From Sept. 29 through Oct. 7, top couture brands around the world, from Hermés to Chanel, showed off their spring 2026 ready-to-wear selection. Here are some top shows from the many brands shown during Paris Fashion Week.
1. Maison Margiela
Glenn Martens, the lead creative designer of Maison Margiela, cooked up something special when sharing his spring 2026 ready-to-wear selection with us, something that set it apart from the remaining shows that week. What is it? An orchestra of children playing classical music to accompany the models as they walked down the runway.
With the children haphazardly playing the classics from Beethoven and Strauss the show felt playful in a way. With 61 looks from the show of the pieces there were lots of dark colors. My favorite piece from the show was look 49, a woman who sported an elegant black and white dress.
In my heart, the house of Maison Margiela could do no wrong. It’s been one of my favorite brands for a minute and it’s done nothing but impress me with each show, and this was no exception.
2. Thom Browne
A brand I slowly continued to love more and more ever since the 2024 Met Gala, Thom Browne redefined American preppiness with his pieces by reimagining what a suit can be with unique hems, patterns and silhouettes. Thom Browne took what a uniform can be and made it into something unique and creative.
For his 2026 spring ready-to-wear show, he took us out of this world, quite literally as the first model came out in a crystal alien head dressed in a bespoke Thom Browne suit which had multiple legs and arms. Each model came out holding a scrolling marquee correlating with their respective look number.
The pieces felt as if I was watching a dinner party on Mars with the extra appendages on clothes where they need not be and the blown out shapes of the silhouettes. It was the most unique of all the shows I watched.
3. Balenciaga
This collection was from the mind of Pierpaolo Piccioli, the new creative director of Balenciaga after coming from Valentino. Despite this being Piccioli’s debut at Balenciaga, he was still able to keep in touch with the overall vibe of Balenciaga: elegant while also being avant-garde and rebellious at times.
I was in love with the show and knew it was going to be great after I saw the first look. This was my favorite piece from the show, it featured a sleeveless black sack dress with crystal alien-eyed sunglasses that covered everything from the nose up. The look was unique but elegant.
After seeing what Piccoli brought to the table for his first show with Balenciaga, I think he has what it takes to hold the mantle of creative director.
