Le feu sacré

Ozias Leduc source

I had arrived at the country house on the night of Friday the 13th, where in general we dine by candle light. It had been a fairly long drive with some heavy traffic where it wasn't expected. But we were happy to arrive, light the fires and begin a peaceful weekend. We didn't know what had happened back in Paris. Then just before going to bed, my worried sister called from the US thinking we were still at the apartment.

Sometimes we know there is far too much said of tragedy in the media - classic and social - and our minutes of silence could easily be multiplied by 1000.  Yet how is it possible to speak again of art, of beauty, fabrics, decoration and other privileged preoccupations in a blog such as mine without aknowledging our mourning after the barbarous acts of terror in our beloved Paris,
in our beloved world ?

The right words lack before the gravity of this situation 

but words are the first things we have at our disposition to find unity. And because in communicating we reinforce our courage, I have borrowed these from Edmond Rostand's proud Chantecler, 

C’est la nuit qu’il est beau de croire à la lumière.

It's at night that faith in the light is admirable.

Where to find textile treasures in Paris

photo: Le style et la matière
precious fabric wound around wooden dowels  

It is possible for anyone in Paris to find a gold mine of fashion fabrics
and like many of the very best things, this treasure is hidden in plain sight!

My neighbor just asked me where to go for fabric in view of some very special occasions where she must be dressed en conséquence. I was pleased to pass along a very good address and thought some of you would appreciate it too.

photo: Le style et la matière
wish you could touch this too!

In fact, this shop isn't really hidden at all, but its unassuming storefront will have been passed up by more than one fabric enthusiast if she hasn’t been informed of the location in advance. Costume-makers and stylists, however, all know about this Aladdin's cave of fabrics. The good thing is, you don't have to be a textile professional to go to De Gilles Tissus. Venture past the plain threshold and the promise of fabric marvels awaits -many rarely accessible to the general public -
yet the atmosphere is undeniably nonchalant.

You might not even notice the famed Schiapperelli lobster design framed on the wall behind the front desk; it's half hidden by photos of family, friends and the exotic travels of the shop's owner, Catherine Kouliche-Goldman. Some of the fruit of those trips, suzanis and ikats are hanging nearby too, jostling the French silk in a neighborly way. You might say it's the colorful movie posters lining the stairwell that hint at  the uncommonly high level of interest of the material here. Yes,
 along side Vincent Lindon, Audrey Tautou, Jean Dujardin etc, etc, we could say,

also starring De Gilles Tissus!

photo: Le style et la matière
The puckers of a rose-colored couture cloqué fabric

The majority of the merchandise is French, a portion of it comes from the UK and Italy, but most importantly every single fabric found in the shop has been chosen individually by Catherine Goldman, who guarantees its quality. Not for her, the bargain-container approach that some in the field practice. Catherine is the third generation owner in her family, though the trade has changed along the years from wholesale to retail. Her stock today is a treasure trove of articles from buttons, ribbons and even vintage pantyhose to truly precious stuffs otherwise destined for couture houses. There are gold and silver braids and trim from a  passementier specialized in metallics, fabrics from the 50s-80s of mills now defunct, overstock from today's manufacturers, as well as a more limited selection of valuable hand-crafted items from Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Peru....

photo: Le style et la matière

This magnificent silk velvet on transparent ground has the flavor a Gruau illustration and I would guess it comes from the great house of Bouton-Renaud in Lyon known for hand-painted and high novelty articles of this sort. 

photo: Le style et la matière
floral lampas/brocade

De Gilles provides mostly high fashion fabrics but there are exceptions and of course, your own creativity can come into play here. The haute couture is well-known for using furnishing fabrics to suit its own ends, I say these things can go both ways with a little good judgement. After all, the notion of specificity between fashion and furnishing fabrics only came about in the late 18th century. So, a length for a skirt, a bit more for drapes - Scarlet did make a dress of her curtains....

photo: Le style et la matière

Vintage meets South American

photo: Le style et la matière

Some of France's finest -
warp printed silks with their distinctive soft blurred appearance and full-bodied crisp handle.

photo: Le style et la matière

photo: Le style et la matière

Fancy silks

photo: Le style et la matière

Crunchy tweeds

photo: Le style et la matière

reworked tweed

photo: Le style et la matière

Mmmmm, fabulous highly textured yanked wool

photo: Le style et la matière

The coppery coating of this Grand-Siècle-inspired design gives this fabric a lot of punch!

photo: Le style et la matière

photo: Le style et la matière

This billowy silk mousseline (chiffon) was printed to resemble an Indonesian ikat 

photo: Le style et la matière

photo: Le style et la matière

Among the exotic textiles can be found a few costumes and hats.

photo: Le style et la matière

 Rare lacquered silk brought back from Taiwan.
This ancient artisanal technique that uses mud to achieve a noble,
almost leathery look with a subtle sheen.

photo: Le style et la matière

cotton, linen, hemp - here a mix of weaves in bold blue ramie

photo: Le style et la matière

threads left hanging - but oh, what threads!

And another part of the treasure is Catherine Goldman herself. She is no-run-of-the-mill shop owner! She was educated at the Ecole du Louvre, understands the arts and is passionate about fabric's place among them - as well as in world economy.

Like many of us in the textile profession, Catherine has become more and more concerned with the problem of the diminishing quality of textiles today and what's more, with the steady loss of the textile culture. She does her part to remedy to the problem by raising consciousness through a very lively blog called Passion Textiles that I warmly recommend. You will find articles on the history of various fabrics and their techniques, reporting on the textile craft from around the globe, as well as practical tips on care and some op-ed pieces, too.

