There’s something spectacular about couture week in Paris. It is, after all, fashion’s most celebrated display of sartorial excellence. Silhouettes are played with and reinvented, tailoring is exacting and carefully considered, and intricate craftsmanship takes centrestage—and rightfully so.
This spring/summer 2026 haute couture season was no exception. This was a season of many firsts, namely for Jonathan Anderson at Dior, Matthieu Blazy at Chanel and Silvana Armani at Giorgio Armani Privé. Dramatic, expertly crafted and perfectly shaped for the contemporary fashion muse, the debut collections welcomed new voices to the world of haute couture.
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A running theme for the season was nature, encapsulated by the creations at Chanel, Dior and Schiaparelli. Mystical creatures of flight, botanicals and animalistic forms were examined and reframed into pieces of wearable art.
This artistry wasn’t restricted to the runway looks; the spring/summer 2026 shows introduced beauty moments that capitalised on the wild, the whimsical and the quietly undone. Case in point: Alessandro Michele sent the Valentino models strutting down in lived-in, undone locks, as a response to the concept of gaze. Meanwhile, over at Chanel, the idea of lightness and transparency was showcased through soft, powder pink make-up and cascading, flowing strands.
Ahead, get a closer look at the most stunning beauty moments from the spring/summer 2026 haute couture shows.
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Dior
Believe it or not, florals for spring are—in this case!—actually groundbreaking. Cyclamens specifically served as the star of the show at the Dior presentation, where they were attached to headpieces designed by Stephen Jones so they could frame the face in precise, delicate tufts. This narrative is further strengthened with the inclusion of clip-in bangs dyed in the hues of cyclamen blooms; a gradient wash of pink, purple and white that extends down to the chin.
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Schiaparelli
Simplicity at its best. Schiaparelli is living proof that you don’t have to go all out to make a statement, with lead make-up artist Pat McGrath allowing for the skin to do all the talking. An ethereal, luminous base is perfectly complemented by taupe eyeshadow and bronzer, dusted over the cheekbones to create dimension.
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Rahul Mishra
Into the cosmos we go. At Rahul Mishra, we were seeing stars, as peepers were transformed into a galaxy of its own, bathed in the deep, magical hues of its cosmic couture. As for the manes, some were coiffed up into sculptural dos, others left wet and undone—inciting a sense of the otherworldly.
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Robert Wun
It’s Robert Wun’s world and we’re all just living in it. Where sculptural proportions and spell-binding mystique prevailed, the details lent a hand in playing up the drama. Scarlet talons poked out of mesh gloves like bloodied claws. Winged liner took on geometric shapes in shades of purple, green and blue, while white spidery lashes crowned a spiky cross centrepiece. Not to be missed? A Cleopatra-esque eye, ringed in black with a singular bejewelled tear.
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Gaurav Gupta
Bodies became otherworldly forms on the runway of Gaurav Gupta, and faces transformed into canvases under the artful hand of M.A.C’s Key Make-up Artist, Marieke Thibaut. Hair was slicked back and sculpted into finger waves, conveying romance and edge in equal measure. In one jaw-dropping look, a model’s visage was painted and embellished to resemble the cosmos. Tying it all together were the nails, which were blade-like and inverted for a sci-fi touch.
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Chanel
The sartorial offerings at Chanel may have been maximal and colourful, but the make-up presented a clean take on whimsy and femininity. A satin pink lightly dusted the eyes and cheeks before subtly washing over the lips, for an altogether cohesive look that sang of a soft power.
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Armani Privé
Name a more playful colour combination than jade green and pink, we’ll wait. For Armani Privé, models donned the fantastical pairing on the lids, with the cool-toned green reaching into the inner corners of the eyes for a delicate look. Couple this with low waterfall braids, and you get a beauty moment that feels equal parts put-together and unconventional.
