The Butterfly Effect | Issue 17
Palate Cleanser
For his fourth ready-to-wear show, Matthieu Blazy transformed the Grand Palais into a construction site replete with primary color cranes. However, that all faded into the background as the models took to the runway in frothy, effervescent concoctions.
Blazy served a menu of mouthwatering treats: bouclé—a house signature—drop waists, sheers, fringe, and colors so juicy they felt almost edible.
Blazy introduced the collection in a whisper—a black ribbed merino wool skirt set. Look 2 tweaked the formula: a beige knit over a black pencil skirt, both finished with gold zippers.
But these were just the amuse-bouche—wetting the palate—the entrées plated at Look 4: a beige-meringue bouclé knit skirt suit with looped-fringe hems. Chef’s kiss. Look 5 was back to black—a ballooning column dress cinching gently just under the hips and flaring again at the ankle—a silhouette Blazy tweaked again and again. The only accessory was a bold gold necklace featuring amber-colored eternity-style medallions—simple yet arresting.
Looks 8-13 were a subtle slide into color—Blazy introduced red, and Look 13 brought a pink V-neck silk skirt set and pleated-hem duster, a nod to ‘20s flappers that Zelda Fitzgerald, herself, would have proudly donned.
Blazy’s metamorphosis took full flight at Look 17: a frothy mint-green silk négligé-inspired top, embellished with metallic thread flowers and pearls, two golden dragonflies perched at the apex of each ivory-meringue silk strap. The straps trailed off to a back that was perhaps even more arresting. They culminated in a V at the small of the back and gently looped before trailing to the floor, joining the wings of the green silk top. A metallic threaded chainmail-esque skirt perfectly finished the look.
Look 73: the cherry on top, an almost Serendipity-worthy dessert—a whipped medley of pink and red lace, bouclé, and three-dimensional flowers. Did Blazy indulge at the famous ice-cream shop while in New York for his subway show? Perhaps…
Featuring a columnar silhouette, the dress, held up at each shoulder by a pale-pink petaled feathery flower, was fitted at the bodice with lace-underwire cups. The cups spilled over into pale pink silk, the fabric giving way at the waist to an inverted V-shaped red-lace panel, then at the hip to pale blush embroidery sprinkled with 3D metallic flowers that twinkled in the runway lights. The embroidery culminated in a lace panel hitting below the knee. A pink bouclé jacket swung jauntily in the model’s hand.
Overall, the collection was jubilant.
Candy apple red appearing in fringe and punching up the palette in suits and dresses.
Flower embellishments blooming in joyful, neat rows of lavender and green on the pale blush suit in Look 65.
Joyous plaids woven in bright pops of metallic thread. Pattern and color ran bright across the collection.
Blazy served up a garden theme—ripe with hope, joy, and froth.
And after the cocoon of four runway shows?
This caterpillar has truly morphed into a butterfly.
Blazy’s wings? Resplendent.
Images courtesy of Vogue Runway