Goodbye Barbie-core, hello Brontë-core. New couture eras begin at Dior and Chanel. Stylist Rob Zangardi’s brand Auter wins the Sundance fashion outerwear race. And buzzy British contemporary brand Me+Em opens in Beverly Hills.
Goodbye Barbie-core, hello Brontë-core.
Can Margot Robbie and her stylist, Andrew Mukamal, turn another press tour into a mega fashion moment?
They are on their way with “Wuthering Heights,” the highly anticipated adaptation of Emily Brontë’s Gothic romance novel. In the run-up to the film’s Feb. 12 opening — just in time for Valentine’s Day, natch — Robbie has stepped out in a range of racy looks by Roberto Cavalli, Alexander McQueen, Victoria Beckham, Schiaparelli and Dilara Findikoglu, who made the bodice-ripper red snakeskin outfit above. Robbie’s Brontë-core look is decidedly edgy, with plenty of ravishing red lace, cleavage and corsetry, which was already a big trend, it should be noted.
“Barbie” costume designer Jacqueline Durran is also behind the looks in “Wuthering Heights,” Emerald Fennell’s contemporary take on the love story starring Robbie as Catherine and hottie Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff. From the trailer alone, armchair critics have already taken issue with the film’s period inaccuracies. But that’s the point: The film is meant to be stylized.
From the glimpses I’ve seen, the looks in the film are a visual treat, with Chanel fine jewelry in the mix, too. Until then, we have Robbie’s fashion parade, and Elordi’s, too. I’ve been enjoying seeing him rocking the new Chanel jacket from Matthieu Blazy.
Let Them Eat Couture
While democracy crumbles in the U.S., the fashion-loving 0.001 percent decamped to Paris for the haute couture shows this week, including the much-anticipated first couture collections from the new designers at Dior and Chanel.
At Dior, Jonathan Anderson showed a florabundance of volumes, textures and accessories, including charming bouquets of cyclamen decorating models’ ears. The collection fulfilled the ladylike mission of the vaunted French luxury house, with plenty of Anderson’s own adventuresome knitwear and layered, more casual looks.
Will White Be the New Black on the Red Carpet?
Much of couture will be destined for red carpets, or maybe a billionaire wedding (Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos were sitting front row). There were plenty of white-hot highlights for both scenarios, including a divine buttercream-hued suit with the bow-peplum Bar jacket that first emerged in Anderson’s ready-to-wear collection and is shaping up to be a bona fide hit.
But What Did They Wear in the Front Row?
Anderson just showed his men’s Dior collection last week, and Anya Taylor-Joy chose an incredible Paul Poiret-inspired robe from that runway to wear to this one.
The other Dior brand ambassadors were also out in full force, including newly signed Taylor Russell and Josh O’Connor. It’s fun to see how celebrity guests wear the clothes in a more individual way than runway models. Take Greta Lee, rocking a sparkly green couture-like tank top, white jeans, and the new Dior nameplate belt. Just perfect.
A New Kind of Quiet Luxury
Meanwhile, at Chanel, Matthieu Blazy created another garden of couture delights—but with a much lighter touch, focusing even more on wearability. Up front, he proved just how light the timeworn Chanel suit can be, presenting it in whisper-thin silk mousseline with pearls in place of the traditional buttons, and personalized embroideries chosen by the models.
There were more of the 1920s silhouettes he’s shown in ready-to-wear, inspired by Coco Chanel’s beginnings, as well as lingerie-like layers embroidered with fantastical birds and mushrooms.
Feathers were teased and twisted into myriad creations, with Blazy’s flair for craft on full display. Still, overall, it was a more subtle take on luxury, relishing in details that would only be known to the lucky wearer.
Hollywood Loved Auterwear at Sundance
The starry Sundance Film Festival is the fashion Olympics of luxe outerwear. And this year, there’s a serious new player on Main Street — Auter — which creates coats as wardrobe heroes.
Olivia Wilde’s $1,050 Auter black hooded long-hair Mongolian shearling cast her as the queen of Sundance she’s been with her film, “The Invite,” debuting to rapturous reviews and sparking an all-night bidding war. Meanwhile, Charli XCX was living her best Brat life in Auter’s $950 sublime shawl-collar faux-fox chubby while promoting her mockumentary, “The Moment.”
