Dear Shaded Viewers,
The story begins with, in my opinion, one of the greatest couturiers in history; in the beginning was Poiret, and indeed Schiaparelli was a huge fan of his work and wore his clothes. This friendship began in 1922, but by the time she became a star he was all but forgotten having closed his doors in 1929. When later she wrote her memoir she lovingly tells the story of their first meeting, it’s also known that he encouraged her at the very beginning of her fashion career.
Although a few seasons ago they tried to revive Paul Poiret, like many other houses it didn’t work. The idea of Sleeping Beauty being a grand couture name, and by purchasing it, installing a new designer, and simply kissing it awake will result in success and happiness is naïve. The great names of the past don’t always pay for a fresh look, which is why it is fascinating that Schiaparelli’s success is, perhaps, a perfect example of the amount of investment, time, care and commitment to this huge task. It certainly pays for examination as we look back both at January 2025 couture, and also head towards the next pret a porter in Paris.
Rome born Schiaparelli had been in Paris since 1922, as a single mother and designing clothes for a short while, she eventually had tiny attic rooms, both as living accommodation and as her business and workroom, in the rue de la Paix. Although it all really started seriously with a sweater in 1927, when she was introduced to a friends Armenian knitter who could, and would, knit to anything to order. Schiaparelli commissioned her to make a slim, fitted black sweater with a big white bow on the front, knitted in the design, not appliqué. According to Palmer White’s biography of the designer, it took two attempts to get it right, then Schiaparelli wore it to lunch at The Ritz, a successful PR trick, which resulted in an order for forty copies of the sweater for Lord & Taylor in New York.
We must, at this point, note the American connection as a thread throughout the story of the house and its designer, as she had moved to New York in 1919 with her then husband, and it was there she had her only child, Gogo.
Once Schiaparelli was successful and established in Paris she purchased 21, Place Vendome from Madame Chéruit in 1935, and there she developed many of the couture house elements she’d observed and admired in Poiret. Working with artists, including Surrealists, and having themes to her collections, plundering other cultures, a small accessories boutique, fragrances and also working hard on how to achieve strong silhouettes. A fabulous social life, entertaining, and never shying away from the controversial. Schiap, as she became known to her friends continued right through the rest of the 1930’s leaving Paris as war broke out and moved back to New York and America in 1941. During the German Occupation of Paris she left Irene Dara running the house.
On her return to Paris in 1945 it was clear she was out of step with post war fashion, which culminated in the success of Christian Dior’s “New Look” in 1947. She closed her doors finally in 1954. Fragrance and accessories continued for sometime and she had been clever enough to own and form a fragrance division in 1957. Elsa Schiaparelli died in 1973.
We should also note at this point that Hubert de Givenchy designed for Schiaparelli boutique from 1947 for four years leading to launch his own Maison de Couture in 1951. All this is history, but now we start a new chapter of the Schiaparelli story and the reawakening.
In 2007 the Italian businessman Diego Della Valle, who owns Tod’s the shoe brand, and Aqua de Parma fragrance, acquired the company. Included was the signature name, part of the building at 21, Place Vendome, and the fragrances, although it wasn’t until an announcement in 2013 that this became general knowledge. Christian Lacroix had been engaged to design a collection to relaunch the house. It was envisioned as a starting point and at no time was it seen as a debut, since there were never any plans to produce the clothes. In the original press release Della Valle originally announced Lacroix as the first in a series of “guest” designers. However, in 2014 Marco Zanini was named the first designer for the relaunched house, and couture only was the plan. As a heritage house it swiftly became a key player on the official FHCM schedule, after only a few seasons. In spite of generally good reviews, Zanini left and the studio created one seasons collection before Bertrand Guyon joined the house in 2015. He in turn left, but during his time at the house, pret a porter has been introduced, especially with handbags and jewellery. His collections, especially when shown in the Place Vendome salons were beautiful and he balanced couture and a certain quirkiness, as well as establishing Schiaparelli firmly in the couture schedule.
