SHOWnews: A Kim Jones Finale, adidas Again By Stella McCartney, IM Men Installed

A Kim Jones Finale Fendi Campaign

Kim Jones has funny timing. As he exits from the role of artistic director at Dior Homme, his final S/S 25 campaign for Fendi premiers. Tag team creative partners Ronnie Cooke Newhouse and Steven Meisel reconvene to imagine Mona Tougaard and Lina Zhang as archetypes of timeless style passed through Fendi's 100-year-old matriarchy. Consider surface decoration from Vanessa Redgrave as Clarissa Dalloway. Then, consider the roaring twenties with that high wattage Art Deco art direction from 2013’s Great Gatsby. Next, attach soft construction with delicate embroideries against the backbone of Adele Fendi, who co-founded the house. What results is Jones' cracked code that designed a formidable female legacy within the cinematic impact of ‘soft’ dressing in his final (and possibly best) Fendi collection and campaign.

IM Men In Three Parts

Sincerely relentless attempts — running from Ubers, darting into Le Métro, frozen limbs wandering aimlessly in parks — to attend Issey Miyake shows the past six months have not worked out. Fortunately, the Issey Miyake machine launched an adjunct exhibition called FLY WITH IM MEN that explained how, who and why the IM Men debut was met with approval from attendees who actually knew how to find the show venue easily. First a brief lesson (detailed from a very good IM expert onsite): IM Men started in 2021. It is not Pleats Please nor is it an Homme Plissé runway replacement. It is a material science stracciatella that resolves form, function and construction through clever technical results. Think of craft principles with a lab coat.

The exhibition pushed runway concepts one extra day to detail how the making happened. Exit 12 above was produced in partnership with Japanese textile manufacturer Toray. It was made from plant-based Ultrasuede™ with foil printing applied to fabric for an eel-skin hand. Another series called Sakiori repurposed polyester fabrics using the Japanese weaving technique of the same name, creating something new from what was once discarded.

A personal favourite was the Kasuri series that reinterpreted traditional dyeing methods with a modern touch, utilising jacquard weaving to produce graphic patterns with minimal fabric cuts. This resulted in the parka below, which can be worn in 3 variant styles. The exhibition installation by Japanese designer Tokujin Yoshioka, displayed IM Men’s cutting-edge technology with traditional weave or dying methods across digital screens and physical machines. This allowed runway garments breathing room to tell a longform fabric story as Paris men’s shows zoomed by outside. Serenity in fashion had a nice change of pace.

Stella McCartney and Alex Consani See Red

Did anyone notice the trainers Lineisey Montero and Victoria Fawole wore at Stella McCartney S/S 25?

Alex Consani wore them too, but we tend to overstress her industry presence here. Anyways, they debuted a few days ago. If you are into trainers, yet ignore fashion runways, it is a legacy shoe for Stella McCartney. Its high-top silhouette (with fringe! we do love fringe!) is made entirely from vegan materials, with a nod to vintage racing shoes and draws direct inspiration from Stella’s first runway show for S/S 02, then worn by Liisa Winkler (same colour if memory serves). We purposefully buried the lead, thinking you were thinking of the adidas Monza. This makes you half-correct since you have a firm grasp on adidas pop culture history. Since this isn’t S/S 02 anymore, Stella McCartney put Consani, Montero and Fawole in an updated Rasant style. It makes much more sense to keep this whole Stella x adidas 23-year ball rolling with more newness. The Stella McCartney x adidas Rasants are available right now, but you likely knew that right?

Dior High Joaillerie On Sunday

During Paris menswear shows last week, Villa Dior hosted the SHOWstudio team to discover ​​Victoire de Castellane’s new collection for Dior Joaillerie. Between sips of Dior-branded ‘chocolat chaud,’ a pink topiary maze guided us across de Castellane’s narrative guipure reimagined as an enchanted garden fit for a queen. Inspired by Milly-la-Forêt, Christian Dior’s cherished retreat, lace was a captivating invitation to wander with heritage. Seventy-six pieces stood as detailed tributes to organic beauty where asymmetry and foliage intertwined. Bursting through this interplay were lively golds, diamonds, rubies and sapphires. de Castellane seemingly created each piece as if spun from a loom of gossamer threads. We saw incandescent couture reflecting in resplendent stones inside an unreal forest. Dior’s Milly Dentelle provided a solution to the possibilities of craftsmanship culling eternal beauty found in the natural world. Plus, complementary chocolates from Dior and Chef Jean Imbert — carved in Bee, Cannage and ‘CD’ symbols of the maison — were a delicious end to the experience.

