Lejaby Lingerie: Renaissance on the Rue Royale
February 27, 2015 by admin
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In the heart of Paris, on the rue Royale, appointments at
Maison Lejaby are hard to come by. The lingerie house is having a surprising
renaissance as a couture atelier, something that the company, which is more
than 130 years old, could barely have imagined in 2011, when it fell into
administration.
The Lejaby that failed had lost its way, a French heritage company that had
become a mid-market made-in-China department-store brand, so when current CEO
Alain Prost took over in 2012 it would take a daring move to revive interest in
the company. With his background at the luxury Italian lingerie brand La Perla,
he knew just what to do.
While the main Maison Lejaby collection remained (albeit moving upmarket and
becoming far more exclusive in its availability), the decision to create Lejaby
Couture at the tail end of a horrendous global recession took some guts — but
it worked, and visitors to the couture salon today are many and dedicated, some
spending tens of thousands of euros in a couple of hours.
To some, it may seem like madness to spend anything from €500 for a set of
lingerie to €35,000-plus for a bespoke body, encrusted with Swarovski crystals,
pearls and unimaginably delicate Leavers lace. But this is a company that
spares no effort in its drive to create couture-worthy lingerie. Having worked
with Nina Ricci and Christian Lacroix on corsetry, and now collaborating with
the same jewellers and artists as Louis Vuitton and Hermès, the couture
aesthetic is embedded in every aspect of Maison Lejaby.
The company’s creative director, Colette Candela, knows just how things have
changed at Maison Lejaby: she has been with the company for 42 years and for
her it always comes down to one thing: the product.
“The grand renouveau [the great renewal] has been very
important to me,” she says at the couture salon in Paris, where visits are
appointment-only, for anything from an hour to the whole day, and accompanied
by macarons, Champagne, lunch — whatever the client demands, of course.
“In the years before, it was decided to make it less expensive, make it in
China, and I was always cutting back on the product but creating more and more
styles,” she continues. “When Alain Prost arrived, he brought back the sense of
style, and from the start it was all about technique and aesthetics.”
For the new Maison Lejaby, there came a new motto: l’esprit couture à la Française, the spirit of French couture,
which, says Candela, is about far more than just high prices and lots of
embroidery. “It’s elegance, but at the same time audacity, because in
terms of design or fashion, Lejaby is not romantic; it’s for the woman who has
a personality, who has purpose and confidence. The designs are for a strong
personality.”
And what beautiful designs they are. Candela may reject a categorisation of
romanticism, but the lace, tulle, chiffon and satin silks are exquisitely
pretty. Certainly in strong colours, yellow or indigo, for example, as well as
the traditional oyster, black and white, but delicate, subtle and sexy at the
same time.
As befits a couture company, every piece is made in France by highly skilled
craftspeople, 30 or so working on the couture side of Lejaby. The lace is
always from Calais, often pieces plucked from long-forgotten archives, the
embroidery from Switzerland and the silk from Lyon. The only other sources are
Belgium and Italy, for fabrics that France no longer has the capacity to make.
The requirements of fine lingerie are extremely specific and, as a result,
there are few fabric mills that live up to Lejaby’s standards. “They accept that they have to come up with the quality. The quality is the
most important thing,” says Candela simply.
Even the swimwear (of which Sharon Stone is reportedly a huge fan) is
exceptional, with lace and trimmings that appear as soft and fragile as those
on the lingerie but that are resistant to salt and water, and details such as a
foulard pattern designed by an artist who works with Hermès; or a
serpent-shaped buckle that is made by one of Louis Vuitton’s regular craftspeople.
Beyond the salon’s main collection (and its upmarket department-store
collections) are the special orders, the pieces that truly deserve the
‘couture’ label. The immensely skilled made-to-measure corsetière has created,
among other projects, a light-as-air tutu with the French prima ballerina Agnès
Letestu, who danced in it at the Paris Lido in the brand’s 130th anniversary celebration.
