I found a glimpse of that same emotion in the pages of Émile Zola… Nana… The Ladies’ Paradise… And now, too, as I write about the inspiration for this eponymous collection.

Each word takes me back, making me relive those magnificent arrangements—stacked high, laid flat, rolled, draped—each a world of possibility, each bearing an enchanting name, a sumptuous classification: Evening Gown, Cocktail Dress, Day Dress, City Suit, School Coat, Celebrations and Ceremony, Chic Sportswear…

It is easy to imagine collections when you have spent your childhood in the land of Hallenstein Woolens, Dormeuil, Harris Tweed, themselves neighbors to the Silks of Lyon and other silk jacquards, twill, bourrette—not to forget taffeta, moiré, brocade, brocatelle… I lingered endlessly in the silk section before drifting away, lost in thought, reflecting at length on my future dress, this romantic grail — MY WEDDING DRESS — queen upon her pedestal, ethereal and rustling, immaculate with the promise of dreams yet to come, sheltered in the intimate, cream-hued boudoir of TOUTISSUS COUTURE.
Before such sublime silences, I would respectfully turn away, drawn toward a new idea, just there, at the corner of the Calais Lace section, before returning, lighthearted, to my favorite place: Liberty House and my seven-year-old self.Suddenly serious again, in that way only children can be, I would go disturb the devoted seamstress and explain my vision for floral dresses—grand nods, emphatic gestures mimicking pleats, my arms moving with such conviction that my braids trembled with every movement.