In 2019 Daniel Roseberry an American designer born in 1985 who had been over a decade at Thom Browne was announced as designer. Unlike recent rumour mills grinding out endless names, if Roseberry appeared as a surprise for many in the fashion business, he was going to surprise them repeatedly. From the very first collection where Roseberry sat at a desk drawing and recalling his days in a freezing New York apartment dreaming, whilst the models paraded under spotlights in a vast black space, it was obvious this was the story teller that matched Elsa Schiaparellis’ vision. The great gift he showed from season one was to remain true to his own vision as a twenty first century creator but also to waft the magic of the house throughout his collections. In lockdown he was filmed seated sketching in Central Park longing to be in his ateliers in Place Vendome. Roseberry can draw, do fittings, is articulate in interviews, and has both a respect for the history of the house, as shown in the stitch for stitch remake of a Schiaparelli ball gown for Carey Mulligan at the Golden Globes in 2024 which he didn’t tamper with at all, but also a desire to move it forward. Diego della Valle now owns the entire building, as it was in its heyday, a gradual acquisition from 2007, when it was only part owned. Boutiques have opened in Harrods and the ever first class Bergdorf Goodman, yet another American and New York connection, selling the pret a porter collections. The house signatures, the house style and the entire history is in the air at Place Vendome but Roseberry creates his own collections strong enough to dominate the Vertes drawings, the golden locks and the ghosts. One must also question how much of the past of a house does a designer needs to acknowledge? Do the audience sit there ticking off the reinventions, “inspirations” and new pieces whose pedigree is clearly spelt out? As a designer Monsieur Roseberry uses the past, but places his own imprint on it, transforms it, and makes us gasp.
It’s also important to note that from the very beginning women like Farida Khelfa, Carla Bruni, Ines de la Fressange and Marisa Berenson, who is in fact the granddaughter of Schiaparelli, and other chic French women have been associated with the house. Schiaparelli was known for a certain edge to her chic, famously of course American born HRH The Duchess of Windsor was a client, and to instil this same stylish ambiance through the friends of the maison is brilliant. It’s all part of the establishment of the Schiaparelli name as a key player in fashion and today people like Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga or Emily Blunt, and dozens of others find Daniel Roseberry for Schiaparelli is the answer to looking great, from Red Carpet to glossy magazine shoots. All this is evidence that Diego della Valle’s patience and care has handsomely paid off.
So, now to January 2025 and the Schiaparelli collection which opened the couture season. This season Roseberry dialled down the colour and the more extreme pieces in a truly breathtaking collection of haute couture. I was seated in the circular space at the Petit Palais, and after a rainy start to the morning the sun through clouds poured through the huge windows as each model worked around the giant hammered gold disc on the floor. Each model looked confident, at ease in her look and as they slowly passed you could see that the fit and cut was perfect, the hair and makeup was exquisite. The colour palette was predominantly soft with beige, ecru, biscuit, face power, ivory, chalk white, and black used only as a dramatic highlight or as embroidery. The silhouettes especially embraced the line around the shoulders and bust with swooping lines and curves standing away from the body, and the waist clearly defined, skirts unfurled into fullness, dived backwards into bustle like emphasis or simply swayed and danced past.
When the following day I went to see the pieces in the salons at Place Vendome and made amazing discoveries. An apparently striped dress was actually ribbons of Nile green velvet separated by rows of straight beads, a top was shaped and formed from again bands of velvet, this time in a pale snuff colour with grey, pewter, silver and pearl embroidery, a pale amethyst silk velvet skirt was entirely cut on the bias. A floral pale green embroidery appeared to also have eyes scattered amongst the leaves, and the workmanship every time demanded a closer look to see the detailing. When I looked at a dress whose sheer top was scattered with tiny decorations of silk organza, I literally could not see how they were attached, and the reason the cascade of pleated ruffles at the bottom of the dress had seemed so weightless in the show, was, I realised, that the fabric was literally cut at the edges and then seemingly randomly split so it opened up like petals. The glory of couture is in safe hands since the relationship between the designer and the workrooms is apparent in every detail. In dramatic curve of a black top, the band of encrustations in jet beading outlining that curve, the very narrow long sleeves and the fluid lines of the simple pleat front pants, every element was in perfect harmony. I would like to think Elsa Schiaparelli approves of both of the American connection, and his beautiful work awakening the house, and would say as all happy endings should – “Congratulations Monsieur Roseberry”.
Note – previous Americans creating couture, Chicago born Mainbocher ( Main Rousseau Bocher ) was based in Paris as a couturier 1929-1940 and New York based Ralph Rucci who has shown his couture in Paris during the season, from 2001-2004 and again in 2019.
Later,
Tony Glenville
