Valentino‘s Creative Director Pierpaolo Piccioli certainly changed things up for Spring/Summer 2018. Instead of the usual ethereal diaphanous dresses that we have become so used to seeing at the Maison, he presented something radically different.

I have to admit, I was a little confused at first when the show’s opening looks consisted of glossy and shiny clear plastic and waterproof parkas with multiple pockets, and I was wondering if he’d thrown that classical Valentino vibe out the window. And then he began pairing the parkas with glitzy sequinned tops and it all began to make sense. Perhaps it didn’t so much as not make sense at first, but I guess you could call it a surprise. From this point onwards, it became clear that he was working with a luxe sportswear kind of vibe. This was reflected in each and every look, including those with the pretty babydoll silhouettes, ruffles, mini bubble dresses, and even down to the glamorous evening dresses, thanks to either being paired with a bandeau top underneath, or a cross between an almost sportsbra-esque and singlet sort of cut at the necklines.

And now, let’s talk bags!

Honestly, I wasn’t that drawn to any of the bags on the runway. For Spring/Summer 18, the Rockstud Spike comes in jelly, colour-blocked pastel with embroidered and appliqué floral patches; the Demilune crossbody now comes in a larger size, and blinged up with crystals; and then there’s the seasonal variety of a tote and a clutch that comes in multicolour patchwork. Piccioli also introduced a few new silhouettes: a top handle bag with a turncock clasp that comes in tone-on-tone and bi-coloured chevron colourways; a harness bag, which, I really can’t make sense of, and don’t think that many would want to be carrying their bags in this manner, come Spring.

The Verdict: the ready-to-wear outshone the bags. Not only did Piccioli shock us all, but he also awed everyone in the room, with a well-deserved standing ovation from the audience, accompanied by thunderous applause and cheers. He certainly took Valentino into a brand new direction, and a very glamorous one at that.  Kudos Piccioli, this was indeed, hands down, my favourite collection for the entire Fashion Month thus far! Both him and Maria Grazia Chiuri, who’s now at Dior, are really growing into their own, and dare I say, designing much better when they’re apart!

Images via Vogue Runway