It was a year of statement-making runways, uplifting campaigns, and a few exciting firsts in the fashion industry. As 2017 comes to an end, take a look back at all the standout moments that defined the year in fashion.
Versace’s Spring 2018 show paid tribute to the fashion house’s late founder, Gianni Versace, 20 years after his tragic death. Along with a collection that brought back Gianni’s most iconic designs, the special show reunited the original ’90s supermodels on the runway. Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, Carla Bruni, and Helena Christensen all walked hand-in-hand beside Donatella for an incredible finale walk—making for the greatest fashion week moment of the year.
Related article: Donatella Versace To Be Honoured At This Year’s British Fashion Awards
On the heels of their big Oscar win, the cast of Moonlight landed their first-ever fashion campaign, starring in Calvin Klein Underwear’s Spring 2017 ads. Mahershala Ali, Ashton Sanders, Trevante Rhodes, and Alex Hibbert all appeared in the black and white photos shot by Willy Vanderperre.
Once again, Rihanna showed up to the Met Gala schooling everyone on how to dress for a theme. The singer was one of the few attendees to actually adhere to the Rei Kawakuba avant-garde theme, wearing one of the designer’s Fall 2016 looks (which was also featured in the Met exhibit). And let’s not forget the lace-up heels that tied up her entire leg.
Related article: The 2018 Met Gala Theme Has Taken Everyone By Surprise
The year kicked off with the incredible Women’s March that took place across the entire globe—and the fashion industry didn’t sit the movement out. Showing solidarity, Missoni staged a pussy hat march of their own at Milan Fashion Week in February. Models wore Missoni’s pink striped rendition of the iconic accessory for a powerful finale moment that was both uplifting and empowering.
Legendary designer Azzedine Alaïa passed away at the age of 77 in November, causing the industry to mourn the tragic loss. The revolutionary designer, oft known as the “king of cling,” left a mark on the fashion world with his groundbreaking designs and is responsible for helping launch Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, and Cindy Crawford to international success. In July, he showed his final couture show after a six year hiatus, which Campbell opened.
The 16-year-old had a breakout season after making her runway debut at Calvin Klein during New York Fashion Week. Gerber went on to walk shows like Alexander Wang, Saint Laurent, Versace, Miu Miu, and Chanel in New York, London, Milan, and Paris, proving she’s definitely inherited her supermodel mother’s runway genes.
The award for best front row attendee of the year goes to Leslie Jones, who had the greatest time ever attending Christian Siriano’s Spring 2018 show in September. The actress/comedian brought some serious fun to the typically quiet and stuffy front row scene. As Siriano’s designs walked the runway, Jones cheered, clapped, and shouted things like “YASSS” and “YOU WORK, GIRL!” at the models. Invite her to every runway show from now on, please.
American Crime Story announced its next season would be ‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace,’ recounting the events surrounding Gianni Versace’s tragic 1997 murder. The series tapped none other than Penelope Cruz to star as Donatella Versace and the Oscar-winning actress is a dead-ringer for the designer in the first official photos. The series is set to debut in early 2018.
Saint Laurent kicked off Paris Fashion Week’s Spring 2018 collections with the most epic show venue: the Eiffel Tower. As models hit the runway, the iconic French monument lit up and sparkled in the background, making for a goosebumps-inducing moment.
When Twitter noticed the similarities between Balenciaga’s $2,145 tote and Ikea’s $0.99 cent take-home bag, everyone completely lost it. The hilarious Ikea vs. Balenciaga memes and tweets led to Ikea trolling the fashion house with a cheeky print campaign titled, “How to identify an original Ikea Frakta bag.”
When Gigi Hadid suffered a wardrobe malfunction at Anna Sui’s Spring 2018 show (the model somehow lost one of her shoes), her sister Bella was there to lend a helping hand—literally—and helped her walk down the runway for the finale. It was an adorably rare Hadid sister moment on the runway that, naturally, flooded social media.
