
Apocalypse Now

Sunday Service

The wrap of fashion month is usually met with excitement—a giddy anticipation surrounding fall’s upcoming wardrobes and the sartorial stories that will unfold both on the streets and on the page. This year, however, there was a more somber sentiment when marking the end of four long weeks, as the coronavirus spread and fashion landmarks like Milan were forced into lockdown.
This feeling was reflected on the catwalk. At Max Mara, Rick Owens, and Louis Vuitton, models came out armed for battle with parkas that left them enveloped in protective padding, their dresses covered in code. When in need of some sartorial salvation, Balenciaga and Loewe had us dressed for church with their clerical collections. Paco Rabanne quite literally honored Saint Joan of Arc with plates of armor in their signature chainmail. In an attempt to lighten the mood, Celine, Gucci and Marc Jacobs urged us to channel our inner child, with Peter Pan collars and shortened hemlines. Then there were the sequined red sheaths from Bottega Veneta and Valentino, which managed to outshine any looming doom.
When analyzing the season’s most noteworthy trends, we’d be remiss to leave out two of the shows’s biggest stars: hand sanitizer and face masks. Below, find 10 of W’s most talked-about trends of the new decade with a promise that no matter what lies ahead, there will always be fringed sleeves, novelty knits, and mini dresses.
Following public adoration of athleisure, a newfound love of dressing up and showing out emerges. There was the matching brocade top and pants at Celine and Prada, a superwoman status cape at Givenchy, a bubblegum pink, dramatic sleeve at Fendi, and a sequin shaw at Valentino. Also, the coincidence that many of the looks walked on industry youngster Kaia Gerber is not lost on us.