Chanel Debuts a New Book That Celebrates the Magic and Mastery of its Atelier

Few places are as mythologized in fashion quite like Chanel’s headquarters at 31 Rue Cambon. Chances are you know about the building’s mirrored staircase and its double-C awnings, but how acquainted are you with what happens on its upper floors that house Chanel’s ateliers? Well, you can be—and very soon. A new book, Chanel, The Making of a Collection, illustrated by Jean-Philippe Delhomme, offers unprecedented access to Chanel’s in-house and off-site workshops, chronicling the making of Karl Lagerfeld’s Spring 2019 collection and Métiers d’Art 2018 collections for the maison.

With text by Laetitia Cénac, the book provides immensely intricate—and by-the-day—details about the inner workings of the Chanel ateliers. It works in reverse-chronological order, starting with the runway and progressing backward through time, and through Chanel’s many métiers, to unveil the techniques and artisans that make the Chanel magic happen. Early on, the styling process of the show’s looks is revealed, with Cénac noting that four studio heads, Odile Massuger (knitwear), Yvette van der Linde (handbags), Rosemarie Eliot (jewelry), and Laurence Dacade (shoes), will stand in the center of the room to tweak each look alongside fabrics director Kim Young-Seong, with the approval of Virginie Viard and Lagerfeld. This process, which covers each of the show’s 82 exits, takes place just two days before the show.

Throughout the following pages, Cénac checks in with Flore Vladaj, the première of the atelier flou (where the dresses are made), who reveals a little secret of Chanel’s tailoring. “A dress may look straight, but in fact it’s cut into a cone shape. Chanel dresses have this subtlety. The lines marry with the body without revealing it.” Christine Allix, the première of the tailoring atelier, opens up later on about the specifics of the Chanel jacket—for example, the exact measurement of Chanel’s topstitching (two to three inches) and the purpose of the chain details at the jacket’s bottom hem (to weigh down the shape).

Each of Chanel’s métiers is depicted, with additional secrets shared throughout, including an interview with Lagerfeld, who reveals the inspirations behind his final shows. “My latest collections,” he begins, “have a connection to childhood.… A collection can come out of a dream—or a nightmare too, by the way. I dream, work my mind, I create, I throw away, I start again…. There are no rules or formulas. I draw everything myself. It’s the artistry that I love. Having a studio of twenty people working on computers does not interest me. I always have a notebook near my pillow to write down my ideas, to have a record of them.”