Watching a fashion show is almost like reading the news. But rather than current events, new aesthetic ideas are delivered through meticulously crafted garments, bags, shoes and make-up. Oh and robot dogs. 

What?

That’s right. Paris Fashion Week just took place and I got to watch the shows …. in my bed with DoorDash pasta. It’s the next best thing to an invite.  

After a lot of money on delivery fees, additional fees and endless screenshots of the runaway, here are some of my favorite moments from this year’s Paris Fashion Week. 

Miu Miu’s perfect bad hair day 

When I was wandering around department stores growing up, I always thought that Miu Miu was a brand for princesses. Bows, diamonds and pastel colored garments reminded me of a dreamy dollhouse — no wonder it captured the eyes of an 8-year-old girl with dresses for a uniform. But in this year’s collection, the Miu Miu girl (and me too) was all grown up!

The models strutted down with kitten heels, plushy cardigans, sheer tops and sexy neutrals with the highlight being the sticky messed-up hair that attracted loads of buzzing attention. My favorite time of day is, well, not the day but early mornings and late nights. So, the fashionable flyaways and perfectly layered workwear reminded me of the booked & busy subway commutes and lively nights in the city. Plus, I felt like this was messy-chic in the most Miu Miu way — done-up but always with a je ne sais quoi cute.   

The canines of Coperni  

If you’ve seen anything from Paris Fashion Week, I’ll bet $6 that it was from Coperni. In collaboration with Boston Dynamics, Coperni presented SPOT robot dogs that interacted with the models. When I first watched these futuristic creatures be caressed by the model, undress her and hold the brand’s new bags, I had to watch it, well, 17 more times. Echoing Coperni, the collection aimed to demonstrate a more positive future vision where technology and society live in balance (and not demolish each other’s civilizations).

It was especially exciting to see after spending the past two weeks in the depths of the library researching the looming domination of technology on mankind (it’s for my midterm essay on “2001: A Space Odyssey” if that says anything). The technological spectacle was intimate and fascinating, and really made me more enamored with the world of fashion. 

Cruelty-free Stella McCartney

For Stella McCartney’s show, alongside the models were seven gleaming horses. And no, they weren’t futuristic robots. While I was first gravitated by the fact that there were, well, seven horses at a fashion show, the intention behind the stunt is I think really memorable. The designer is a strong advocate for ethical fashion, and through the display of live animals, wished the audience to think about animal cruelty in the fashion world. Because if you thought that fur, leather and crocodile were a thing of the past, surprise! It’s not. Putting forth this mindset, the collection features bags made from plant leather, processed apples replacing crocodiles and of course, no fur in sight. Except for the wild pony manes. 

Shifting shapes of Loewe 

Aside from the internet-breaking stunts, Jonathan Anderson’s Fall/Winter ‘23 collection for Loewe was an endless and purposeful presentation of modern glamour. As the models came out with feathered garments, glitching dresses, camp leather bags and chubby Lego-like tops, I couldn’t look away. The clothes were wearable but also otherworldly, and I wondered how I’d feel if I saw someone wearing a piece in real life. My guess is in awe and frozen (it is a full bird suit after all). After reading that the collection was embodying a surrealist aesthetic, it again made sense how the clothes felt so dreamy and Trompe-l’oeil, especially in the all-white venue of Château de Vincennes. 

The extravagance of fashion shows is always an allure. But beyond the glitz and high-profile glamour, there can be something personal to take away. 

I mean that quite literally. No hair combs for me this year!