Nicole Kidman, Dua Lipa Front Row as Chanel Takes Flight in Paris

Chanel turned Paris Fashion Week into a bird’s-eye view of its own history. Nicole Kidman, Dua Lipa and Pedro Pascal sat front row at the Grand Palais on Monday, Oct. 5, as creative director Matthieu Blazy showed his Spring/Summer 2027 collection, exactly a year after his debut at the house, AFP via France 24 and The Independent reported.

The guest list was stacked. AFP notes that Pascal and Kidman are brand ambassadors and were joined by Lipa and actor John Malkovich, while The Independent spotted Olivia Wilde and model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. According to The Independent, Lipa arrived in a feathered dress from Chanel’s Cruise 2026/27 collection, Kidman wore a double-breasted blazer with sheer tights, Pascal chose a tweed Chanel overcoat and Wilde paired a tweed suit with the house’s classic two-tone heels. Vogue’s front-row gallery also captured Ayo Edebiri, Marion Cotillard, Alexa Demie and Kristen Wiig.

The theme was flight. “It’s a collection about Gabrielle Chanel’s layered stories. Ultimately, Chanel took off, and each step she took led to her being free, like a bird,” Blazy said in his show notes, as quoted by AFP. Speaking about the collection, he added, per The Independent: “It’s not a historical show, it’s a show about the histories of Chanel.”

The set matched the message. AFP described giant illuminated origami cranes hanging above the runway like a mobile over a child’s bed, and The Independent described a canopy of glowing golden birds, with seating inspired by a southern Italian village where Blazy spends his holidays. Chanel had previewed the collection with black-and-white photographs by British photographer David Bailey featuring feathers, nests and bird’s feet, AFP reported.

On the runway, The Independent counted 83 looks tracing Coco Chanel’s changing wardrobe, from the decorative clothes of her youth to her menswear experiments and the tweed suits that defined the house. The styling leaned into the Noughties: knee-length skirts slung low on the hips to show belts and bare stomachs, cropped tweed jackets worn with nothing underneath, and threads dangling from raw hems and cuffs. Blazy also introduced a new stretchy tweed made from re-embroidered organza and silk.

There was softness, too. The Independent highlighted a powder-blue fitted bodice that burst into a huge white tulle skirt, sheer knits and diaphanous dresses, plus pinstriped trousers and oversized jackets. Accessories stayed classic, with pearl drop earrings, long strands of beads and shells, low-slung belts and quilted chain-strap bags. Model newcomer Dyanira Hurbuscher opened and closed the show carrying Coco Chanel’s original 2.55 handbag, borrowed from the house archives.

The business backdrop is strong. AFP reports that some of Blazy’s designs have sparked so-called “Blazymania” in stores, and that Chanel’s revenues rose by around 16 percent in the first half of the year, according to a Bloomberg report. Paris Womenswear Fashion Week wraps on Tuesday, Oct. 6, with shows including Louis Vuitton. For more fashion and beauty stories, visit our Lifestyle page.

Verification: Front-row names, Blazy’s quotes, set details and collection descriptions come from AFP via France 24 (Oct. 5) and The Independent (Oct. 6); outfit details are as described by The Independent.