heliot emil | the return of the hiking boots

Maddy Rotman.

Jonathan Anderson is unstoppable. Nearly a year has gone by since his landmark appointment as sole Creative Director across womenswear, menswear and haute couture at Dior, and he has already produced a staggering volume of collections. He must’ve discovered a secret twenty-fifth hour in the day at this point. Turning out collection after collection with a velocity that birthed the internet’s favourite meme of him smoking look-at-my-life cigarettes by the Seine, he seems entirely unbothered by the sheer exhaustion of it all. Rather than taking a well-earned nap, his latest trick involved landing on Wilshire Boulevard to pull off Dior Cruise 2027.

Not a surprising setting, really – Anderson has been referencing cinema any chance he could, much like how previous design eras used the iconic Dior Book Tote as a literal canvas for literary and artistic commentary. Every detail of this West Coast takeover screamed ‘silver screen’: down to the show notes formatted entirely as a Hollywood film script, the collection represents a deeply cinematic, meta-textual takeover of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). The front row mirrored the theatricality of the runway, packing a heavy VIP lineup of directors and actors into an illusion of LA, built inside LA. The star-studded audience naturally included global brand ambassadors like Jisoo (wearing an archival polka-dot mini) and Anya Taylor-Joy, sitting alongside a newly blonde Miley Cyrus, Greta Lee, Taylor Russell, Macaulay Culkin and Oscar-winner Mikey Madison.

Dior.

Dior.

The cinematic framework traces back to a legendary 1949 ultimatum from Marlene Dietrich, who flatly told Alfred Hitchcock, “No Dior, no Dietrich,” during negotiations for ‘Stage Fright.’ Anderson used this specific film, alongside Jean-Pierre Melville’s ‘Les Enfants Terribles,’ as the psychological starting point for a wardrobe obsessed with post-war escapism and what he calls “The Dream Factory.” This film-noir gravity manifested brilliantly in the garment construction, most notably via a Dior Grey wool flannel coat striped with the precise, geometric shadows of Venetian blinds – also a direct visual echo of Hitchcock’s ‘Rear Window’ and classic cinematic suspense.

The collection felt remarkably alive through its texture and collaborative depth. Anderson finally checked off a long-awaited bucket-list creative partnership by tapping milliner Philip Treacy for a series of bespoke headpieces. Treacy reworked a historical technique originally developed for Isabella Blow’s iconic ‘BLOW’ hat, engineering weightless feathers and fine metallic wires into exacting, floating typography. These delicate headbands kinetically spelled out words like ‘Dior’ and ‘Flow’ above the models’ heads. The subversion of the everyday into couture continued through ripped denim jeans intricately embroidered with ultra-fine silver chains that perfectly imitated loose strands of cotton.

The tailoring reached peak theatricality with a show-stopping, dramatic midnight-blue cape. Sweeping the floor with a heavy fringed hemline, the sequin-encrusted, knit-textured cape was paired over a shimmering gold and black metallic tweed suit, catching the California light like a star-filled Hollywood night sky. However, the real jaw-dropper for tailoring nerds was the unexpected resurrection of the Bar Jacket. Instead of treating the 1947 cinched silhouette like a fragile museum relic, Anderson completely loosened up the waist and slouched the shoulders, keeping just a wink of that iconic hip-padding to pay respect to the new look. Slung carelessly over pool-around-your-sneakers trousers and that chain-link denim, these jackets were executed in ultra-soft cashmeres and breezy wools, for a very cool, California attitude.

Dior.

Dior.

Just like his previous Couture collection, flora provided the ultimate visual cadence elsewhere, moving from a buttercup yellow gown adorned with rosettes to a luminous orange dress designed to mimic a sprawling field of Californian poppies. These dramatic silhouettes were quickly balanced by archetypal American shirts created in collaboration with legendary LA artist Ed Ruscha, blending fine art with high street text play across relaxed shirting.

Midway through the carousel, a vibrant red dress, gathered and held at the waist by an abstract flower, crashed through the palette – a direct reference to Christian Dior’s historic habit of dropping a sudden crimson look simply to wake up the audience. Furthering this tactile drama, heavy flower boas swept the runway alongside nautilus-inspired minaudières and brand-new, crescent-shaped Saddle bags treated with high-gloss vintage car paint finishes and miniature motor key charms.  

The collection’s cultural crossover had already been cleverly teased prior to the opening chords of John Lee Hooker’s ‘Murder.’ Sabrina Carpenter practically broke the internet by appearing ahead of the show wearing the debut look – that rosette-embellished buttercup yellow dress – giving the world a first glimpse of how Anderson is rewriting the codes of French couture through a sun-drenched, Hollywood lens.

Discover the Dior Cruise 2027 collection here.

photography. courtesy of Maddy Rotman, Dior
words. Gennaro Costanzo

Louis Vuitton.