The brand was launched in October by celebrity stylist Rob Zangardi, who has worked with Rihanna, Pharrell Williams, Gwen Stefani and many more. He and his partner, Mariel Haenn, are responsible for loads of memorable stage and red-carpet looks, including Jennifer Lopez’s feathered cape featuring both the Puerto Rican and American flags for the 2020 Super Bowl Halftime Show, and Suki Waterhouse’s red Valentino side-cutout couture gown, redesigned to show off her growing baby bump at the 2024 Emmys.
In development for five years, Auter was born out of Zangardi’s obsession with finding the ultimate last layer, fashionable enough to be the look in and of itself. Each coat comes with a matching baseball cap, a nod to his personal wardrobe signature.
“The second I put on a coat or shirt jacket, I just feel different,” Zangardi said of the confidence factor of good outerwear. “There’s an emotional attachment people have to coats across the board.”
Merging structure, comfort and style, the brand’s sculptural wool coats, shearlings, animal-free furs and technical outerwear — like Channing Tatum’s Auter Mac at Sundance, a waterproof overcoat that meets a puffer — are designed to be soft and comfortable, with prices ranging from $950 to $3,450. “And many of them are just as good over a cocktail dress as over your sweatsuit,” Zangardi added. Spoken like a true stylist.
Sydney Sweeney’s Syrn Song
Sydney Sweeney’s personal brand seems to be fearlessly running toward controversy.
On Monday night, news broke that the actress had climbed the Hollywood Sign and draped it in bras and underwear. By daybreak, the stunt was everywhere, along with the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s statement that she had not received permission to do so, fueling even more media coverage. By breakfast, her lingerie line, Syrn, had officially been announced — a threefer publicity punch.
“The Housemaid” actress has never been shy about flaunting her significant assets, including baring them completely in a sheer silver Christian Cowan dress at the 2025 Variety Power of Women luncheon in December. She has also survived plenty of crazy news cycles. Last year, her controversial American Eagle campaign with the slogan, “Sydney Sweeney has good jeans,” ignited a torrent of think pieces, hashtags and breathless stories about eugenic undertones. Yet she emerged clearer about what she wanted to say.
“You know this past year I have tried to be strong but it’s been really hard at times,” she told People in December. “I think this next year I want to be really intentional with showing people who I am and what I want, cause so many people can just get it wrong.”
Enter Syrn, her new lingerie line that essentially invites women to role-play. “I wanted to create a place where women can move between all the different versions of who we are,” she said in press materials, because no woman is one thing.
The collection has four moods: comfy, playful, romantic, seductress. Sizes are inclusive, ranging from 30B to 42DDD, and prices are under $100.
When I visited the site Wednesday, the day Syrn dropped online, only the seductress pieces were available. These included a black plunge bra, thong, garter belt and thigh strap, which were a bit underwhelming style-wise. They’re certainly no Brontë-core!
The venture is backed by investment firm Coatue, which received a $1 billion cash infusion from Jeff Bezos and Michael Dell. It marks the company’s first star-fronted project.
British Contemporary Cool Brand Lands in Beverly Hills
Already beloved by Oprah, Katie Holmes, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Lupita Nyong’o, Margot Robbie and a raft of fashion Substackers, buzzy British womenswear brand Me+Em has opened its first West Coast store in Beverly Hills.
The 3,535-square-foot boutique is on North Beverly Drive, which might as well be called Contemporary Brand Row for its cluster of labels, including Favorite Daughter, Veronica Beard, Reformation, Alice + Olivia and more. The stores offer wardrobe options for work and play at a relatively accessible price.
Me+Em was founded in 2009 by former advertising executive Clare Hornby and initially focused on luxe loungewear before pivoting to a more elevated offering of “intelligent style,” as the brand calls it.
I stopped into the store, and it really is a superb selection of classic-with-a-twist wardrobe workhorses — like buttery-soft leather pants, well-fitting wide-leg Icon pants with side stripes, frayed tweed fit‑n‑flair dresses, oversized blazers, cashmere baby tees, pretty button-down shirts with scalloped collars, and interesting shoes such as olive green studded square-toe snakeskin slippers. I also really like the elevated travel wear, including a navy jacquard woven cable-knit half-zip shrunken sweatshirt with matching pants, which could go from plane to office with no problem. Most everything is in the $225 to $975 range.
The decor has many English touches, including one-of-a-kind rugs by weaver Tim Page, fabrics from London designer Rose Uniacke, a Kvadrat/Raf Simons sofa and bookcases showcasing art and fashion books selected by Hornby.
“We’ve seen such an incredible response from customers,” Hornby said. “Opening a store on the West Coast is a pivotal moment.”
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