Paris

Mumbo-Jumbo. Balenciaga Pre-Fall 2026

| Design & Culture by Ed

The more I live, the more I understand that compromise isn’t a good thing. And that becomes evident in Pierpaolo Piccioli’s second attempt at Balenciaga. You might remember that I wasn’t satisfied with what I saw at his debut. Yet I thought, with sincere hope, that first tries are difficult and that the next season would be better. And here we are with the brand’s co-ed pre-fall 2026 lookbook: a collection that once again feels like a chaotic mash-up of Demna, Nicolas Ghesquière, and – oh lord – Alexander Wang’s era at the house. The merchandise floor was far too involved in designing this collection, seemingly trying to please everyone at Kering. READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE.

ED’s SELECTION:

Balenciaga Le City Medium Textured-leather Tote


Balenciaga Belted Plush Coat


Balenciaga Avenue Palazzo Crystal-embellished Bow-detailed Satin Sandals


Balenciaga Cat-eye Printed Acetate Sunglasses


Balenciaga Cape-effect Floral-print Plissé-crepe Gown

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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New Look. Dior Pre-Fall 2026

| Design & Culture by Ed

Jonathan Anderson’s new look for Dior continues to intrigue – and puzzle. Women’s pre-fall 2026 is already his fourth collection, which sounds quite absurd given that the first Dior pieces designed by Anderson will only start hitting stores in January at the earliest. But this is how the industry works. We’ve seen his neo-preppy menswear debut over the summer, followed by pre-fall just over a week ago. His women’s debut during the last Paris Fashion Week still leaves me on the fence, even though certain details are gradually growing on me. The lookbook released this week seems to reveal more about how Anderson envisions the Dior woman, stripped of runway spectacle and contrived styling. READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Beauty, Awaken. Lanvin Pre-Fall 2026

| Design & Culture by Ed

Nearly a year has passed since Peter Copping’s debut at Lanvin. In that time, he has managed to reawaken the beauty of a brand that had been in a coma since Alber Elbaz’s glory days. For pre-fall 2026, the creative director of the oldest operating French maison pursued a refined elegance that feels comforting in its powerful discipline – while also delving deeper into Jeanne Lanvin’s history.

Not many people know that Venice holds a particular significance in the house’s chronicles. It was here that Jeanne traveled with her niece, Marianne, buying fabrics and visiting glass workshops. Archival photographs show Madame Lanvin in a white jacket and a black skirt falling just below the knee – a silhouette she favored whenever she visited the city on the water. That ensemble found its way into Copping’s pre-collection, looking contemporary and desirable.

Alongside creative meditations on Mariano Fortuny’s pleats and Murano glass beads, Copping also introduced striking double-flared silhouettes, ornamented capelets, and tweed tailoring featuring a skirt pinched with a brooch. One velvet column gown in ink black is dramatically gathered by a modernist, brooch-like embellishment. This one felt absolutely Parisian, “chic ultime“.

So far, Copping is offering Lanvin a truly exquisite vision.

ED’s SELECTION:

Lanvin Scarf-detailed Velvet And Gathered Chiffon Blouse


Lanvin Asymmetric Wool Skirt


Lanvin Pleated Chiffon Gown


Lanvin Double-breasted Satin-trimmed Wool Blazer


Lanvin Cat Leather Clutch


Lanvin Scarf-detailed Satin-trimmed Velvet Midi Dress


Lanvin Leather Ankle Boots

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Boys. Dior Men Pre-Fall 2026

| Design & Culture by Ed

Jonathan Anderson’s pre-fall 2026 collection for Dior Men reads as both a continuation and a clarification of his debut collection from the summer. And you know what? I like it. Anderson is betting big on a neo-preppy sensibility: oversized “Delft” cargo shorts, a frat-boy color palette, and a distinct Ralph-Lauren-ification of the Dior universe. What I loved most in this line-up is the way he transformed the “Bar” jacket – rendered here in Donegal wool – into a new menswear classic, something that can be effortlessly worn with faded jeans and a lived-in suede cross-body bag. Another look – a floral jacket layered over a blue striped shirt and paired with pink trousers – plays deliberately with the boundaries of good and bad taste in menswear. There’s an intriguing dialogue between high and low in Jonathan’s approach to Dior, and it makes the language he’s still in the process of defining sound increasingly compelling.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Archetypes. Alaïa Resort 2026

| Design & Culture by Ed

You know, I’m rather on the fence about Pieter Mulier’s Alaïa. The brand’s contemporary creative director has a tendency to cover women in overworked constructions – something Azzedine himself avoided at all costs in his masterful work. Mulier did exactly that with the Gaudí-esque forms and alien-like tubes in his autumn collection, but for spring he shifted toward a more “less is more” approach.

The resort 2026 collection – his first “official” pre-collection, titled “Archetypes” and conceived as a more accessible entry into the Alaïa wardrobe – lands somewhere between these two extremes. There are moments of uplifting lightness, like a truly fabulous vivid-pink, long double-satin bias-cut dress that is “very easy to look at, extremely difficult to make.” There’s also an architectural, high-necked tiger-print coat that’s pure chic. But then come the heavy-looking jackets with armadillo hoods and over-styled layering that somewhat disturb the sense of zen. Meanwhile, the shearling jacket with a peplum recalls Phoebe Philo’s instantly sold-out piece from last season (not the first time Mulier has been seen taking notes from other designers).

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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