Guests at the Chanel autumn/winter 2024 haute couture show were all looking for signs of what’s to come at the storied Parisian label after it parted ways with creative director Virginie Viard earlier this month.

Attended by house ambassadors such as Keira Knightley and Sadie Sink, the event took place inside Paris’ opera house, Palais Garnier. The locale embodies the same values of Chanel’s haute couture: “beauty, patience and excellence”, as the brand put it in an Instagram post teasing the unveiling. (Chanel is also a major patron of the Paris opera and sponsors its yearly opening gala.)

Those suits and the collection’s diaphanous gowns – not to mention a few outfits decorated with bows and ribbons that were just lovely – will keep clients more than happy while the fashion world eagerly waits to find out what the new chapter in the history of this French institution will look like.

Armani Privé

The Italian designer still helms the label he founded almost 50 years ago and shows no signs of slowing down. After unveiling two men’s collections in Milan only two weeks ago – one for his eponymous label, and the other for Emporio Armani – he and his team decamped to Paris for the autumn/winter 2024-25 show of Armani Privé, his haute couture line.

Shimmery fabrics, liquid silhouettes and sculpted tailoring predominated in the elegant collection. Pearl embellishments and pearl-shaped accessories were more literal interpretations of the theme, which Armani chose to provide a sense of “serenity” and “calm” in these turbulent times.

Armani Privé is famously a red carpet favourite – just look at all the A-listers the designer dresses every award season. You’re likely to see the evening gowns from this collection, especially the ones in black velvet and nude satin, on many of his famous fans – such as actresses Cate Blanchett and Fala Chen, who were both in attendance.