With the onset of cooler weather offering a welcome reprieve from the sweltering summer heat, a refreshing array of svelte designs has been served up at the FW20 runways by some of the world’s most beloved high-end fashion maisons all aimed at helping femme fashionistas heat up their wardrobes during the fall and winter months.

Balenciaga

Playful yet undeniably powerful, the new FW20 collection of bold hues and vibrant prints is an homage to the modern woman in all her multifaceted forms. A key motif throughout are the pointed shoulders, rigid lines that embody an otherworldly aesthetic, attributing their wearers with an eerie appeal. 

Bottega Veneta

A slew of effortlessly sophisticated designs that embody the concept of comfortable refinement, as aptly demonstrated by FW20’s creative director, Daniel Lee’s, use of sweeping gowns and flowing fringes that scream effortless elegance. Accentuating this motif are an array of beautiful intrecciato leather accessories that can be used day or night. 

Chanel

Creative Director, Virginie Viard, encapsulates freedom and liberation into the designs that all hold female self-expression at their core, be it a daring cropped ruffled shirt, a skin-baring bralette-and-maxi-skirt combo or even a plush one-piece suit dress. In the variety of the FW20 collection, one message is clear: comfortable can be sexy too.

Dior

A known feminist, Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri’s passion has translated into a range of looks that capture the complex facets of womanhood that embrace a defiant, rebellious, feminist spirit. Ranging from the flirtatiousness of a low-cut white dress with playful fringes to the casual confidence of an all-denim suit to the power imparted by a perfectly cut checkered suit. Throughout the FW20 showcase, her models are adorned with bandanas that permeate a sense of anti-establishment sentiment. 

Dolce & Gabbana

In place of the avant-garde designs that so often dominate Dolce & Gabbana’s collections, its FW20 season embraces a softer, more artisanal appeal in favour of time-honoured craftsmanship skills of shoemakers, seamstresses and knitters, as evidenced by the impeccably tailored suits, heavy knit coats, crocheted bralettes and knitted footwear. 

Giorgio Armani

Awash in a plethora of fabrics, textures and materials, the new FW20 collection from Giorgio Armani presents a truly romantic vision. Dazzling bejewelled studs and feathery pompoms vie with svelt chiffon and velvet floral prints for domination, presenting a vibrant feast for the eyes. Throughout, a playful exploration of silhouettes is apparent in the sheer shirts and gowns, flowing pants and jackets and even an asymmetrical accent thrown in for good measure. 

Givenchy

In place of last season’s more floral and hippie motifs, this new FW20 line presents a wholly formal approach inspired by scans of Nouvelle Vague movie posters and artworks of Helena Almeida and Ketty La Rocca, red and white are the dominant colours as evidenced by strong rigid shoulders, double-breasted jackets and an elegant asymmetrical brown cowl. Touches of feathers, fringes and polka dot prints add an extra dimension of flamboyance to the proceedings

Gucci

Creative Director Alessandro Michele transports us back to simpler times with his latest collection for Gucci. Invoking the innocence of childhood, his FW20 catwalk is replete with creations reminiscent of little girls’ pinafores and dresses. Meanwhile, Michele has also relied on ’60s-era hippie chic for a significant portion of his new catalogue, as is apparent in the floral printed gowns, high-waisted trousers and tinted over-sized sunglasses. 

Hermès

Featuring apparels that cultivate a sense of athletic chic without once sacrificing on quality and elegance, creative director Nadege Vanhee-Cybulski’s vision for “what is beautiful must also be useful” was brought to fruition through an interspersed of sporty looks and a multitude of more formal outfits – a sleek striped grey dress, a swishing pleated silk skirt, an all-leather suit ensemble, class lines and primary colours.

Loewe

Featuring a mind-boggling array of shapes and silhouettes, creative director Jonathan Anderson has further enhanced his outré creations with the judicious addition of eye-popping patterns, shimmering fabrics and voluminous ruffles this FW20. Building on the precept of “exaggerating by illusion”, the designer has pushed the boundaries of traditional feminine lines with apparel that celebrate freedom and variety in fashion. 

Louis Vuitton

historically inspired oufits such as matador jackets collide with geometrically accented dresses and jackets as well as avant-garde metallic tones in this staggering 200-ensemble homage to freedom in fashion. A visual smorgasbord of patterns, textures and colours, “This collection is about sartorial ‘tuning’,” says creative director Nicolas Ghesquière, “It’s sort of an anachrony of genres. It can simply be the pleasure of dressing and its many possibilities, free of protocol or constraint.”

Prada

Everywhere, injections of masculine tones offer a hint of androgyny, but that never fails to detract from the dominant motif of feminine strength. Be it the formality of the perfectly tailored power suits accentuated with figure-clinching belts, the casual chic of a sleeveless knit sweater and high-slit skirt or the flirtatiousness of a fringed leg-baring dress, every outfit evokes an aura of inherent power and femininity this FW20. 

Salvatore Ferragamo

Sensual yet minimalist, clean lines and refreshingly uncomplex designs dominate Salvatore Ferragamo’s new seasonal collection. Inspired by famed psychologist Carl Jung’s essays on female archetyps, Creative Director Paul Andrew has instilled his latest designs with ensembles that blend aspects of the seven female paradigms as described by Jung: the huntress, the mother, the queen, the sage, the lover, the mystic and the maiden.  “Fitting into a single type is obselete today,” says Andrew, “Women’s identities are shifting kaleidoscopes.” 

Valentino

In the wake of the continuing saga of the coronavirus pandemic, Valentino’s new FW20 collection features sombre hues and severe silhouettes. But in a defiant rebellion towards the world’s ‘new normal’, dotted between these sobering outfits are garments that embrace hope and renewal, most notably in the form of a bright red sequin column dress that stands as one of the collection’s highlights. 

Versace

While the iconic Versace logo-punctuated ensembles that characterised the brand’s past seasons have all but disappeared from its new FW20 collection, it still embodies the brazen flamboyance and hyper-femininity that have become synonymous with creative director Donatella Versace. From electric floral prints and loud animal patterns to dazzling sequined gowns and chunky over-sized coats, there’s no denying the attention-grabbing nature of her new designs. 

YSL

Defiantly bold and lushly feminine, YSL creative director Anthony Vaccarello’s new collection is an homage to the independent modern woman. Known for advocating a woman’s right to express her own physicality in her own right, his latest designs ramp up the sexiness factor to new heights. Here, peek-a-boo bralettes, nipple-baring sheer shirts, figure-hugging skirts and dominatrix-esque patent leather boots abound are all swathed in neon pinks, rich purples and other attention-grabbing hues. From start to end, it’s a riot of colours, cuts and fabrics that perfectly accentuate womankind’s innate sensuality.