2 September 2026 |
Chanel’s Cruise Collection is filled with untold treasures – from exquisite appliqués and weightless fabrics to sea-worthy slingbacks. Mermaids unite.
There are debuts, and then there are DEBUTS – the kind of show that gets even non-fashion people talking. Matthieu Blazy’s first cruise collection for Chanel in Biarritz was very much that show. Fashion has been buzzing over Blazy since his appointment and first collection. We all saw the frenzy and mayhem in Paris on the day the pieces first hit the stores. Everyone wanted to know how he could up his game after showing in New York and Paris. Turns out, quite easily.
Choosing Biarritz for this first cruise outing was not a romantic whim. It was very smart to return to the house’s origin story, but with his own special spin. In 1915, Gabrielle Chanel established her couture house in Biarritz after her early successes in Paris, Deauville, and Monte Carlo. Biarritz offered something those cities could not: freedom.
At the Villa Larralde, steps from the casino and the Atlantic, she created the blueprint for what would later become 31 Rue Cambon. Boutique, atelier, apartment: it was all there. But more importantly, Biarritz gave Chanel permission to think differently. Away from the rigid formalities of Parisian society and European court dressing, women moved with greater freedom. They dressed for real life, for movement, leisure, sea air, and pleasure. The town still carries that spirit today. What Coco Chanel created there now feels obvious but at the time was revolutionary. Jersey – yes, jersey, previously relegated to underwear – became elegant. Linen became luxurious. Cotton became chic. She made clothes that functioned in motion and looked just as right at lunch as they did at midnight. In short, she invented modern ease. That spirit was everywhere in Blazy’s show.
Biarritz has always been more than a resort town; it’s a place charged with creative electricity. Igor Stravinsky, Jean Cocteau, and Pablo Picasso all went there seeking inspiration. You understand why the moment you arrive: the laid-back vibe, the galleries – a must visit is Champ Lacombe, founded by Lucy Chadwick – and the vintage stores there. There is no pretense, just people going by the beat of their own drum. As the final looks disappeared against the background of the ocean in the historic Casino Barrière Biarritz, one thing felt undeniable: Matthieu Blazy didn’t come to Chanel to recreate history. He came to reawaken its most radical idea: that freedom is the ultimate luxury. And really, what could feel more Chanel than that?
Taken from 10 Magazine USA Issue 7 – HERITAGE, LEGACY, FUTURE – out September 18! Order your copy here.
CHANEL: OUT TO SEA
Photographer TANGUY SERGHERAERT
Fashion Editor CHARLES VARENNE
Text DORA FUNG
Model JENNIFER MATIAS at The French Management
Hair LEDORA at Call My Agent using ORIBE Hair Care
Makeup INGEBORG at Call My Agent using CHANEL Beauty
Photographer’s assistant ARNAUD SCHEID
Casting SD CASTS
Production ANTOINE VANBELLE at La Moustache
Clothing and accessories throughout CHANEL Cruise 2026/27 Collection
From left: Photography courtesy of Chanel, Archives Privées DR and Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine; Inventaire Général du Patrimoine Culturel, Chabot Bernard et Dubau Michel, 1984; from top: Photography courtesy of Chanel, Photo Frères Seeberger Bibliothèque Nationale de France and TopFoto Roger-Viollet