Mass production and the battle of always more-for-less has led to a certain disregard for fabrics. What was once valued as essential and often precious is taken for granted because too often it is replaced with ersatz materials that don't last a season. Those who have not been educated to distinguish quality often settle for what is easiest and cheapest to obtain.
We live with textiles everyday. They are our second skin. They transform our homes. Don't settle.

De Gilles Tissus
156 Rue de la Roquette
75011 Paris

All wrapped up with shawls, sheep and a social vocation: Teixidors

photo le figaro

Eco-pâturage/eco-grazing in Paris

I love wool. I feel I need to say, I still love wool.  Do you? 
It sometimes feels like we're a dying breed, those of us who appreciate wool - and other natural fibers for that matter. People who speak of fleece today are usually talking about polyester! Wool in most inexpensive to mid-level brands is getting rarer and rarer and when present, usually in blends, it is mostly of inferior quality taken from dead sheep, sometimes pulled off with chemicals. 
On the other hand, the pure new (virgin) wool that is produced today has never been better. Just as our hair is healthier and more attractive when we eat the the right things, the quality of wool has improved considerably with dietary changes. The nutritional needs of sheep have been studied to produce softer, finer quality wool entirely different from that of the itchy pants of yesteryear and the pill prone, low-grade blends of today. 

The animals in the picture don't give us their wool, but because I love wool, I tend to like sheep, too, so I thought I would show them anyway !
These sheep are good little alternative lawn mowers, part of the eco-grazing campaign
in Paris started in 2013.

17th century Brussels tapestry
Vertumnus, Roman god of the seasons and change

The first crisp, cool winds of  Autumn always seem to nip harder than what comes later in the season. And though, of course, it gets much colder later on, I always feel those first shivers more intensely. It's a little crazy, but once my head is used to the idea of cold, my body is more easily braced for chills and I don't notice them as much..

There are those who have trouble saying goodbye to golden summer who tend to cling desperately to light summer garb. They put away sandals and  pull on socks again only with the greatest reluctance. Not only their feet risk strangulation but socks can be the bell toll for all
those idealized summer days.
The problem is obviously worse for these people, I am not generally one of them, but I've been a little stubborn about clearing out my  lightweight wear this year feeling that my summer clothes weren't needed much and that we might just get a little more warm weather yet.
(Translate: summer was more crummy than golden.)

But even if you are ready and eager to change wardrobes for the season , there's always a day or two when you are under- or over-dressed dependant on the whims of those trickster weather gods.

My solution is layering and especially, carrying a lightweight wool shawl or scarf to greet these these first chills and temperamental temperatures. I like being able to tuck one into my bag or toss it over my shoulders and take it on and off easily throughout the day. The bother of a heavy-ish jacket is avoided and an extra gleam of color doesn't hurt. Boys and girls of all ages can benefit from this sort of teddy bear carry-along-comfort during the day.

 Ocre throw 50% mohair 50% linen
all photos to the end of post: Teixidors

These mohair and linen scarves above by Teixidors are sumptuous. I had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with this Spanish brand from just outside of Barcelona earlier this month. First I was drawn to the products textures and beautiful materials - merinos, cachemire, mohair, yak - 

and then I also learned that  their scarves, throws, blankets were handwoven as part of a project of social insertion for people with learning disabilities that was started thirty years ago. These people learn satisfying skilled work using the best European fibers; the end result is something anyone would be proud of. 

Jazz blanket
100% cashmere

 These cashmere blankets have the colorful woven irregular cordings that have become 

Teixidors' trademark.

Verdon throws
100% ecological French Merinos wool

Apt throw
100% Merinos

Gobi
50% yak 50% Merinos

Teixidors is part of the best wave of Now into the Future that we could all hope to build. 

 Products that are traceable. Real quality. True beauty. Active humanitarian concerns.

Shiver no more!

Izis, forgotten photographer

The Hôtel de Ville de Paris is exhibiting 250 works of  Izraël Biderman, known as Izis, until the 29th of March.  As part of the humanist movement in photography in the 50s, he was well-known enough to be part of the group show Five French Photographers in  New York's MoMA, along with Brassaï, Doisneau, Ronis and Cartier-Bresson.

His subjects are similar to the other photographer's images of  Paris with its bridges plunging into mist, lover's embraces, faces in the crowd. A compilation of his photographs, Paris des rêves, was immensely successful when it was published in 1950. In it, forty-five writers, among them Louise de Vilmorin, Jean Cocteau and André Breton composed poems to go with the photos. He was the only photographer that Marc Chagall would work with and his poetic vision permitted him to work in tandem wth Jacques Prévert and Colette as well.

Izis was also well-known as a staff photographer at  Paris- Match for 20 years.

Strange that this body of work has been mostly forgotten until now. It may be because Izis died in 1980 just before an interest for the after war years was revived?

If the tragic loss of most of his family during World War II left him to bear guilt with a sometimes tormented artistic vision . . .   

there is a lasting tenderness in his images of Paris.

for  photo gallery , visit the Mairie de Paris

Source: Izis, photographe du spleen  Le Monde

quatorze juillet

Sizzling, sparkling city. After the pomp of the day's parades on the Champs-Elysées, the night's festivities promise to be exceptional.

Celebrating France's fête nationale and the 120th anniversary of its Iron Lady, a 3D firework display has been planned by the same team that dreamed up the pyrotechnics for the year 2000. Images will be projected on the tower in tribute to Gustav Eiffel and the beauty of his design. The poster above is a bit of a curiosity, so I'll be eager to see how it turns out!

top photo Amandine Masina, poster Mairie de Paris