A night out in Manchester doesn’t conjure the most glamorous thoughts—mostly just foamy pints and late-night feeds enjoyed on the curb. But last night, it hosted a highly elegant affair for Chanel’s Metiers d’Art show.

While the setting would understandably surprise some, the luxury house does share a connection with the region. In fact, it was in Eaton Hall, a neighbouring estate, where Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel first became acquainted with tweed. Borrowed from her lover, the Duke of Westminster, the designer became enamoured with the textural fabric and brought it back to Paris with her—and there was plenty of tweed in the collection to pay this homage.

Coordinating with the industrial brick heritage buildings that lined the street, baker boy hats, structured top handle bags and Mary Jane flats all rendereed in rich autumnal tones felt aptly styled to the landscape.

Jewellery was surprisingly kept to a minimum—at least, by Chanel standards— allowing the intricate embellishments of suit sets, diaphonous chiffon and cosy Shetland and cashmere knits to stand strong on their own. Functionality seemed to be a focus, with Bermuda shorts, classic tailoring and and ease in styling.

As the city’s Northern Quarter is known for its lively music scene—famous for being the birthplace of New Order, Oasis, The Smiths, The Stone Roses and Joy Division, to name a few—it was the rich history of arts that creative director Virginie Viard took inspiration from.

“For me, Manchester is the city of music,” Viard said before the show, describing the collection as a “poetry of emotions with a dash of the sixties.”

Peter Saville, the graphic designer known for his record sleeves for the Manchester based Factory Records, designed the show invitation.

Bruno Pavlovsky, president of fashion at Chanel, also reflected on the vitality of the city. “Like most big cities in the post-industrial world, Manchester has not always had an easy time,” he said. “But there is an energy you feel here, in the football stadiums, in arts and in music. Being here is not about Chanel wanting to be populist, but it is about finding inspiration in that energy.”

Where London is a place saturated with chic and stuffy events, the locale felt like a breath of fresh air. Guests watched the show from wooden tables that lined Thomas Street, protected from the drizzle by a towering glass canopy that had been erected over the road.

Actors Kristen Stewart, Hugh Grant, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Tilda Swinton and Lucy Boynton were among the stars present, as was director Sofia Coppola and Alexa Chung.There were also three Gallaghers—not including the Oasis stars Noel and Liam, themselves, but Liam’s sons Gene and Lennon, as well as Noel’s daughter Anais Gallagher.

The show’s soundtrack naturally kicked off with Manchester-born bands like The Fall and New Order.

Scroll on to view the best of the Chanel Metiers d’Art collection.

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