There are runway shows, and then there are moments of cinematic magic — Chanel’s Cruise 2025/26 presentation at Villa d’Este was unmistakably the latter. Perched on the edge of Lake Como, the legendary Renaissance hotel transformed into a stage of luminous nostalgia and luxury. A place where film, fashion, and fantasy effortlessly converge.

Directed by longtime Chanel muse Sofia Coppola, the show’s teaser film cast model Ida Heiner in a daydream, drifting through terracotta-toned terraces, grand marble staircases, and sunlit balconies. Her movements — unhurried, reflective — perfectly captured Coppola’s signature mood: soft, nostalgic, and intimate. This was more than a preview; it was a cinematic portal. A breathtaking homage to the golden allure of la dolce vita.

The Cruise 2025/26 collection is an invitation to luxuriate in Italian elegance. With its palette of sun-washed peaches, lake blues, soft whites, and the ochres of the Villa itself, the garments seemed born from the very landscape. Flounced pastel taffeta gowns, sequin-laced tweeds, and backless striped lamé jumpsuits evoked the glamour of dressing up just for the joy of being seen by a lover, a stranger, or oneself in the mirror.

Among the collection’s most captivating looks was a golden tweed trouser suit, structured yet effortlessly fluid. With its high Mandarin collar, sculptural buttons, and gently flared trousers, it radiated a stately ease. Styled with a soft caramel suede shoulder bag and barely-there makeup, the look whispered power, not shouted it. A modern-day empress on the shores of Como. This was no mere outfit — it was a gold standard.
It’s gold. Solid gold. Baby.

Gabrielle Chanel once counted Luchino Visconti, the great Italian filmmaker, as a close friend and this collection feels like an echo of his world: cinematic, sensual, suspended in time. Strings of pearls, silk foulards tied with ease, oversized sunglasses, and poolside-ready mules completed a wardrobe fit for late afternoons drifting into candlelit evenings.

To witness it live would have been unforgettable. Missing it? A masterclass in fashion FOMO.