Follow your intuition: Сhloé fall-winter 2024 by Сhemena Kamali

For her very first outing as a creative director at Chloé, Chemena Kamali presented a truly Parisian wardrobe, sensual, feminine and effortless, based on her intuition and the women she loves.

When Chemena Kamali took the reins at Chloé back in October, it was a sort of homecoming for her. An outsider to the fashion world, the Dortmund-born designer and Central Saint Martins graduate first joined the Parisian house more than 20 years ago to work as an intern and then assistant alongside Phoebe Philo. Later she came back as the Design Director under Claire Waight Keller before leaving to assist Anthony Vacarello at Saint Laurent. So she knows the Chloé world by heart. Now, when it’s finally her turn to make things work, Chemena Kamali decided to focus on the times when the founder of the house Gaby Ghion gave total freedom to the most famous German of the fashion world Karl Lagerfeld. Yes, those glorious days, when Chloé was synonymous with sensual and powerful femininity, freedom and effortless chic.

“I want to bring back the feeling I had when I first stepped through the doors here 20 years ago and fell in love with the Chloé woman’s spirit. I want to feel her presence again; her beat, her natural beauty, her sense of freedom and undone-ness. The glow, the radiance and the energy of that girl. She is real. She is herself”, Chemena mused in her show notes, sent to the editors by email a few minutes after the show. On the runway, models walked to the piercing sounds of Kate Bush’s “Cloudbusting” and Mono’s “Life in Mono”. Kamali made a special focus on the capes, and presented several cropped versions in leather, and longer ones on vinyl and gabardine. She also played with the notion of transparency, thus a bunch of airy evening gowns in crepe: model veteran Doutzen Kroes closed the show in one of them, what a moment! Another highlight: silhouettes in white and black lace paired with blue jeans or glossy thigh-high boots. The collection was filled with boho chic references to the 70s: think blanket coats, huggable fluffy overcoats, leather moto jackets and trousers with fringes and cozy catsuits in cachemire. 

There was also a new take on accessories: Kamali presented statement jewelry in gold, flat or sky-high clogs, extra large satchels and moon-shaped bags with banana hardware that will not go unnoticed. The XXL belts with “Chloé” spelled on them in a loopy writing will definitely become a favorite for Parisian Gen-Zs: they love it when a fashion accessory screams: “I am a Chloé girl!”.

At the end of the show, when Chemena Kamali took her bow in flare jeans and a white blouse, her little son ran towards her to give her a hug, and that was one of the most touching moments of Paris Fashion Week. It made me think about how hard it is to be a woman who wants to have it all in the fashion industry. Kamali proves that you could be both a great designer and a great mum.

Text: LIDIA AGEEVA