SS19 stays femme.

Karl Lagerfeld literally made waves in Paris by staging a beach at the Grand Palais for Chanel’s SS19 show. While dark clouds and light rain pattered outside of the Palais in Paris, inside a bright blue sky and the sound of seagulls temporarily transformed the venue into an island getaway, complete with champagne sand and crystal clear blue waters with lapping waves moving across the shoreline. It was an escape hatch into the fantasy world of Chanel, a respite and relief marking the final day of Paris Fashion Week, and fashion month for that matter.

While a few of the key shows this season left critics fuming, from Thom Browne’s bound and gagged models or Slimane’s retrograded perspective on pushing the Céline woman forward, the Chanel woman was anything but: instead she was happy and care-free because the Chanel woman is on holiday.

The casting call ranged from Kaia Gerber to Girls Talk activist Adwoa Aboah, who walked barefoot through the Palais Plage, in classic tweeds and branded Chanel chains. The rest of the line up confirms some of the week’s key trends: 80’s swimsuit silhouette, the return of logo mania, and a raffia straw hat as a statement summer piece.

One thing’s for sure: it’s great to be C-side in Chanel for the summer.