The high jewellery collections from Louis Vuitton have always been spectacular under Francesca Amfitheatrof’s direction, but with the launch of the new ‘Mythica’ collection, the Maison invites us on an epic, personal quest. Described as a narrative of self-creation, ‘Mythica’ is inspired by the timeless structure of myth, casting the Louis Vuitton woman as both the heroine and the author of her own destiny.

Unveiled during a sunset show at the Kasbah d’If just outside Marrakech, against a cinematic backdrop of the Agafay desert and the Atlas Mountains, the 110-piece high jewellery collection maps out an internal journey of transformation and victory across 11 distinct narrative themes. Teased already with global brand ambassador Ana de Armas, the visual campaign captures the evolving states of courage, mystery and resilience that define the collection’s mythical heroine.

Sølve Sundsbø, Nicolas Kantor.

The odyssey begins with ‘Conquest,’ a chapter heavily influenced by Artemis, the fiercely independent goddess of the hunt. Here, the traditional house arrow motif turns into a directional compass for those who refuse to sit still. The primary necklace under this theme required 1,200 hours of craftsmanship, weaving a rigid row of 21 vivid red rubies totalling 21.86 carats framed by baguette diamonds. For an impactful contrast, the geometric arrows are outlined in deep black onyx and crowned by a central ruby paired with a 1.07-carat LV Monogram Star cut diamond. 

This initial force propels the heroine to ‘Totem,’ evoking the protective aura of Athena with a protective emblem that celebrates ancestral symbolism through bi-colour white and yellow gold configurations. The pieces focus on heavy volume and architectural harmony, relying on the graphic chevron pattern to mimic the foundational Vuitton ‘V.’ For the first time, the high jewellery line introduces a solid gold pen embellished with diamond-set chevrons, sitting alongside playful pendants that reinterpret the classical amphora shape.

Growth and inner clarity define the next phase of the path, ‘Fortitude,’ a suite that borrows the unyielding presence of Roman virtue. The design team took a massive creative risk here by spotlighting an immense 82.14-carat cushion step-cut blue zircon – a Cambodian natural stone famed for its ancient crystallisation – that appears to float from a refined, white-gold tang silhouette necklace. The detail features a juxtaposition of an organic snow-pavé setting against the graphic, checkerboard Damier pattern, framed by an iconic LV rope motif. If that feels too subtle, the triple-strand alternative ups the ante with nine cushion-cut zircons framed in over 50 carats of diamonds, requiring nearly 2,000 hours of design work to ensure the piece follows the exact contours of the neck.

Nicolas Kantor, Louis Vuitton.

The story enters darker, more mysterious waters with ‘Enigma,’ a suite inspired by the untold stories of a submerged world that channels the fluid, shapeshifting energy of Amphitrite. A ribbon-like necklace combines the signature ribbon motif with the Damier pattern, dangling five aquamarines totalling 70.18 carats and four greyish-blue cat’s eye topazes. The focal point is a head-turning 127.66-carat cat’s eye topaz cabochon oval that radiates a milky brilliance against white-gold lines. True to Louis Vuitton’s ongoing obsession with utility, a secondary pendant configuration within this family is fully transformable, offering ten different ways to wear it depending on how dramatic the evening demands.

Innovation takes an almost sci-fi turn with ‘Spell,’ an incredibly daring suite that functions as a historical first for the industry. Drawing from Hecate, the goddess of mysticism and intuition, the pieces feature fluorescent diamonds that ignite with a secret, blue-tinged glow only when exposed to UV light. A single-row necklace features disks crafted from these fluorescent pavé diamonds, which slowly reveal a hidden LV signature pattern in the dark. This mystical light effect is balanced by a warm dialogue between 65.97 carats of round-cut cat’s eye moonstones and 44.13 carats of imperial orange-pink topazes. Every disk is outlined in unexpected black ceramic to inject a graphic, highly modern contrast.

Nicolas Kantor.

The mood shifts towards the poetic with ‘Mesmerism,’ a tribute to the enchanting grace of Aphrodite. Thousands of hours of diamond lacework form a sumptuous mesh that traces the LV Monogram Flower motif. Dangling from this texture is a 17.18-carat Colombian emerald with vibrant blue hints, paired with a 3.03-carat diamond. Acting as one of the collection’s primary masterstones, the gem exhibits a deep green tone with vibrant blue hints, paired with a 3.03-carat LV Monogram Flower cut diamond. Meanwhile, air and breath take form in ‘Whisper,’ a light, cloud-like construction of white-gold pavé volutes that conceal the underlying metal. The transformable collar features an ultra-rare 11.56-carat royal blue pear step-cut sapphire suspended from a 4.11-carat D Flawless LV Monogram Star cut diamond.

