We don’t know about you, but we love seeing the continuity of staples in both silhouettes and materiality on the runways. With nearly every second month feeling like it’s fashion week again, this recent week of Fall/Winter 2023 in Paris proved to be no exception; but now, firm favourites appeared across varying houses and labels, all of which are essentials that speak to building longevity in the proverbial winter wardrobe of consumers and observers. We’ll probably be thrifting and buying local when our autumn hits in the next few months and not Givenchy, and although our cycle seems to be ‘later’ because we are in the southern hemisphere: in a digitised world with the kind of peeks we see into fashion through our screens, these are trends that we can get a head start on as we edge neared to autumn in South Africa. Remember, though, trends are not rules; more importantly, they’re a view into the collective, sartorial consciousness.

Blazers
Tailoring is eternal. A blazer never really goes out style; and while iterations might change, the blazer or suit jacket remains an absolute essential. This season, bigger is still better; oversized blazers seen at Stella McCartney, Givenchy and Dries Van Noten in shades of charcoal and root vegetable plaid are perfect for layering and finalising a look, and for those of us thrifters; men’s blazers hit the spot. Head to your nearest charity store and play with different sizes.

Images: Alessandro Lucioni, Dries Van Noten, Givenchy.

Long Coats
Coats, for winter? Groundbreaking. With that said, a coat is very important – and an investment piece worth taking care of for years to come. It seems the trench coat with its usual accents of a belt and oversized collar is a firm favourite; with Paco Rabbane and Chloé going one step further into the realm of fur in a trench-coat silhouette. Courrèges A-line, pin-stripe coat with a rounded neckline was a flex on the importance of dynamic coat shapes – chic, cute, clever.

Images: Alessandro Lucioni, Paco Rabbane.

Faux fur
There are varying views on fur – of course, the standard anti-cruelty regarding fur skins from animals, but it appears the perceived luxuriousness of fur has returned largely in the form of ‘faux’ fur. This means, however, that many houses who have made the great exotic animal exodus, are now using polyester-rich fur replicas; which is just plastic. While not cruel to animals directly, it does beg the question as to whether ecologically harmful materials are still cruel, particularly if they harm entire ecosystems. Fashion’s sustainability darling, Stella McCartney, is one of the labels that has never used fur – being raised vegan, Stella herself is vehemently opposed to using animal skins in any way. With lots of furs on the runway, Stella McCartney made the most noise as far as innovative fabric development; as their faux-fur manifesto explains, “Our Fur-Free Fur looks and feels luxurious, and is completely animal-free. Plus, we are doing our best to make it even better; we have been working with our partners to develop a new plant-based material called KOBA® that will help us reduce the amount of virgin polyester we use.” Chloé has also shown faux fur in the last week, having banned exotic animal skins since 2018, along with Bottega Veneta and Paco Rabbane.

Images: Isidore Montag, Stella McCartney.

Leather
Leather will always be a winter fabric – and in the realm of luxury, too. In different forms at FW23, Matthieu Blazy’s use of leather at Bottega Veneta was a standout success. With oxblood skirts and top sets, or ochre leather trenches, seeing leather in a variety of ways brought what can sometimes feel like an overdone fabric, back into a space of nuance and complexity. Matthew Williams’ leather vision at Givenchy was perhaps a bit safer, but in the realm of deep charcoals with a slightly subversive twist.

Images: Filippo Fior, Bottega Veneta.

All images sourced via VogueRunway.com.

Written by: Holly Beaton

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