Bedbugs have taken over Paris Fashion Week

What do fashion models and bugs have in common? They both seem incredible at making their way into places they weren’t invited at Paris Fashion Week.

The illustrious city of Paris is waging a battle against bedbugs with videos of the alleged pests Crawling all over the subway seats, Rumors Buyers flee their hotels after finding insects, content creators Post videos About their insect bites, and reports on them Appearing at Charles de Gaulle Airport Sending the gelatiati into a frenzy. Cue: “Don’t be silly, Andrea; Everyone wants this“. this It’s the hustle and bustle of Fashion Week and the pride of having a place in the world’s most exclusive fashion shows, but at what cost? Tiny creatures crawling between your sheets versus a second-row seat at Loewe?

French officials began fill Against bedbug pest, but with French Health Agency It was reported that 11% of the country’s households were infected between 2017 and 2022, and Fashion Week guests had more to worry about than Sarah Burton’s successor. “No one is safe,” Paris’s deputy mayor, Emmanuel Gregoire, told residents — including fashion show attendees, who partly consist of the rich and famous from whom most harassment is inescapable.

Industry professionals are starting to take precautions, Louis Pisano, a fashion journalist who attended the shows during Paris Fashion Week, told me. “At Christian Cowan, a designer friend told me how he had become more careful about vetting the brands he sent his client, completely steaming things up,” they said. Pisano himself is taking no chances either. Any clothes they wear outside are immediately put into black bags when they get home and thrown into the fridge in the hope of killing any bugs they might pick up on public transport. They also have a barrier made of diatomaceous earth, a material made from the fossilized remains of small aquatic organisms typically used for pest control, at their bedroom door. They also steam their mattress once a week.

“Everyone is a little nervous and nervous,” Pisano said. “Especially working in fashion because there is a lot of fabric changing hands and moving around the city.” He. She Do It seems a bit strange that these pests that thrive within upholstery and textiles have descended on a city and industry week that relies solely on viewing, sharing, borrowing and sleeping on fabrics transported around the city.

Now, as Paris Fashion Week draws to a close, anxiety has turned to attendees returning to their cities with the terrifying possibility that they may be bringing bedbugs home with them. After all, this industry is full of freelancers.

Residents of the country have taken to social media to share their concerns. “All these Americans out there for Fashion Week…Jesus fix it,” one user said chirp. Emerging publication Byline asked its Instagram followers, “Which fashion editor in New York City is most likely to bring in bed bugs from Paris?” Editor Mario Abad, in a seemingly subconscious plea for an answer, posted a photo of his story returning from Paris with the (hopefully joking) caption: “Bugs are coming for you in New York.” Dr. Jim Fredericks, of the National Pest Management Association warning For celebrities traveling home after fashion week. Could this city or perhaps Los Angeles soon become hot spots for these insects? After the floods, the rats, and Eric Adams as mayor, I ask the universe, haven’t we suffered enough?

Pisano, who has had the personal misfortune of being exposed to bed bugs, and others in the same boat took to X, formerly Twitter, to warn travelers and provide them with wisdom and tips to stay safe.

“Wash it on hot, put it in the dryer and send it to the dry cleaner,” one user said books. “If you have outdoor space (and it’s hot) leave your suitcase outside wrapped in a black trash bag. Wash everything on hot. Put Vaseline on the legs of your bed frame because suckers crawl,” he said. last. However, some had Zero hope In mitigating the situation beforehand: “I’m afraid there [is] There’s nothing you can do to stop it. You have [too] Too much trust in people who don’t care.” Great! Anyway, the official advice from Environmental Protection Agency When it comes to clothing, your clothes are dried on hot to kill any travellers. Hopefully we won’t need to use it.

Megan O’Sullivan, a New York-based writer, is familiar with the bed bug hysteria, but she was so busy moving from place to place amid the craziness of the week that she didn’t quite tune into the fear. Or the potential ramifications from this week to today. But she accepts prayers before she begins her journey home. “This is of course a big deal, and I personally haven’t seen any of it. If I had known what my experience had been so far, I would have attended,” O’Sullivan said of his attendance the week. While she admits to the blissful state of uncertainty she was in, she mentally prepares for the worst.

“We have to be willing to get rid of our favorite clothes or leave them behind if our civic duty demands it, girls,” she said. “No Marni sweater is worth invading our house!”