Never mind that Karl Lagerfeld provocatively chose to conclude Chanel’s autumn/winter 2014-2015 Haute Couture fashion show by sending a tremendously pregnant bride down the catwalk dressed in an elegant crêpe de Chine gown with a gold brocade cape and a neat line of buttons along the bodice. Or that the show’s stage décor drew inspiration from the terrace of a 1930s Le Corbusier-designed home, replete with an outdoor fireplace and an ornate mirror set against a barefaced concrete wall. Or even that 18-year-old reality star, Kendall Jenner – better known as the youngest sibling of famous-for-being-famous Kim Kardashian – made her Paris Fashion Week debut at Chanel’s Grand Palais show. What really stood out, more than anything, was Chanel’s attention to tailoring and volume, as well as the maison’s unmistakable expertise with stitch work.
The clearest statement of this can be found in Look 41 and the labour of love that went into creating it. From the vision of combining gold, silver, concrete and tulle, a sketch is formed, then a toile and a black organza base after that. From there, the most the most time-consuming phase begins. To achieve efficiencies, one atelier embroiders the skirt, bloomers and bolero, while another takes charge of the bodice. Using a Luneville technique of embroidery executed on the underside of the fabric, one hand holds the hook on an embroidery frame while the other moves the beads and the sequins forward. To give you an idea of how labour-intensive this is, it takes 50,000 sequins and 500 hours of work to complete just the skirt and bloomers. The organza of the bodice is hardly simpler – with its little concrete cubes, rhinestone and golden and silver tubes – for it takes a further 220 hours.
Once complete, all the pieces are returned to the Chanel atelier for assembly and final alterations, subject to approval by Mr. Lagerfeld during the final fittings the day before the show. Of course, Look 41 made it to the show and what a glittering spectacle it created, beautifully encapsulating the designer’s vision for the show. As he put it himself, “I liked the idea of baroque elements and modern touches. Le Corbusier’s apartment was a famous place for that and this is the typical thing of the collection - concrete with baroque elements.” Look 41’s gold, silver, concrete and tulle combined to form a sort of Le Corbusier goes to Versailles, something only the brilliance of Karl Lagerfeld could have imagined.
