Home. Hodakova AW26

March 3, 2026 | Design & Culture by Ed

I haven’t been this struck by fashion in a long time. What Ellen Hodakova Larsson did on the opening day of Paris Fashion Week was so profound, heart-wrenching, and purely beautiful that I almost wonder whether the term “fashion” even applies.

For autumn–winter 2026, Hodakova returned to the idea of home – a theme she has explored for some time, but which here felt more substantial and powerful than ever. True to her practice, she transformed everyday objects into garments: an itty-bitty bra fashioned from teacups; a rug crafted into a capelet; pieces incorporating parts of chairs. The effect was as subversive as when Meret Oppenheim covered a teacup in fur: feminine decorum gone rogue, yet also wildly sensual.

But the distortions and subtle provocations did not end there. Mirrors appeared as accessories – an ode to vanity, but also to introspection. Silken strands that snaked up the body and fastened at the neck (where zippers might once have been) were not samples of blonde hair, but horsehair violin strings. She imagined a musician impeccably dressed for a performance, only to lose herself entirely in the music. And the fur coats that seemed to levitate, hovering like oneiric corpses above the models’ bodies? A literal “home for the body”, staged in a manner reminiscent of an Olivier Saillard and Tilda Swinton performance.

Hodakova’s work is at once literal and strangely elusive: like a dream that floods you with feeling, only to dissolve the moment you awaken. That is not to say her clothes are ephemeral. On the contrary, she is a designer who, like few others, champions a return to meaty, tactile, hyper-real materiality. Her latest collection marks a striking plunge into the sartorial world, with deconstructed Harris Tweed jackets and coats anchoring the vision.

A very, very good start to Paris.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram.

Hey, did you know about my newsletter – Ed’s Dispatch? Click here to subscribe.

Innocence. Chloé Pre-Fall 2026

February 1, 2026 | Design & Culture by Ed

There’s just something about Chemena Kamali’s Chloé girl that never grows tiresome. Yes, she has a fixation on the past – but it’s a charming one. For pre-fall 2026 – shot by Mark Kean, who has an incredible way of capturing blown-out hair and a certain innocence in his subjects – Kamali proposes a strikingly chic formula: a basic henley elevated by a draped pencil skirt and a leather basque belt. Easy, flirty, fun. Elsewhere, a ruffled blouse – modeled after the Chloé dress Karl Lagerfeld designed for Paloma Picasso’s wedding – is dressed down with stretch-velvet stirrup pants, creating a look that feels Parisian in a postcard way, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Kamali is only approaching her third year at Chloé, yet it feels as though she’s been thriving there for an era (she did, after all, work at the house under Phoebe Philo’s helm in the early 2000s, so this tracks). She has rebuilt the brand into a sanctuary of unpretentious, witty femininity, with each collection reading as a natural continuation of the last. Kamali herself notes, “what I get as feedback is that you can mix the collections quite well – pieces from the first show with last season’s pre-collection, say.” This isn’t a PR line; it’s a fact easily observed on the streets of Paris.

ED’s SELECTION:

Chloé Tiered Organic Silk-mousseline Maxi Skirt

Chloé Eve Suede Over-the-knee Boots

Chloé Embellished Cotton-velvet Jacket

Chloé Gathered Tie-detailed Lace-trimmed Silk-satin Mini Dress

Chloé Wool-crepe Straight-leg Pants

Chloé Jeanette Studded Platform Clogs

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram.

Hey, did you know about my newsletter – Ed’s Dispatch? Click here to subscribe.

Mischievous. Saint Laurent AW26

January 30, 2026 | Design & Culture by Ed

Mischievous, horny, kinky – and chic – this is the ultimate Saint Laurent man as seen by Anthony Vaccarello. He’s the kind of guy Yves would have fallen in love with on a night out at Le Sept. He also makes women go crazy – in the same charged, homoerotic way “Heated Rivalry” does. Inspired by James Baldwin’s seminal novel “Giovanni’s Room“, Vaccarello was intrigued by the inner tension experienced by its protagonist. “I like the idea of being in contraction between something very conventional and something very sensual.” That tension was omnipresent in his autumn–winter 2026 collection, from printed silk ascots peeking out from the collars of crisp shirts to semi-sheer vinyl trench coats appearing in the latter half of the lineup. Stretch patent boots extending up the thighs? Corrado De Biase, Saint Laurent’s design director of shoes, knows exactly what he’s doing – and how to get the boys talking.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram.

Hey, did you know about my newsletter – Ed’s Dispatch? Click here to subscribe.

La Grande Bellezza. Valentino SS26 Couture

January 29, 2026 | Design & Culture by Ed

Alessandro Michele’s second haute couture collection for Valentino is galaxies away from what he showed last year. Out with the heavy; in with the elevating. It’s purely Michele, yet it finally feels like Valentino – meaning la grande bellezza. It was clear the designer felt an added duty to deliver, and to make Garavani smile from fashion heaven. Viewed through the peepholes – or glory holes! – of circular Kaiserpanoramas, the collection became a voyeur’s dream. READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE.

ED’s SELECTION:

Valentino Garavani Bow-embellished Shearling-trimmed Leopard-print Wool Coat

Valentino Garavani Belted Ruffled Embellished Silk-georgette Gown

Valentino Garavani Rockoco Embellished Taffeta-trimmed Suede Pumps

Valentino Garavani Bow-detailed Ruched Wool-crepe Wrap Jacket

Valentino Garavani Velvet-trimmed Satin-crepe Maxi Skirt

Valentino Garavani Fringed Beaded Satin Shoulder Bag

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram.

Hey, did you know about my newsletter – Ed’s Dispatch? Click here to subscribe.

Lightness. Chanel SS26 Couture

January 28, 2026 | Design & Culture by Ed

Matthieu Blazy’s debut Chanel couture collection was yet another triumph of beauty during these utterly mind-blowing days in Paris. The sense of haute lightness he managed to carry into this line-up – something one so often longed for during Virginie Viard’s tenure, and even at times during Karl Lagerfeld’s – is nothing short of unbelievable. Near-transparent organza trousers played trompe-l’œil with denim. Flapper dresses were so airy they seemed like mist. “Ghost” 2.55 bags floated like medusas suspended in air.

Blazy did not lean heavily on Coco Chanel’s biography; instead, he returned to her attitude toward “clothes for women to go to work, to go to a play, the cinema, whatever,” as he put it. The oversized mushroom setting at the Grand Palais? I loved Tilda Swinton’s interpretation: symbols of ideas that magically grow after the rain. And you could see just how deeply obsessed she was with the collection – her eyes truly went starry at the sight of the dégradé velvet pyjama in shades of royal blue.

Can we also take a moment to appreciate the black suits, finished with quartz buttons and striking brooches? Just incredible. So Chanel, 100%. This was an elaborate take on contemporary couture – one that makes you daydream.