What Everyone Will Be Wearing to Paris Fashion Week This September

A handbag has the power to shift the entire mood of a look. This season, we’ve been seeing a move away from the expected, with familiar silhouettes reworked through unexpected details and a little more personality. Izabela gives the classic crochet bag a playful update, finished with cascading florals that bring more movement to the look. On Bea, a classic shoulder bag takes on a more geometric feel displaying just how much impact the right bag can have on a look. 

The appeal is all in the details. Rather than simply completing an outfit, the right handbag can become its focal point, drawing in the eye and giving even the simplest look a distinct point of view. Zoe takes this approach with statement hardware, adding a sharper edge to an otherwise simple look.

This season, handbags are stepping out of the background. Less a final touch and more a defining element, they’re being styled with enough character to hold their own.

Here at OOTD, we are no stranger to fringe. We have mentioned it countless times across our editorial segments and featured it throughout our visual content, but I will continue to make the case for it. If you still do not own a piece of fringe, it may be time to reconsider.

Fringe has been taking center stage on the runways, turning up on the streets of major fashion cities, and appearing throughout the pages of some of our favorite magazines. Its appeal is fairly simple: it adds movement, texture, and a little bit of drama without requiring an entirely new approach to getting dressed. Fringe can easily become the focal point of a look, as we see with Clémence, who lets her black fringe jacket take over.

For an easy way to work it into your wardrobe, follow Angele’s lead and start with a fringed bag. It can be paired with everything from a simple daytime look to something more elevated, adding just enough texture without looking overly styled. We also see Alésia add movement to her look by styling pieces around a pair of suede fringed shorts. Fringe may have been around for a while, but it is still finding new ways to make itself noticed.

We’re seeing designers draw from Chinese sartorial traditions through details such as frog closures, contrasting piping around collars and plackets, and cheongsam-inspired silhouettes. These references speak to a more specific engagement with Chinese dress and aesthetics, rather than broadly grouping distinct cultural traditions under the label of “Asian” fashion. In contemporary Western fashion, these elements are often reinterpreted through new silhouettes, materials, and construction.

Aliya’s red jacket is a prime example of this influence in modern fashion. The jacket is a statement in itself, with its bold color and distinct detailing making it the focal point of the look. These silhouettes are also a great way to add an extra flare to your wardrobe, as we see with Christine’s cheongsam-inspired dress, which takes on a distinctly feminine form. These references can also be incorporated more subtly, as seen on Zoe, who sports a simple white blouse worn open, allowing the influence to come through in a more understated way.

We’ve noticed these references gaining visibility throughout late summer and anticipate seeing them continue to influence modern garments in the seasons ahead.

As these details continue to emerge, it’s clear that getting dressed is becoming more about the choices that make a look feel personal. A distinctive bag, a touch of fringe, or a thoughtfully interpreted cultural reference can change the character of an outfit without changing its foundation. As Paris Fashion Week unfolds, we’ll be looking closely at the details that give this season its identity and, more importantly, the ones worth bringing into our own wardrobes.