Hermès celebrates Parisian craftmanship
Savoir-Faire is the brand’s new collection of timeless fashions
The French commune of Pantin lies in the north-east of Paris; it can be reached by car in just under 40 minutes if one was to start at the capital’s famous Louvre Museum. It is in Pantin that Hermès preserves and nurtures the many crafts that underscore its 183-year strong heritage.
There are leather workshops and a perfume laboratory; elsewhere, tailors finish shirting to custom specifications.
The brand’s womenswear studios are also based in Pantin and in March last year, shortly before she commenced her maternity leave Nadège Vanhée-Cybulski and her team began work on Savoir-Faire. Blue-printed as a non-seasonal collection, Savoir-Faire presents Vanhée-Cybulski’s idea of a timeless Hermès wardrobe, with shapes and finishes anchored in the brand’s past.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Modern for its tight edit of wearable separates – Savoir-Faire counts just ten ensembles – Vanhée-Cybulski’s collection is also notable for its ambitious use of artisanal techniques. The finishing of each piece requires up to 18 working hours. Cut from grained goatskin, a slim-fitting biker jacket is emblazoned with an equestrian “Brides de Gala” motif of ceremonial bridles: first sketched by Hugo Grygkar for a 1957 Hermès silk scarf, Vanhée-Cybulski recreated the design by assembling three layers of leathers which are then embroidered and appliquéd. Grygkar’s work is also recreated in fine stitches on a double-faced cashmere riding coat and as an open-work embroidery on a white cotton poplin shirt.
Elsewhere Vanhée-Cybulski, who joined Hermès as creative director of womenswear in 2014, captured the mosaic tiles laid across the floors of the brand’s 24, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré home in geometric embroideries.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Women are getting their own baseball league again
In the Spotlight The league is on track to debut in 2026
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Giant TVs are becoming the next big retail commodity
Under the Radar Some manufacturers are introducing TVs over 8 feet long
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
When will mortgage rates finally start coming down?
The Explainer Much to potential homebuyers' chagrin, mortgage rates are still elevated
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
Sport on TV guide: Christmas 2022 and New Year listings
Speed Read Enjoy a feast of sporting action with football, darts, rugby union, racing, NFL and NBA
By Mike Starling Published
-
House of the Dragon: what to expect from the Game of Thrones prequel
Speed Read Ten-part series, set 200 years before GoT, will show the incestuous decline of Targaryen
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
One in 20 young Americans identify as trans or non-binary
Speed Read New research suggests that 44% of US adults know someone who is transgender
By The Week Staff Published
-
The Turner Prize 2022: a ‘vintage’ shortlist?
Speed Read All four artists look towards ‘growth, revival and reinvention’ in their work
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
What’s on TV this Christmas? The best holiday television
Speed Read From films and documentaries to musicals for all the family
By The Week Staff Published
-
Coco vision: up close to Chanel opticals
Speed Read Parisian luxury house adds opticals to digital offering
By The Week Staff Published
-
Abba returns: how the Swedish supergroup and their ‘Abba-tars’ are taking a chance on a reunion
Speed Read From next May, digital avatars of the foursome will be performing concerts in east London
By The Week Staff Published
-
‘Turning down her smut setting’: how Nigella Lawson is cleaning up her recipes
Speed Read Last week, the TV cook announced she was axing the word ‘slut’ from her recipe for Slut Red Raspberries in Chardonnay Jelly
By The Week Staff Published