Helen Mirren, 76,  walks for L’Oreal

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan may have been crowned Miss World back in the day but it was Dame Helen Mirren who stepped out as Queen at the L’Oreal show at Paris Fashion Week. The 76 year old walked out against an iconic Eiffel Tower backdrop, braving a light drizzle in a sequined black suit, high heels and very dramatic eye liner. She was walking for this year’s show that reportedly aimed to make a statement against street harassment while advocating for women's empowerment. The show also featured dancers wearing
T-shirts that said “Feminist and Feminine.” There were other brand ambassadors too but this one was the one.

“I am not gorgeous and I never was, but I was always OK-looking and I’m keen to stay that way,” Mirren had said back in 2014, when she had signed up as L’Oreal brand ambassador.

The Simpsons for Balenciaga

Bart, Homer, Marge, Lisa and Maggie, best known as The Simpsons, made their runway debut during Paris Fashion Week and that too for luxury house Balenciaga. Gathering for the label's Spring-Summer 2022 showcase, guests were treated to a 10-minute special episode of The Simpsons, in which the family travels to Paris to model a range of iconic Balenciaga looks. If you thought Kim Kardashian’s Met Gala Balenciaga look was gimmickry at its best, then this show hit it completely out of the park.

Climate activist takes over the Louis Vuitton show

In a finale of sorts, a climate change activist got into the Louis Vuitton show and catwalked down an opulent runway holding a hand painted sign that read OVERCONSUMPTION = EXTINCTION. Three climate activist groups were mentioned at the bottom of the sign and have publicly aligned themselves with the action: the French chapters of Extinction Rebellion, Youth for Climate, and Friends of the Earth. A group of protesters with signs also gathered outside the Louvre, where the show took place.

“La planete brule mais la mode regarde ailleurs,” wrote Extinction Rebellion France in an Instagram post. This translates roughly to “The planet is burning, but fashion looks elsewhere.” This wasn’t the lasting impression LV was looking for, surely.

Chloe for Climate Control

Gabriela Hearst, the creative director of Chloe, put thought behind the climate emergency and presented a collection of sustainable clothes. In collection notes, Hearst said that she believed “luxury fashion has become overly industrialised”. So her vest dresses were crocheted by hand. Necklaces were made from seashells knotted on to twists of leftover fabric from previous collections. Handbags were created by knitting more strands of deadstock fabric, and had hand-braided leather handles. The artisan-produced pieces, which the house believes are “innately low-impact”, will be given the highest status in boutiques and embossed with a “Chloe Craft” logo. Beautiful and correct? That’s fashion we need to get used to.