There’s nothing more magical than the City of Light come December. So it’s only fitting that last night’s Chanel Métiers d’Art show, which returned to Paris after decamping to Hamburg, then New York the past two years, put forth a festive fever dream inside the Grand Palais. Celebrating the exquisite craftsmanship of the French fashion house’s atelier, the evening marked Virginie Viard’s first Métiers d’Art collection following Karl Lagerfeld‘s passing in February.
Above the shimmering gowns, gilded tweed suits, and fluid silk dresses, there were myriad beauty statements that seemed designed for a holiday party mood board. As tends to be the case backstage at Chanel, hairstylist Sam McKnight was hard at work decorating model lengths with a varied mix of hair accessories: Loose curls were topped with ribbon bows, sharp bobs slicked back with velvet padded headbands, and polished low ponytails fastened at the base with camellia barrettes accented by fishnet underlay. Unadorned were buoyant afros and a throng of “thick, wet masculine wave” updos, which McKnight twisted in the back for an ultra streamlined effect. “Virginie Viard’s Chanel has a new cool girl ease, bringing back many of the codes we all love and recognize—black bows and white camellias—with a cool understated modernity,” explained McKnight.
Harmonizing with the twinkling embroideries and ornate accessories of the collection, Chanel’s global creative makeup and color director, Lucia Pica, washed lids in an iridescent silver shadow, while punctuating a few sets of gazes—see: Gigi Hadid and Rebecca Logendyke—with single-crystal decals pressed on the inner corners. For some girls, like Sofia Steinberg and Nina Fresneau, it was all about the lips, their mouths painted a gorgeous blackish-violet. From the metallic smoky eyes to the soigné hair statements, there was no shortage of looks fit for a rooftop party overlooking a twinkling Eiffel Tower or late Christmas Eve dinner at the Ritz Paris.
Originally published on Vogue.com
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