Between Romanticism and Reality, The Best Haute Couture Collections Of This SS 21

A new Haute Couture like the year we are experiencing, this one of the SS 21 presentations. The great fashion houses are divided between those who, to escape from the present day, have turned their gaze to a past made of sophisticated glitz and romanticism, and who instead faced the present head on by imposing new trends that wink at being a real lifestyle. In short, an unprecedented approach, which reveals the desire on the part of the main brands to communicate with their audience, leaving behind the magical allure, yes, but typically icy, of high fashion. The attention to detail goes from being manic to completely non-existent from catwalk to catwalk, celebrating a style that, finally, is not the same for everyone.

DIOR HC SS 21

Designed by Maria Grazia Chiuri, the Dior Haute Couture SS 2021 collection tells the most hidden face of one of the greatest couturiers in fashion history, Monsieur Christian Dior. The inspiration of the collection reveals his soul, revealing his fears and beliefs. A secret pact with the fortune teller, Madame Delahaye, who once predicted the fate of the iconic designer. Under the direction of the now fond Matteo Garrone, Dior’s SS 21 takes place in a film that recalls the esoteric world of divination, inspired by the strong superstition of the tailor. Foreshadowing stars and fortune tellers who predict destiny transform the collection into a 14-minute fairy tale, set in the Tuscan castle of Sammezzano, in which the models are wonderful water lilies. Le Château du Tarot, this is the name of the short film, opens with a young woman who, in order to have her tarot reads, draws the Popess from the deck, a symbol of the dichotomy between the earthly and spiritual universe. A series of iconic figures for tarot cards such as the High Priestess, Justice and the Fool become the exceptional models of garments that take up the savoir-fair of the couturier to reinvent them in a stylistic twist of which only Maria Grazia Chiuri could be capable . The male universe merges with the female one in Bar jackets with unprecedented curves and no gender tailored suits, to then clash with dream clothes that recall the fashion of the most esoteric Middle Ages. Velvets, chiffon, lace, embroidery, hand-painted details and zodiac signs woven in precious jacquard materials make up the dresses of a SS 21 which, this time, does not speak only to women but with splendor recalls the torments of the souls of all of us.

VALENTINO HC SS 21

If we were to give an award to the most innovative Haute Couture collection of recent years, well we would undoubtedly give this to Pierpaolo Piccioli and his SS 21 collection. , everything seems except Haute Couture. The lines of the garments are simple, the casual looks and the color palettes are soft, where is the majesty of high fashion? In the unprecedented ability of the looks to completely steal the show from the opulence of the room, to capture the attention of a wonderfully ecstatic audience. Perfectly in the style of the couturier Valentino Garavani, Piccioli has managed to redefine the concept of Haute Couture, with a wardrobe that is finally real, which is not afraid to face the true essence of our times, to invest in concrete and beautiful fashion. Everyday looks made of tailored trousers and coats broken by very high platform shoes, which recall the fashion of the 90s. Sweaters, dresses, skirts but above all outerwear tell of a democratic high fashion that adapts to this era without ever neglecting that feeling of amazement and admiration that typically arouses. «Haute couture is a ritual of thousands of gestures, one more precious than the other. It is a heritage to be celebrated, preserved and above all projected forward». And it is precisely this forward projection that is the key to the success of the collection, which after a series of everyday looks enchants everyone with evening dresses made of cascades of sequins and beads, outerwear with lurex fringes and golden over the knee boots. The color palette recalls this year’s trendy Pantones: yellow, purple, gold and greige alternate beautifully in the garments in color block compositions that we will hardly forget.

GIAMBATTISTA VALLI HC SS 21

A romanticism that never ends up becoming cloying, that of Giambattista Valli who interprets the Haute Couture SS 21 collection as a hymn to femininity and pastel colors. Tulle, the iconic protagonist of the collection, is mixed with flower petals and soft colors such as white, pink and yellow, to create beautifully idealistic dresses. A reminder to the sumptuous style of the Olympians, embodied in flower headdresses and Greek-style dresses composed of wide skirts, ruffles, hand-worked ruffles and bows and feathers to embellish. A dream that makes us sentimental and capable of instilling wisdom and elegance, referring faithful to the idea that fashion, especially Haute Couture, should become the ambassador of an essential good and elegant ethics.

CHANEL HC SS 21

“I knew that we could not organize a great show, that we would have to invent something else, so I came up with the idea of ​​a small procession that would descend the stairs of the Grand Palais and pass under arches of flowers. Like a party of flowers. family, a wedding… ”says Virginie Viard setting the tone for the Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2021 collection. The Haute Couture Salons at 31 rue Cambon have reopened to host the incredible Chanel show. The spaces are redecorated by Jacques Grange and inspired by the feminine charm of the living rooms imagined by Gabrielle Chanel. The protagonist is a bride, who could have just stepped out of a photo of the 1920s, with her veil, her long dress in ecru satin crepe with a train, embroidered by Lesage with rhinestone and pearls butterflies. The following looks recall this idea of ​​dance, freedom and summer evening parties with petticoats, crêpe georgette flounces, two-tone Mary-Jane with double strap and ankle boots wedges decorated with a thin golden grid. The long dresses in white daisy lace with integrated cape, the iconic tweed suits, the sequin skirts and the cat-eye glasses with a 1950s flavor are surprising.

“I always think about what women would like to have in their wardrobe today,” concludes Virginie Viard.

SCHIAPARELLI HC SS 21

Anchored to a more than iconic heritage, the Haute Couture SS 21 collection by Schiaparelli recalls the idea of ​​a fashion that blends sculptural art with tailoring, to create looks that more than garments become unforgettable frames of a concrete message that leaves little room for imagination. The female body is the undisputed protagonist in all its characteristics, which are taken up in an almost architectural construct in the bustiers, skirts and trousers. Materials such as leather, denim and silk give character to dresses that are simple and majestic at the same time, which do not seem to be detached from the present day but rather, anchored to them with a sumptuousness that only high fashion can offer. However, it is the details that really amaze: maxi Rosa Schiaparelli bows complete corsets and tops together with jewels that more than accessories look like marvelous sculptures made of metal plates, pearls and glass boules that recall the shapes of the human body and all its declinations .