It feels as though I’ve looked at nearly every runway from the spring/summer 2023 collections and yet I keep coming back to this one. Whether I’m writing about the most impactful runway looks or the smartest investment buys, Saint Laurent is a fixture in every trend report I’ve been publishing, shopping list I’ve been crafting, and mood board I’ve been creating. In fact, each time I come back to the looks, I find a new detail to glean inspiration from.
Suffice it to say that this collection is wielding more influence on my style right now than anything else. But why exactly? Under the helm of Creative Director Anthony Vaccarello, Saint Laurent has always been an arbiter of sleekly glam pieces with sharp shoulders and severe silhouettes being the designer’s signatures. But things took a delicious turn for its spring collection where Vaccarello imbued a balance between severity and softness. Dresses with strong shoulders were offset by effortless draping and LBDs were given a sultry spin via gauzy semi-sheer fabrics. To me, it struck the perfect balance between sexy, sleek, and glam. Oh, and the jewelry? Don’t even get me started.
I could ramble on forever about this collection, but for the sake of brevity, I’m outlining the Saint Laurent spring 2023 shopping list I put together. Ahead, see the exact buys I’m adding to my cart right now to achieve the effortless glam of this runway.
While slinky dresses were the collection’s foundation, many looks were topped off with a buttery-looking leather jacket or trench in the same tone to create one monochromatic ensemble. Leather outerwear was a big theme across the collections this season, but the ones at Saint Laurent showcase the timelessness of the staple.
Bold cuffs and bangles—some stacked one on top of the next—were a fresh respite to the daintier jewelry trends we’ve been used to and layered over slim-fitting long sleeves, they make such a cool impact for a night out look. I have nearly zero bracelets to my name currently, so I raced to find a similar style to try out for myself.
Saint Laurent is the unofficial master of cool eveningwear (just take a look at how Hailey Bieber wears the brand on red carpets), and these slinky draped jersey dresses featured prominently on the runways, so it’s only a matter of time until celebs start pulling them for upcoming events and red carpet moments.
One thing about me is that I’ll always pay attention to shoes. If the models on this runway weren’t wearing a pair of simple strappy heeled sandals, they were strutting in point-toe pumps. I find this noteworthy because the old-school heels have felt “dated” for a while now and Saint Lauren’t cosign could be the catalyst for their return.
Another eveningwear theme that my own closet will surely be influenced by was semi-sheer fabrics. I adored the way that these sort-of-see-through dresses balanced being revealing with covering up—the long sleeves and floor-sweeping hemlines proved to be the perfect antidote.
What did I say about the jewelry? It was so good that I’m now on the hunt for another item: XL earrings. I love how the vaguely ’80s style lends a vintage appeal to just about anything. I know this is a bubbling trend, too, because celebs like Hailey Bieber and Elsa Hosk are already accompanying their everyday looks with similar studs.
This may have been a spring runway, but the outerwear was certainly a highlight. Floor-sweeping duster coats were styled to match the maxi hemlines of all the dresses and skirts in the collection and the combination of maxi on maxi was impeccable and made me want to re-create it ASAP.
