Haute Couture 2026: A Season of Firsts and Farewells

Haute couture is one of the few spaces in fashion where time moves differently. Twice a year, thirteen select maisons present creations made entirely by hand, each piece painstakingly crafted for a world that prizes story, skill, and legacy over speed or trend. This season, however, felt charged in a way that went beyond craftsmanship: it was a season defined by both beginnings and farewells.

The most closely watched debut came from Chanel. Matthieu Blazy presented his first couture collection for the house under a glass-domed venue transformed into a surreal wonderland of pink weeping willows and oversized toadstools. The atmosphere was dreamlike, almost fairytale, yet practical movement and wearability were clearly central to his vision. Blazy described the collection as an exploration of “the heart of Chanel,” questioning whether the house’s essence could exist beyond its most recognisable signatures.

The collection respected Chanel’s heritage but reinterpreted it for the modern wearer. Tweed, traditionally structured and formal, was softened into fluid, lighter silhouettes. Jackets and suits were deconstructed and rebuilt with new fabrics and treatments. Buttons, hems, and finishes were meticulously reimagined, resulting in clothes that spoke of tradition without being constrained by it. The emphasis on movement and lightness suggested a subtle, but deliberate, new direction for the house.

At Dior, Jonathan Anderson treated couture as a living, breathing laboratory. His collection resembled a cabinet of curiosities: garments drew inspiration from fossils, meteorites, 18th-century French textiles, and portrait miniatures. These historical references became starting points rather than static artefacts, transformed into pieces that were as imaginative as they were wearable. Cyclamen flowers appeared throughout, sometimes in delicate micro-embroideries, sometimes as bold sculptural elements. Knitwear infiltrated gowns, chiffon and organza were shredded and layered like feathers, and voluminous shapes were held in check with fine netting. Accessories were equally considered: sculptural handbags made their couture debut, shoes subtly nodded to archival Roger Vivier designs, and jewellery incorporated meteorite fragments and antique miniatures, bringing history into the present in a tangible way.

Armani Privé offered a different perspective on firsts and farewells. Silvana Armani, stepping into her role as creative director after Giorgio Armani’s passing last September, presented a debut that was both personal and professional. Having worked alongside her uncle for more than forty years, she understood the house’s DNA intimately but was unafraid to bring her own voice forward. The spring collection centred on jade, pastel mint green, and baby pink, with palazzo trousers featuring up to ten pleats on each side in silk cady and jackets softened and stripped of stiffness, their edges glinting with tubular glass beads. Tailoring was key, yet each piece retained a sense of ease. Organza shirts, neckties, and round eyeglasses added an intellectual elegance, a subtle nod to the modern woman who inhabits both boardroom and red carpet.

Valentino’s presentation was the season’s most poignant farewell. Opening with a clip from Matt Tyrnauer’s documentary Valentino: The Last Emperor, the show paid tribute to the late designer’s lifelong fascination with cinema, magazines, and glamour. The set abandoned the traditional runway entirely, instead featuring circular, illuminated wooden structures inspired by the Kaiserpanorama, a 19th-century precursor to cinema. Models moved through these intimate spaces, bringing life to what might have otherwise been static tableaux.

The collection drew on silent film imagery and Art Deco elegance, blending early celebrity culture with couture craft. Certain looks seemed lifted straight from Erté illustrations, including a white satin bias-cut slip paired with an ivory velvet embroidered coat, its long train erupting into an extravagant ostrich feather and rhinestone headdress. The result was theatrical, nostalgic, and deeply emotional, a fitting tribute to a designer whose work consistently merged artistry with wearability.

What made Haute Couture 2026 remarkable was how each house navigated transition. Debuts carried a sense of possibility, while collections following a founder’s passing were imbued with reflection and reverence. Across the week, couture reminded audiences that it is not simply a showcase of opulence or technique, but a space to pause, consider, and honour what comes before while imagining what comes next. In a fashion world obsessed with speed, the season proved that the slow, deliberate rhythm of haute couture remains not just relevant, but essential