August 29, 2011 |
Dear Madame Lanvin,
We were just thinking about you. It was something we read, see. Something about lifestyle brands and pioneers and suddenly it hit us: there was no mention of you. Sacrilege, we cried. What kind of person just forgets about you? We’ve got a good mind to hunt them down and drown them in a well like a rabid cat. You were, after all, not only the founder of the oldest couture house Parisienne but also the lifestyle queen! A sash and crown should be placed on your tomb. You were a pioneer. This lifestyle thing everyone’s flogging didn’t just magic itself out of thin air. It came from you. Starting out small with millinery, expanding slowly into childrenswear, then ladieswear, even menswear before succumbing to interiors and finally adding a fragrance arm. “Many hands in many pots” was your raison d’être. You added new bits to your company, depending, we’ll assume, on what you happened to need at the time and what you need can before very difficult to find at times. No one has time to spend their days searching for the perfect throw or dress. Easier to make it yourself. Also, let’s be honest, after a while, dressmaking becomes a little dull. There’s only so much you can do with a bit of bias-cut fabric and some beading. You need a new challenge, which you found – several in fact – and made them all successful. You were, truth be told, the blueprint for all that came after, which we feel is quite an appropriate choice of mot as blue was your favourite colour, and so, on that note, we’ll leave these flowers for you by your grave. Hopefully no one will take them.
Hugs and kisses,
Ten Towers
by Natalie Dembinska