Jil Sander Olfactory Series 1 Is Here

Jil Sander launches its new Olfactory Series 1 as a six-fragrance collection that redefines the smell of modernity. In partnership with powerhouse beauty company Coty, precision and understated elegance redefine Jil Sander’s ethos. Beveled, bold concept design bottles a collection that emits nature's raw beauty. A sensory extension of the Jil Sander world takes botany into a universally understood aromatic language. From the citroen of Jil Sander Leaf to the floral spice of Jil Sander Earth, each scent serves as a balance of intimacy and poise, inviting an exploration of the nuances unto themselves, each subtle yet punchy. Jil Sander Miel offers a woodsy (cedarwood'sy) warmth, while Jil Sander Coffea fuses amber and coffee in an imaginative clash. The compositions reflect the house Mrs. Sander founded — cleaving excess, leaving the essential. Jil Sander Olfactory Series 1 connects to human nature. Six scents impel you to engage the world around you with modern clarity.

Camilla And Marc Go Perfume Genius This Season

The S/S 25 collection introduced from Camilla and Marc induces a sense of palpable scents into clothes. Invoking the meticulous skill required to craft an antique feeling around a bottle is the base note for the new collection. Direct your eyes to consider less about sweat and more about the result. Camilla and Marc work hard to emote harder. Contrasts evolve over time. Airy beginnings begat darker depths and richer tones. Again, scents are the muse here. Camilla and Marc’s multi-layered complexity springs to life through texture juxtaposing sculpture. A delicate design language dances between light and shadow; fragility and strength. The collection evokes a visual representation of a fragrance journey from top to base notes. This elevates the everyday with layers of meaning.

‘The Spring Summer 25 collection is reminiscent of the precious intricacies of everyday moments that leave an indelible link on who we are. We found this sentiment reflected in the world of fragrance and scent, which then inspired the essence of the collection. Spring Summer is an entry point into the notion that there is always more than the eye can see and encourages us to look beyond the clothes and into the preciousness within.’

— Camilla Freeman-Topper, Camilla And Marc Creative Director

Multifaceted supermodel Mariacarla Boscono is the seasonal standardbearer for fragrances transmitted into clothes. Each piece in the collection — from a mesh sequinned skirt or a terracotta blazer in twill — speaks to an observational sense of depth. The color palette mimics the emotional arc a scent takes. For S/S 25 Camilla and Marc invite you to look beyond the fabric into what lies beneath the surface.

Byredo Hears A Whoo

In a minimal room with a miniature owl, sits Byredo’s brand new bag. The Whoo bag is a black-white testament to colour-crafted workmanship. Shot in equally black and white spotlights by Luis Alberto Rodriguez, campaign imagery exudes rigour and ritual, with the bag serving as a testament to meditative focus. Hence the prying, spying owl. It all nods to the bag’s name, a semblance of novel practicality. The Whoo is part of the Kantha collection, where high-tech machine precision meets centuries-old Indian embroidery techniques. Each bag is a handcrafted work — every stitch, knot and seam marks a decided mastery of know-how. Finished in a hand-picked Italian workshop, the Whoo’s supple, full-grain calf leather is destined to age gracefully, becoming more distinct with time.

The Whoo celebrates distinctive details. Embroidered leather straps, semi-precious stone accents and a hand-drawn gold-leaf illustration under the flap reflect the dedication to artistry that defines Byredo. This is the embodiment of the Kantha spirit fusing function and form in a way that feels timelessly modern. With every turn, every glance, you discover more Whoo. It is a tactile journey through a world where craftsmanship reigns. This bag pays tribute to patience, imagination and history woven into each one-of-its-kind piece.

The Whoo bag is available in selected Byredo stores from February 25.