On the list of things you didn’t expect to hear at Paris Fashion Week was Gwen Stefani’s Cool, which scored the Paco Rabanne show. Seeing how it was the debut of Julien Dossena and the start of a new era for the house, it was hard not to read into the lyrics. 'After all that we’ve been through, I know we’re cool,' Stefani sang as Dossena’s highly sporty – and definitely very cool – take on the Paco Rabanne woman dashed down the runway. Over the past couple of years it hasn’t been easy for the house to find a modern platform for its admittedly rather specific USP of silvery, chainmaily things. But Stefani’s words didn’t seem to exaggerate the situation at all.
Dossena’s sporty vibes sat quite effortlessly with the Paco Rabanne aesthetic, and while house signatures had been limited to the minimal it still felt somewhat familiar. If there was a certain Balenciaga feeling about the cuts and materials and the way they were paired, it was probably justified by history. After all, Rabanne did pretty much trademark metallics, even if he was more into chainmail than Dossena’s lamé-like tops, which were worn under masculine-tailored coats and jackets.
