“In every piece, a sense of purpose,” noted designer Gabriela Hearst, in the introduction of her first 2021 Chloé collection for fall/winter 2021. There was no live invite for what would have been the hottest ticket at Paris Fashion Week.

Hearst, who put herself forward for the Chloé job by submitting a 92-page proposal outlining a purpose-driven vision for the house, represents a significant change in mood at Chloé, which has long been a breezy, carefree sort of brand.

In her many interviews upon her arrival at Chloe, Gabriela Hearst describes her own brand as Athena, while Chloe is Aphrodite. The designer shares this view and explains the essentials of this philosophy to Good Morning Vogue.

Bottom line, what Vogue calls hearst’s “earthy puritanism” is the primary point of view in both collections, and AOC begs to differ with the suggestion that Chloé is “girlie and kickie”.

With Stella McCartney also a longtime fixture on the Paris fashion week schedule, the new Chloé places Paris fashion week in a key position to join Stella in leading the industry at a time when values are surging in importance.

To be as blunt as possible, consider that a little friendly, womanly competition might inspire Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri to pull out all the stops at Dior on the eco-friendly front, making the three women the center of the sustainability fashion world and finally putting the message “the future is female” on the map.

What would have been the hottest fashion show ticket in Paris had no live audience. But the continuing lockdown did afford Hearst the opportunity to film her models striding out of the Brasserie Lipp, where Chloé’s late founder Gaby Aghion presented her collections as well.

It’s easy to forget that Gabriela Hearst only showed dresses in the fall winter 2021 collection. Yes, lots of coats and jackets and layers of warmth. But there were no suits and no pants. There was an Athena dress or two. Woops — an Aphrodite dress.

Like Stella McCartney, Gabriela Hearst has been using deadstock for awhile and she feasted on patchwork fabrics created by roaming Chloé’s fabric vault. With all the focus on deadstock, patchwork and pieced seems to be a key design feature in the near future for more than one luxury brand.

The outerwear produced from Chloé deadstock was oversized and “mega” in every way. The pieces were created with Sheltersuit, a nonprofit organization providing aid to the homeless, which also collaborated on a series of backpacks.

Sheltersuit distributes their products to people in need because “everyone deserves warmth, protection and dignity.” The sheltersuit is a wind and waterproof jacket with an optional sleeping bag attachment to provide immediate shelter. “The jacket is made from high-quality, breathable tent-fabric. The inner lining is made from upcycled sleeping bags, making each Sheltersuit unique. The large hood shields the face from rain and streetlights, and contains an integrated scarf. The Sheltersuit was designed to be wore in cold climates.”

Elsewhere in the collection, Hearst used marble printed fabrics on dresses and blouses, using prints created by artist Peter Miles using seaweed and eggs. Chloe’s Edith bag was the first one ever bought by Hearst, and it made a new debut for fall in repurposed old editions.

Gabriela Hearst Talks Sustainability

This conversation with Gabriela Hearst after her Chloe appointment highlights her intense knowledge base and deep commitment to sustainable principles. Hearst has designed ethically for years, but having her vault into the new role at Chloe, really does put two incredibly strong voices — Stella and now Gabriella — as stalwarts on a mission to change luxury fashion manufacturing and distribution processes.

We expect a duet TED Talk in the near future.

More looks from Gabriela Hearst’s maiden Fall 2021 Chloe collection.