Related article: Gigi Hadid’s Best Style Moments of 2017
For the second time in its 45-year history, Pirelli cast an all-black cast for its annual calendar. Starring Duckie Thot, Naomi Campbell, Diddy, Whoopi Goldberg, Thando Hopa, Lupita Nyong’o, and more, the Alice in Wonderland-themed calendar shot by Tim Walker celebrated black talent with a whimsical, empowering shoot.
2017 was a year of wins for Ashley Graham, but the model made major strides at New York Fashion Week, where she became the first plus-size model to walk a Michael Kors show.
Reigning as 2017’s most surprising breakout style star, Céline Dion had a year full of LEWKS. With the help of new stylist Law Roach, Dion’s wardrobe transformed into that of a risk-taking, high fashion chameleon. From the street style scene to Paris Couture Week to her first ever Met Gala, Dion churned out look after look—leaving us all waiting for the next one.
Rihanna returned to New York Fashion Week with a bang after two seasons of showing in Paris. For her Fenty x Puma Spring 2018 show (which started with stunt men flying over the runway on dirtbikes), the singer-turned-designer took her final bow on the back of a motorbike, cementing her status as the ultimate bad gal.
Making her New York Fashion Week debut, Gloria Steinem attended her first ever fashion show at the age of 83. The feminist icon picked a fitting runway for her first and attended Prabal Gurung’s Spring 2018 show, which celebrated diversity and feminism. She even shared the moment on Instagram writing, “There is a first time for everything, even at 83! First #nyfw show @prabalgurung, a kind man doing great work in fashion and beyond.”
Everyone’s obsession with Stranger Things hit the runway at Louis Vuitton’s Spring 2018 collection. The French fashion house sent t-shirts emblazoned with the Netflix show down the runway, making for the ultimate cultural mashup.
From Vetements x Levi’s butt jeans to the introduction of thong jeans at Tokyo Fashion Week, it was a roller coaster of a year for denim. Brands tried just about every jean innovation and deconstruction known to mankind—none of which have (thankfully) managed to stick yet. Also giving classic blue jeans a makeover were Opening Ceremony’s detachable jeans, Bella Hadid’s denim skirt over jeans, and Topshop’s completely clear plastic jeans. Perhaps it’s best to keep things classic in 2018.
Walking L’Oreal Paris’s first ever runway show at Paris Fashion Week, Jane Fonda and Helen Mirren (79 and 72 years old respectively), made their catwalk debut—and it was epic. Each of the legendary actresses brought their own sass and strut to the runway, looking completely incredible while doing so.
Honoring the twentieth anniversary of Princess Diana’s tragic death, Off-White designer Virgil Abloh decided to take inspiration from the late royal style icon for his Spring 2018 collection in September. From tartan day suits to polka dots and strong shouldered silhouettes, the designer reinterpreted Diana’s most memorable looks for the 2017 woman. The end result was a touching nod to the late Princess.
After over a year of monitoring Meghan Markle’s style and blossoming relationship with Prince Harry, the couple announced their engagement last month–giving us all a new royal style star to follow. Markle made her first appearance as an engaged woman in a white robe coat, emerald dress, and nude pumps.
Related article: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Official Engagement Portraits Are So Romantic
Gucci Vows To Go Fur Free
The latest luxury brand to halt the use of real fur, Gucci announced its joining of the Fur Free Alliance in October. Following in the anti-fur footsteps of Stella McCartney, Giorgio Armani, Hugo Boss, and Net-A-Porter, Gucci’s impact on not only the Kering group but the luxury fashion industry in general indicates it’s probably just the first of many more brands to finally go fur-free.
Up against Bella Hadid, Gigi Hadid, Winnie Harlow, and newcomer Kaia Gerber, Adwoa Aboah took home the award for Model of The Year at the 2017 Fashion Awards after a breakout year of runways, campaigns, and more.
This article originally appeared in Harper’s BAZAAR US.
Related article: Adwoa Aboah and Juergen Teller Form A Dream Team For Burberry
