Have no fear, the Queen of Couture is here
From plumes of fluttering ostrich feathers on Valentino’s heavy-hitting front row to majestic, billowing ivory silk at Alexandre Vaulthier, Céline Dion is getting her life at the couture shows (and by extension, giving us ours).
With an homage to Titanic via fresh-off-the-runway Vetements and a Gucci mini-dress accessorised with the kind of scooter you usually want to kick out from underneath the grown adults that insist on riding them on the morning commute also on the agenda, her looks have been more fire than the sizzling temperatures the French capital has been enduring.
The situation calls for only one thing: a definitive guide to each and every look the icon has turned throughout Couture and our verdict, as told through her vast collection of songs. No need to thank us.
ALEXANDRE VAUTHIER
Bills – paid. Skin – clear. Wig – snatched. There are few words to describe how resplendent and angelic Ms. Dion looks here, so we’re not even going to try.
VERDICT: I’m Your Angel – literally!
MIU MIU, PRADA, GUCCI, DIOR!
30 degree heat? “Je ne sais pas,” exclaims Céline (we imagine), reaching to the back of her wardrobe to pull out an OTT shearling camo print coat from Miu Miu’s AW19 collection. To accessorise? Prada boots, a Dior bucket hat, and giant Gucci sunglasses… obviously. A wise woman (read: Cardi B) once said “A real hoe never gets cold” and it seems that the opposite is true. Legends never get hot.
VERDICT: Immortality (feat. the Bee Gees). It doesn’t quite make sense, but you still love it.
OFF-WHITE
Having first made its debut at Off-White, Céline was spotted out and about on the streets of Paris wearing this graffiti-emblazoned blazer and bodysuit combo from Virgil Abloh’s SS20 collection just days later. Had the look even had a chance to cool off after Gigi Hadid strut down the runway in it mere days later? Non. Did Celine give a fuck? Also non. NB: No cheap jokes about her ‘forgetting her trousers’ will be tolerated here, dad.
VERDICT: Eyes on Me, because where else would they be?
RICHARD QUINN
A dog is not just for Christmas, it’s for Couture too, darling. Ditching the velvet turtleneck from the original AW19 Richard Quinn show, but keeping the latex boots (seriously, is this woman invincible?), the look is just a casual gown to pop to the dog park in. Where did she get them from? Pooch-i obvs.
VERDICT: Tale (tail) As Old As Time, beauty and the (beautiful) beast(s)
IRIS VAN HERPEN
It was a case of an icon meeting an icon when Queen Céline turned up at Iris Van Herpen’s AW19 show wearing one of the pioneering Dutch designers wildly innovative creations. The collection was named Hypnosis – which is pretty apt, given just how transfixed Dion has had us tbh.
VERDICT: Overjoyed (at this lewk).
VETEMENTS
Celine will never let go (sorry) of an opportunity to pay tribute to Titanic and, more specifically, her multi-platinum smash hit “My Heart Will Go On” (and who can blame her when, even after 22 years, it slaps so hard?). Having first rocked a Jack and Rose-emblazoned Vetements hoodie back in 2016, Demna came through with the appropriate goods again this season, sending a model wearing an exact replica of the movie’s Heart of the Ocean necklace out onto the runway. Thought the old lady dropped it into the ocean in the end? Well, baby – Celine went down and got it for you.
Rank: Do we need to spell it out to you?
MIU MIU
As an opener before the Couture shows started, Céline went for a classic hot pink ruffled number at Miu Miu’s Resort 2020 show. That’s right, this was just a warm-up, and it’s already enough for you to get. your. life.
Rank: Because You Loved Me. A forever classic.
Y/PROJECT
There are few women (or men for that matter) that could pull off a pair of Y/Project’s janties – a garment which clashes a jeans and panties to unique effect, duh! – but Céline proves it is in fact possible. There’s not much more to say: we advise you just drink it all in honey, drink it all in.
Rank: Are we Halfway to Heaven, or have we fully arrived?
VALENTINO
For her swansong, Céline decided to close Couture week with this stunning Valentino Resort look. Mere seats away from the house’s founder, she almost jumped for joy at the finale. With another season successfully slayed, how can she possibly top it? We’ll be on the edge of our seats in anticipation before the SS20 Couture shows in January next year.
Rank: (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman. Not exactly what you were expecting, but still pleasantly surprised.
GUCCI
SCOOTER, ARE YOU READY? (Yes we are).
Ranked: I Drove All Night.
CHANEL
This is a polite reminder that Ms. Dion is 51. YEARS. OLD. In this beachy Chanel look she could be heading to yoga, or maybe to the boulangerie (that’s French for bakery) to pick up a baguette and cycle by the Seine. Parfait!
Rank: Je ne pas just because it’s French and so is Chanel.
SCHIAPARELLI
Elbow. Length. Leather. Gloves. In. Forty. Three. Degree. Heat. For her commitment to the fashions, there is no option but to stan.
Rank: Taking Chances (at not passing out in the heat).
THE ATTICO & KSENIA SCHNAIDER
Feathers were back in a big way at the Couture shows, as seen at Valentino, Givenchy, and Christian Dior – but, just in case you weren’t convinced, Céline put forward a further case for the frou-frou in the second of two feathered lewks. This time, she teamed an Attico top, fluffy heels, and a Fendi bag with Ksenia Schnaider’s viral half-and-half jeans. First Tommy Cash and now Ms. Dion. Seemingly it’s legends only when it comes to the cult Ukrainian designer’s divisive denim wares.
Rank: Thank You (no really Céline, thank you).
RONALD VAN DER KEMP
For the unseasoned Céline Dion fans out there, you might just think this was an ordinary Ronald Van Der Kemp look that she’s turning. Not only is it Couture, but she’s also wearing mismatched shoes, because why not? This look is also a subtle, campy tribute to the look she wore in 1988 for Eurovision – the year she won, duh. We stan a queen who knows her references.
Rank: It’s All Coming Back to Me Now.