Mood Color: Black — How Paris fell under a dark spell at Haute Couture Week Fall 2025

At Paris Haute Couture Week for Fall 2025, the City of Light was cloaked in a kind of “black magic.”

Even Giorgio Armani — famously loyal to light, neutral tones — abandoned his usual palette in favor of exquisite black ensembles for his Armani Privé collection.

“For a designer, black is the most classic yet most demanding color,” Armani told WWD. “When you work with black, there is no room for mistakes: every detail must be perfect because black reveals the essence of a garment.” His runway featured tailored jackets paired with jodhpurs and elegant gowns crafted from velvet that absorbed light and satin that reflected it.

At Chanel, black took on a military edge — tweed suits with rugged textures and sturdy boots evoked Gabrielle Chanel’s Scottish connections. The iconic little black dress appeared in countless iterations adorned with feathers — an embellishment that also popped up at Elie Saab and Viktor & Rolf, where it gave a dramatic volume to Victorian-inspired silhouettes.

Though black is rarely chosen to grab the spotlight, Cardi B caused a sensation at Schiaparelli in a black column gown embroidered with pearls, accessorized with a live black raven perched on her arm. Was this gothic vision an omen of doom or a reflection of the anxious spirit of our times? Either way, it was striking — and perfectly in tune with the mood.

At the Petit Palais, creative director Daniel Roseberry paid tribute to Elsa Schiaparelli’s revolutionary Surrealism, sending models down the runway in lip motifs, matador jackets, and fetish leather dresses adorned with saddle hardware — all in black. Referencing the mourning symbolism of the color, Roseberry described it as carrying both grief and the raw power of the interwar era — a time that now feels like a harbinger of our own.

Demna’s departure from Balenciaga also carried a funereal note: his final show was filled with oversized cuts and evening gowns with hourglass silhouettes — all in black, like members of the Addams Family gathered for a wake.

Designers Robert Wun, Ashi Studio, and Imane Ayissi likewise embraced a dystopian aesthetic, exploring themes of death and the end of an era.

In Fall 2025, black isn’t just a color — it’s couture’s leading lady.