Why Do All Fashion Designers Dress Alike?

What is it with fashion designers and navy sweaters?

No matter how many pink fiberglass coats or feathered floral gowns they just sent down the runway, you can nearly always count on a designer to take their bow in a dark sweater (mostly navy) and dark pants (jeans, or easy black trousers.)

Among those that lived up to this standard over the past week or so: Erdem Moralıoğlu, Raf Simons at Prada, Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta and Maximilian Davis at Ferragamo.

These designers are upholding the Zuckerbergian principle of wardrobe simplicity. Under pressure to project something new for their customers, they give themselves fewer clothing options.

And, to be fair, there are some outliers who sustain the eccentricities of their collections, like Patric DiCaprio of Vaquera who took his bow on Monday in plaid Hanes boxers, ballet flats and one of his label’s stomach-baring button-ups. And Rick Owens? Well, he’s always his best model.

But mostly, it’s navy and black, knits and jeans. Listen, it’s a good outfit! I couldn’t tell you the number of times I’ve left a show and thought, “Well, the best outfit was the one on the designer.” And shouldn’t it be? These are people who have considered every possible configuration for pants and every sweater shade on earth. We could all do much worse than copying their bow standard.

Yet, days into Paris Fashion Week, I’ve started to feel that seeing so many designers dress so much the same undercuts the whole fashion week conceit.

I certainly felt that with Louise Trotter at Bottega last week. Her show of fuzzy-as-a-Furby coats and blazers blown up to peacoat proportions was so full of body-swallowing shapes that when she came out looking unburdened in her kicky jeans and V-neck sweater, I wondered, “Why wasn’t the show more like that?” If designers don’t subject themselves to what they just presented … well, why should we?

Last season, I was speaking with Jonathan Anderson before his Dior men’s show. He was wearing a navy sweater, and up close I could perceive its chunkiness, really see how well it fit. I noticed a beefroll stitch at the side, which delineated it as stemming from Anderson’s other brand, JW Anderson. (I think it’s this one. Cashmere and coming in at nearly 1,300 euros, or about $1,500.) Months later, I’m still thinking about it.

Other things worth knowing about:

I was taken by these woven leather slides at the Comme des Garçons flagship, made with the Finnish brand Vibae. A bit Bottega, a bit Turkish souk, a bit potato. They were about 300 euros (about $348), so a tip: Vibae’s mainline slides (though not woven) are nearly half the price.
The Hodakova collection felt as if it was made by an LLM trained to free-associate on fashion. Bags made of belts, hair shirts, a teacup bra, an amputated Barbour, furs worn in reverse and chairs worn as dresses. This software was a bit glitchy if you ask me.
Near the beginning of Vaquera’s show, the designers sent out a model in a topless “monokini” … just as Rudi Gernreich did way back in 1964. Shocking then. Less so now. When you ape a design so revolutionary that it has its own Wikipedia page, everything that comes after feels flat.
Where will the dystopian-lux Balenciaga shopper land now that Demna has pivoted to Gucci? How about Matières Fécales? A hoodie that says “I (heart) Power,” bombers with barrel-size sleeves, gigundo stepped-on pants. This collection had it all!

Anrealage continues to be the only label convincing me that “wearable tech” isn’t dorky. As a homage to “Ghost in the Shell,” the designer Kunihiko Morinaga made light-up dresses that disappeared into the background screen. Fun to watch.
The fashion world sure is into EsDeeKid. First he sat in the Gucci front row, then Matières Fécales used “Century” as a soundtrack. Great song.
OK, I don’t care that this is a fashion newsletter, I have a food recommendation. Every time I come to Paris, I go to Dumbo in the Marais. It’s the best burger in Paris. Maybe even the world. I’ll argue this until the end.

“We thought about it, and then we settled onto the fact I am already the extreme.”

— Bryan Johnson, the tech entrepreneur turned anti-aging evangelist, when asked why he chose not to turn to plastic surgery prosthetics. Johnson, who has made a second career out of his efforts to stay young (or at least look it) made his modeling debut at Matières Fécales on Tuesday.