menswear show, which took place on 21 January 2022, the date of Christian Dior’s birthday
