Jet black lips, breastplates worn backwards and shoulder pads whose dimensions would put Joan Collins to shame – it can only be a Schiaparelli show.
On the first day of Paris Haute Couture Week, Schiaparelli proved yet again that it’s a label that likes to ruffle feathers – quite literally, given that one of its celebrity guests, the rapper Cardi B, posed for photographers with one black-opera-glove-clad hand clutching a large raven.
Are birds the new black? If it could speak, this one would likely say so.
A Schiaparelli show never fails to attract a starry front row, and this year’s avian guest was by no means highest in the pecking order.
That accolade fell to Dua Lipa, 29, the Albanian-born, London-based singer who recently sold out Wembley Stadium.
Continuing the avian theme, Ms Lipa wore a outfit from Schiaparelli’s Spring/Summer 2024 show – a floor length white gown with a cutaway keyhole detail, decorated entirely with fluttering, feather-like paillettes.
Some stars might have been too chicken to wear such a dramatic and unforgiving dress, but Ms Lipa pulled it off with aplomb. Or maybe a-plume.
Also there was French actress and Emily in Paris star Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, 62, who eschewed the prevailing trend for oversized shoulder pads in favour of a one-shouldered chocolate brown dress made of satin ribbons.
She teamed this with a tiny gold handbag whose dimensions would have struggled to fit her sunglasses. Which is possibly why she only removed them briefly to watch the show.
And it was quite a show.
Fans of the storied French house appreciate that Schiaparelli is a brand famed for its Surrealist codes, with founder Elsa Schiaparelli deeply influenced by the famous art movement.
Creative director Daniel Roseberry made sure to keep these traditions alive. For autumn/winter 2026, his collection, titled ‘Back to the Future’, referenced artist Salvador Dali, in particular his 1953 work The Royal Heart.
Highlights included a red satin dress with a prosthetic breastplate worn on the model’s back, with the eye further tricked by a ruby-encrusted ‘heart’ that pulsated as she walked.
Had this creation been unveiled a few days earlier, perhaps Lauren Sanchez Bezos would have considered it a romantic – albeit literal – gesture of love and packed it to wear during her three-day, £40million wedding celebrations in Venice.
In the event, she opted for a more understated Schiaparelli dress as one of her weekend bridal looks, featuring a corseted bodice and an off-shoulder neckline hand-embroidered with flowers.
She joins a slew of high profile names to support the label, including Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande and Beyonce – birds of a feather who flock to wear these eye-catching designs.