Looking towards the night sky, ‘Sirius’ functions as a celestial vault of intense blues and greens. A single-row necklace links a constellation of 13 splendid gemstones – including six tourmalines, three aquamarines and four tanzanites totalling 249.31 carats – via a structural diamond rope. Each stone features a fully pavé shell on the reverse side alight with green emeralds and blue sapphires, making the piece as precious on the back as it is on the front.

Nicolas Kantor.

The final chapters move towards transcendence and ultimate reward. ‘Fortune’ represents the ultimate tangible prize through a bold high-collar necklace radiating with over 4,700 snow-set diamonds that transition in a colour gradient from white to fancy vivid orangey yellow, topped with a 5.12-carat D Internally Flawless LV Monogram Star cut diamond. A second choker within the theme features 25 pink-to-green gold pearls totalling 511.28 carats, contrasting beautifully against white diamonds. Resurrecting the phoenix, ‘Triumph’ features hand-engraved gold wings sculpted by a master artisan to celebrate rebirth, wrapping yellow-gold plumage around a rope-like white gold pattern set with 1,350 diamonds.

The apotheosis of the heroine concludes in ‘Victory,’ an homage to Nike, the goddess of triumph. Inspired by a classic laurel crown, the masterpiece necklace features an interwoven pattern of gold leaves braided with a graduate array of 38 coloured diamonds spanning the entire chromatic spectrum for a total of 19.71 carats. The piece finishes with a 3-carat Fancy Vivid Orange-Yellow pear-cut diamond suspended from a 3.88-carat LV Monogram Star cut diamond. Paired with a Victory ring hosting a 3.31-carat Fancy Vivid Pink pear-cut stone and a 1.01-carat green diamond, the collection cements a new standard for gem-setting savoir-faire.

If you are going to rewrite classical mythology for the modern age, packing the entire Louis Vuitton Mythica collection into your suitcase is the only logical way to ensure you accomplish that mission.

Louis Vuitton.

Discover more about the Louis Vuitton Mythica high jewellery collection here. 

photography. courtesy of Nicolas Kantor (worn), Sølve Sundsbø (campaign), Louis Vuitton
words. Gennaro Costanzo

Quentin de Briey.

Desert heat has its ways of dictating what is real and what is a hallucination, and Jimmy Choo’s Summer 2026 campaign, ‘Natural Reflection,’ leans fully into that shimmering uncertainty. Set against the stark, arid backdrop of Joshua Tree, the campaign centres on the legendary ‘Invisible House’– a mirrored architectural feat that effectively dissolves into the California landscape.

This season acts as a literal looking glass for Sandra Choi’s latest obsession: the friction between untamed wilderness and the uncompromising lines of high-fashion construction. Choi has turned her attention to “sun-warmed skin” and the “romance of an embrace,” describing the inspiration as a form of romantic innocence. “Summer, for me, is freedom,” she explains. “A journey through open spaces and pristine landscapes, where every detail invites you to discover and fully feel the emotion of the season.”

Quentin de Briey.

The physical collection translates this sentiment through an impressive display of material play. We see raw amber-like resins, emerald-hued diopside gems and hand-woven raffia sitting alongside translucent plexiglass. The standout Glacé Mule serves as a sculptural evolution of the brand’s iconic drop heel, now encased in a honey-toned, translucent wedge that mimics the molten glow of Murano glass. For those after something a bit more playful, the Jelly Drop offers a 50mm sandal in Lagoon Blue and Sunset Orange – shades that mimic the colours of a desert twilight.

Accessories follow the same artisanal script, with the Cinch bag reimagined in Clover Green suede and natural raffia, topped off with a handle of pearls and braided leather. Meanwhile, the Miro Flat wraps the ankle in bold, mother-of-pearl spheres made from shell fragments suspended in liquid resin, ensuring that no two pairs are identical.

Quentin de Briey.

The narrative continues with the Lova Wedge (sometimes referred to as the Lova sandal), a 85mm silhouette crafted from soft suede with intricate straps and accent stone embellishments that perfectly frame the foot. For carrying the essentials, the collection introduces a new Drawstring Pouch in natural-coloured soft raffia with tan leather trims, featuring a gathered top and a structured handle for a relaxed, unbothered look. The line-up is rounded out by the Emeri Stone, which creates a striking contrast by placing a single, oversized gemstone against naked skin on a delicate 35mm heel. 

Jimmy Choo’s Summer 2026 collection embraces this attraction of opposites to create a season that feels both surreal and incredibly real. While summer flings may be short and sweet, a truly great pair of shoes withstands the test of time.

Quentin de Briey.

Discover the Summer 2026 collection here.

photography. courtesy of Quentin de Briey for Jimmy Choo
words. Gennaro Costanzo