Perhaps even more entrancing are the carefully embroidered and beaded pieces of
lace and tulle that can take upwards of 200 hours to complete. Densely
encrusted with hand-applied beading, pearls, crystals, wisps of chiffon and
lace, this is what Maison Lejaby is all about. This is, says Candela,
truly l’esprit de couture.
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Kim Kardashian celebrates 27m Instagram followers in lingerie
February 27, 2015 by admin
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Kim Kardashian celebrated reaching a new Instagram milestone the best way she knows how… with a booty-ful selfie.
The reality star shared a racy lingerie snap on Thursday with the caption: ’27 mil!!!!! Thank you so much!!!! I love you all!!!!’
She’s had plenty to celebrate this week – her family have also just inked a new $100 million deal with E!.
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Belfie: Kim Kardashian posted this picture on Thursday after reaching 27 million Instagram followers
Matriarch and manager Kris Jenner has reportedly agreed a four-year contract extension with the network for herself and daughters Kim Kardashian West, Khloé and Kourtney Kardashian and Kendall and Kylie Jenner, and the agreement is the highest in TV history for a reality brand.
The deal covers ‘at least’ four more seasons of ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’, spin-off shows and possible digital projects.
A source told the New York Post newspaper’s Page Six column: ‘You’ll be seeing a lot more of the Kardashian family. This is a huge deal, which will see their involvement with the network and its digital properties expand well into the future.’
Tight: Kim was spotted on Thursday night wearing a tight pink PVC leather dress
Date night: Kim and husband Kanye West left the Dorchester Hotel together as they made their way to dinner
Kris’ ex-husband Bruce Jenner is not included in the deal as he is leaving after the upcoming 10th series of ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ but is believed to be launching his own show documenting his gender transition.
Kim’s husband Kanye West is also not included in the deal, but he will continue to make occasional appearances on the programme.
Show creator Ryan Seacrest will also land a ‘sizeable fee’ under the terms of the contract.
Chilly: Kim held off London’s chilled temperatures by wrapping up in a beige fur coat, which she kept draped around her shoulders
Matching: Kanye had the trousers to match, although he opted for black instead of pink, with a black velvet top to go with
Baby steps: The 34-year-old wasn’t running anywhere in the skin-tight dress than ran all the way up to her throat
Meanwhile Kim has certainly been enjoying her time in London with her man, fresh from his controversial appearance at Wednesday’s BRIT Awards.
The reality star was snapped leaving the Dorchester Hotel wearing a tight pink PVC dress, on her way to dinner with Kanye
Earlier, the two were spotted sharing a kiss on the doorstep of the famous Abbey Road studios on Thursday morning.
Proud: Kim delivered her husband a passionate kiss on the doorstep of Abbey Road Studios in London on Thursday morning
Happy couple: The couple skipped the afterparties on Wednesday night, instead looking fresh and potentially – for Kanye – working hard on music
Pose: The couple stopped for the camera so they could capture the moment they entered the historic studio
Kim also shared a couple on Instagram snaps of the happy couple shopping… or rather her waiting around while her fashion designer hubby did the shopping
‘Waiting on bae shopping…’ she wote in one, and ‘Posing for bae This is what we do when we’re bored shopping and no ones around’ in another.
The duo looked pretty fresh-faced as they hit the high streets of the English capital, probably down to the fact they uncharacteristically skipped all the Brit after-parties on Wednesday night, opting for a quiet meal together instead.
Earlier in the night Kanye caused a stir by using the N-word several times in his pre-watershed live performance, which lead to all audio being crudely edited out entirely for audience’s at home as unsuspecting technicians tried to censor it.
Leggy lady: Kim posted this sexy snap to Instagram on Thursday and wrote: ‘Waiting on bae shopping….’
My man: Kim later posted an intimate Instagram show with Kanye, captioned ‘KimKAllDay’
Skipping off: Kim Kardashian and Kanye West turned their backs on the various Brits after-parties, opting instead for a romantic meal at Mayfair restaurant Hakkasan
Early night: The couple wowed at the Brits, but were clearly in no mood to party as the event wound down
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