Dream Weavers

We all need to dream — especially these days — and for fans of fashion, there is no greater dream than the couture. Those three or four days in Paris of fantastical designs are the pinnacle of creativity — and proof that fashion can, indeed, at times approach the level of art.

The spring 2025 couture season was no exception, with collections by an alphabet of designers — Ashi Studio to Zuhair Murad, stopping by Chanel, Dior, Germanier, Elie Saab, Schiaparelli and Giambattista Valli along the way. Giorgio Armani celebrated the 20th anniversary of his Privé couture line with a collection that focused on his love of Japan, as well as of China, India, North Africa and Polynesia.

Chanel, awaiting the arrival of new creative director Matthieu Blazy in April, emphasized house founder Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel’s love of color. At Dior, Maria Grazia Chiuri showed her most romantic collection to date, while Elie Saab emphasized denim and Daniel Roseberry at Schiaparelli created uber-opulent hourglass shapes.

Beyond these, two major debuts occurred during the season. At Valentino, new creative director Alessandro Michele produced what WWD Weekend’s Paris bureau chief Joelle Diderich described as “couture for the metaverse era,” a wealth of references so vast that Michele left a stack of papers as thick as a dissertation on each attendee’s seat to describe them. Over at Jean Paul Gaultier, on the other hand, guest designer Ludovic de Saint Sernin left little to the imagination, envisioning a shipwreck where only sexy pirates, mermaids, sea monsters and sailors survived in barely there clothes.

The one thing all of these designs — from Armani’s Eastern embellishments to de Saint Sernin’s bodyskimming styles — have in common is that they took literally months to create. The artistry of couture is the antithesis of fast fashion.

WWD Weekend, on the other hand, loves to move fast as our constant goal is to ensure our readers get the most up-to-date images and information out there. So after each show, style director Alex Badia would immediately reach out to the brands to request key looks for our cover shoot, which took place the day after the final couture shows of the season. Photographer Szilveszter Makó, model Aimee Byrne, along with Alex, gathered in a Paris studio three weeks ago and you can now enjoy the artistic results, both the photos and the designs.

But while couture has always been the pinnacle of fashion, there was a time when it was accessible to all via paper patterns that brands from Lanvin to Yves Saint Laurent would sell so women could create their own versions of couture at home. While many of these patterns have disappeared, WWD Weekend executive editor Booth Moore visits the Couture Pattern Museum in Santa Barbara, Calif., whose founder Cara Austine-Rademaker is determined to preserve as many as she can find.

Of course, the couture and Paris go hand in hand, so WWD Weekend also looks at a way even commoners can enjoy a feast meant for royalty thanks to Alain Ducasse, or the lucky can stay in the private apartment of one of the City of Light’s premier restaurants, La Tour d’Argent. Then there is the Palais Royal, which European beauty editor Jennifer Weil reveals is where beauty spots are popping up all over.

This issue, as always, has plenty more about art — from designers’ favorite museums to a new exhibit in London on the late Leigh Bowery and the Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo Foundation in Milan; food; beauty (“quiet” facelift, anyone?), and fashion, all aimed to help you indulge, either in reality or just to fantasize.

So sit back, enjoy the issue and, above all: Have fun.