Matthieu Blazy’s defiant first step into Chanel couture felt like something out of a dream. What he delivered in Paris was not just another runway show. It was a reimagining of what couture could be for the house that defined modern fashion. The Grand Palais was unrecognizable. Instead of the usual marble floors and soaring glass ceilings, the space felt like an enchanted forest. Towering, candy-colored mushrooms sprouted among sugary pink willow trees. It was a fairytale landscape where couture looked alive, breathing between stems and caps, and where every outfit seemed part of a larger story.
Early in the presentation, pieces echoed Chanel’s heritage but felt wholly reinvented. Soft silk mousseline in pale blush and ivory appeared almost weightless against the fantastical set. The opening looked was a sheer tailored skirt suit where the jacket’s edges were edged with quartz beads and tiny pearls. The skirt floated just above the floor, barely brushing it, so it seemed to move of its own accord. These were not clothes that announced themselves with volume. They revealed themselves in motion, in the quiet poetry of cut and fabric.
Across the runway, garments hinted at the natural world that surrounded them. Tweeds were dyed to resemble owl feathers. One dress in cream and brown had sleeves that curved like wings, and embroidery suggested the intricate patterning of a woodpecker’s plumage. There were dresses that seemed to shift from peacock green to muted charcoal as the model walked, crafted with layers of chiffon and organza so fine they merged with the air around them. Nothing was literal. Feathers appeared not as appendages but as texture and suggestion, almost like a whisper of movement.
Blazy also played with everyday silhouettes in unexpected ways. A pair of blue trousers appeared to be jeans at first glance, but they were woven from silk mousseline, offering the illusion of casualwear with couture precision. A crisp white T-shirt appeared under a translucent organza skirt, bridging high fashion and daily life with a directness that felt fresh.
Towards the middle of the show, the palette warmed. Earthy reds and creams interwove in layered creates that moved like plumage without ever feeling heavy. One standout piece was a dress where red, black, and cream threads layered across the bodice, creating a landscape of texture that felt almost alive. Feathered cuffs brushed wrists and ankles, but always with restraint. The clothes nodded to history and nature without leaning on spectacle.
Accessories were subtle but significant. Chanel’s iconic 2.55 bags returned in new forms. Some were translucent, with mousseline chains that echoed the lightness of the clothes. Inside, tiny embroidered initials and motifs made each piece feel personal. Love letters, zodiac signs, and charms hid within, a quiet invitation into the wearer’s own story. Nails were also part of the accessories, instead of plain polish, bespoke bird-inspired art graced fingertips to reflect the natural references throughout the collection.
Beyond the clothes themselves, what made this moment remarkable was how the audience responded. A-list figures filled the front row. There was A$AP Rocky in a sharply tailored suit that nodded to Chanel’s couture codes while feeling entirely modern. His look was anchored in classic black with a subtle sheen, and he paired it with minimalist accessories so that the overall effect was quiet power.
Nicole Kidman attended wearing a floor-length gown in cream with delicate, almost watercolor-like embroidery. The dress had a high neckline and fitted bodice, but the skirt rippled like silk falling through water. Pearls dotted the embroidery in clusters rather than lines, which gave them the look of dew drops on petals. She carried a small minaudière wrapped in tweed, and it felt like a tactile echo of the pieces on the runway.
Next to her, Dua Lipa embraced the show’s dreamlike quality with a bold look of her own. She wore a flowing chiffon dress in pale pink, with layers that cascaded to the floor in gentle waves. Around her waist was a slim, chain-linked belt that caught the light as she turned. The neckline dipped just so, and the shoulders were soft, almost undone, giving her silhouette a fluid grace that matched the theme of the evening.
Margaret Qualley also stood out. Her couture suit was in an unexpected deep forest green. The jacket was cut close, almost like a second skin, and the trousers were wide-legged, brushing the tops of her shoes. Underneath, a sheer blouse with delicate embroidery added an ethereal contrast. These looks felt chosen not simply to be seen, but to belong within the fairytale world Blazy had created.
Other guests like Penélope Cruz and Margaret Qualley opted for looks that felt right at home in the enchanted world Blazy had created. Cruz appeared in a jewel-toned gown with subtle floral details at the neckline and sleeves, the dress’ deep hue playing against the soft pink surroundings. Qualley chose a pastel tweed dress with faint metallic threads woven through, giving her look a quiet luminosity that caught the lights of the venue just so.
While the audience were dressed in couture worthy of the front row, the models on the runway encapsulated the collection’s heart. One standout look featured a dress with a bodice heavily embroidered with fine threads that shimmered like morning dew and a skirt of layered tulle that felt almost translucent. Another had a cropped jacket with knife-sharp pleats over a soft slip skirt, the contrast between structure and delicacy playing out like a visual metaphor for the whole show.
A particularly striking moment came when the models began to feel like characters in this forest dream. A look inspired by a peacock’s plumage was rendered in deep greens and blues, the fabrics pleated and layered so that with every move they seemed to quiver like feathers in the wind. Another echoed the shape of an owl’s quiet watchfulness through curved embroidery and muted brown tones. These weren’t literal bird costumes. They were interpretations of flight and presence that made the collection feel alive.
He didn’t shy away from tradition either. Classic Chanel tweeds made appearances, but even they were softened, reimagined with edges that felt frayed as if worn in by time, or dyed into gradients that evoked the palette of sunrise. One tweed jacket paired with gauzy trousers created a fusion of heritage and innovation that seemed to say this house can honour its past while stepping into its future.
Matthieu also played with accessories in ways that felt poetic. Some models carried tiny bags shaped like mushrooms, tiny and sculptural, while others wore gloves in colours that pulled from the setting’s pinks and greens. Shoes echoed the forest idea too, with some heels shaped to resemble rounded caps or textured like bark. These weren’t playful afterthoughts. They were integrated into the designs as if every piece was part of a larger ecosystem.
By the time the final look appeared, it felt like a crescendo. The outfit was a gown of layered silk in shifting tones of blush and cream, the train sweeping the floor like petals caught in a breeze. Embroidery along the bodice caught the lights, sending tiny reflections into the audience. It was the kind of piece that could seem too theatrical if not executed with confidence, but here it felt earned, the perfect summation of a collection that had spoken of flight, story, and possibility.
Audience reaction was immediate and warm. There was a standing ovation when the last model passed, a rare and sincere response in couture circles where polite applause often feels measured and restrained. Designers, editors, and clients alike seemed to understand that this wasn’t just a show but a shift — a clear signal that this house under his direction is ready to speak in its own voice.
In the wake of such a show, the world waited to see how critics would frame it. Many highlighted the vulnerability in the choices he made — placing lightness and personal detail above pure spectacle. Others underlined how he balanced respect for Chanel’s codes with a willingness to look outward, toward nature and emotion rather than archive alone.
When you think about couture you expect craftsmanship, heritage, and drama. But at its heart you also expect meaning. Here the clothes carried whispers of stories, textures that felt like memories, and shapes that urged you to linger with them a little longer. The fairytale garden was not just scenery. It was part of the narrative he wanted every guest to walk into and carry home with them.
This moment will be remembered not just for its spectacle but for how it redefined what couture can be at its best — a place where imagination and tradition coexist in harmony.
