Meet The Couture Brides Of Fall 2021
Is couture's almost 80-year-old tradition of wrapping a show with a bridal look be something we need more than ever now?
Some things never change. If we're talking about haute couture shows, one tradition that remains alive is that of a bride closing the show.
The actress Margaret Qualley stole the show at Chanel's first haute couture show with a live audience in half a year. She sauntered towards the courtyard of the Palais Galliera like a blushing bride wearing a '40s-influenced wedding dress in pink and a sequinned veil.
Coincidentally, this tradition of parading a bridal look took off in the post-War era starting from the late '40s. European fashion houses like Balmain and Lanvin capped their presentations with a in the form of an extravagant wedding gown as a special treat to accompany the more down-to-earth styles that characterised couture shows back then.
Margaret Qualley dressed as a bride at the Chanel Fall/Winter 2021 couture show.
So what's new with this tradition now that we're living in a Covid world and our priorities are realigned? For one, not every brand rolled out a wedding dress. For the handful which did, it's unfair to say things have been simplified – couture is a rarefied club of artisanal craftsmanship after all.
Perhaps what the couture bride represents is that glimmer of fantasy and dream and a reminder of the workmanship that the fashion industry rests on.
Ahead, a quick survey of couture brides so far this season.
For his first couture outing at Balenciaga (also the maison's first since Cristobal Balenciaga hung his scissors in 1967), Demna Gvasalia created a timeless bridal look that pays homage to one of Monsieur Balenciaga's last creations from 54 years ago.
The bridal frippery at Schiaparelli boasted a reported 70 metres of white cartridge pleated taffeta.
Chanel ambassador and Once Upon a Time in Hollwyood star Margaret Qualley closed the Chanel show in a chic soft pink gown with a scooped back. The pillbox hat and veil were apparently based on an image of Coco Chanel from the '30s.
Maria Grazia Chiuri's bride for Dior was a vision in green, wearing a cowl neck gown with feather embroidery and a gradient veil with foliage motif.
Perhaps as an ode to traditional bridal couture look, Dutch designer Ronald van der Kemp who is known for his upcycled couture philosophy, created a gown made from layers of leather links.