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 so-called fantasy look 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.
