How Fashion Week can improve your everyday style?

I never really liked Fashion Week.

For a long time, I found that it promoted an inaccessible, elitist and disconnected from reality fashion. As such, it is easy to find wacky and sometimes funny runway looks:

It's a creative approach that deserves respect, but it doesn't help us much to improve our style. And in my head, I thought that Fashion Week was just about looks like that, that I couldn't get much out of it. Maybe that's your opinion too, and I understand.

But over the last year or two, my opinion has slowly been changing . I see catwalk looks that interest me and challenge me.

During this Fashion Week period, I suggest that we see together what catwalk looks can actually bring to your everyday style.

Here are my tips for seeing Fashion Week in a different light.

1. You will have an open mind

First condition: put aside all your preconceptions.

Accept that you will see things that are unlikely and that you don't like when exploring Fashion Week silhouettes.

And even on interesting looks, not everything will necessarily be good to take.

Also, don't look at the prices . These are mostly very high-end and luxury brands that are parading, which will not be in your budget. It doesn't matter because that's not the point. You are here to get inspired, take ideas and see what you can apply on your scale , with your clothes and your budget.

2. You will follow good brands

At Fashion Week, it's like everywhere else: there's food and drink.

Some brands have a very strong message, with a majority of looks that are wearable in real life. Don't dwell on them because there are also others with more accessible silhouettes. Focus on the latter instead.

And because I like you, I've put together a little list of my own of brands whose catwalk looks I find interesting . I may have forgotten some, so feel free to make your suggestions in the comments if others come to mind.

In alphabetical order:

• Eagle
• FRIEND
• Auralee
• Andersson Bell
• Boglioli
• Brunello Cuccinelli
• Burberry
• Canali
• Dior
• Dries Van Noten
• Emporio Armani
• Fendi
• Giorgio Armani
• Isabel Marant
• Isaia
• Issey Miyake
• Lanvin
• Lemaire
• Neil Barrett
• General Pharmacy
• Our Legacy
• Prada
• Sacai
• Todd Snyder
• Wooyoungmi
• Yohji Yamamoto
• Zegna
• Ziggy Chen

A few small comments come to me after having established this list.

First of all, I thought it would be shorter than that. There are actually a lot of brands with nice style suggestions.

Then, there are names that we don't necessarily expect : I'm thinking of Aigle for example, whose artistic direction was taken over in 2020 by the founders of Études and who started showing very recently. Fursac has also recently been on the Paris Fashion Week schedule but is not showing and has chosen to present its collection in a large fitted-out showroom. Finally, perhaps you didn't know this, but Officine Générale has been showing at Paris Fashion Week for many years now.

I also have a little word for Armani. I've always had a caricatured image of the brand, with a very ostentatious style. For me, Armani is looks with muscular Italians, visible muscles, and very fitted clothes. These silhouettes exist but that's not all. Far from it in fact. Look at me for example at this pretty shades of brown on the fall-winter 2024 show:

Finally, one last piece of purely practical information: where can I find these parade photos?

You will find different sites but for my part, I advise you to look on Fashion Network, Vogue or WWD.

Some brand sites have a category with fashion show visuals, such as Our Legacy or Officine Générale for example.

3. You will take good style ideas

With an open mind and a good list of brands, you're ready to get your dose of style inspiration.

Here are some things to look out for in the looks you'll see:

• Pieces that stand out and could give you ideas for potential future purchases
• Combinations of pieces and colors that flatter the retina , to reproduce with the pieces in your wardrobe
• Well-crafted volume games , which can make you move towards certain types of cuts (for example, going from fitted cuts to straighter ones)
• Original materials, textures or patterns that allow you to exercise your stylistic sensibility

Do you want examples? Without further ado, your wish is granted:

Monochromes of gray

Michel showed you visuals of this Officine Générale fashion show in his article on monochrome . Here, a chic, urban and rather accessible look with lots of good things to take:

• the different shades of gray that harmonize with each other: the sweater a little lighter than the pants, itself a little lighter than the coat
• the speckling of the sweater which brings visual richness
• the width of the coat that matches the width of the pants
• how to wear a turtleneck, without rolling the collar up

You probably have several gray pieces in your fall/winter wardrobe: what if you tried to put them together?

A coat like no other

A spectacular coat from Andersson Bell , mixing houndstooth, herringbone, canvas and leather. A lot of work has been done on the arrangement of the inserts: it is particularly successful.

This coat is wearable (or close to it) in my opinion. I really like the idea of ​​the coat with panels in any case. The rest of the outfit inspires me less though.

The right touch of color

An interesting and quite simple look with a white/grey/black base enhanced by a camel coat.

Please note:

• The two shades of gray on the sweater and pants that contrast just right (light on top, darker on the bottom)
• The round neck t-shirt under the V-neck sweater
• The camel-colored coat , whose function is to enhance the outfit, and which is starting to come back after having disappeared somewhat in recent years

Workwear chic

Very beautiful textures at Ziggy Chen. These raw wools do something to me. This range of earth tones is very successful . Note: the overshirt with asymmetrical panels and the pants with relatively discreet checks. The whole is finished with a long and loose coat. Sacred look, which one could almost call chic workwear . If this type of universe speaks to you, also go and look at Evan Kinori.

A little sweetness in this brutal world

Did you know Auralee? If not, take a look at it. It's a very beautiful Japanese brand full of softness. Here, a chic and nonchalant cameo (visible trouser drawstring, soft materials and construction) perfectly executed . The materials are sublime and it shows. No coat this time but a large woolen overshirt placed on a blazer.

If you like the casual chic style or better, soft tailoring , you are in luck. On occasion, try a range of light tones in winter (cream, ecru, taupe, putty, beige, camel).

Casual chic 101

I finish with a casual chic look, easy to reproduce , by Boglioli. On the bottom, very simple: fitted olive green chinos, black socks, loafers and belt. On the top: a blue striped shirt with a medium brown checked blazer. The two patterns are not too close (a thin stripe and a large check) and therefore coexist well.

Small subtlety: the shirt has a Cuban collar which is worn raised, and closed with a small button under the collar.

The final word

Developing your style means developing your eye by looking at and analyzing looks, preferably successful ones. And Fashion Week has things to offer , as I have tried to show you with these relatively accessible looks that I hope will inspire you.

Now it's up to you to keep digging.

For my part, I note that we see a lot of cameos and monochromes on the catwalk looks, which speaks to me a lot because it's a personal obsession of the moment.