Ode to a revitalising scarf
I said a few weeks ago that I didn’t think Michael Rider’s Celine would radically change the way we dress. I still don’t, other than I think he’s succeeding in shifting the tyranny of ‘quiet luxury’ into a more colourful direction.
And one key way he’s doing that is with the silk square scarf.
Formerly Hermès territory, the Celine scarf feels more sporty, vital and graphic. Hermès scarves can also be graphic but there’s often a lot going on in them. (Some have as many as 47 colours, requiring 47 engraving films, as I once discovered on an Hermès workshop tour.) My favourite Hermès scarves were always the geometric ones – I loved the Sugimoto (below), Josef Albers (below) and Natalie Rich-Fernadez’s Delaunay-esque ones of a few years ago.
While the traditional Hermès scarf could famously be styled in myriad ways (the brand produces its own illustrated scarf-tying cards and there are endless YouTube tutorials to be found), I think we still associate them with a somewhat conservative bourgeois image. The way the Celines were shown on the runway felt modern, effortless and not too thought out. And they work so well with the contemporary Celine ‘garconne‘ wardrobe of blazers, denim, trench, not to mention Miu Miu’s XL Harringtons and Prada’s reworked barn jackets. These are pieces we all have now (in multiples!) and a colour-saturated graphic scarf — or three — is an ideal ‘tool’ to lift them out of the everyday and utilitarian.
Jennifer Alfano demonstrates this sentiment well on her Substack, The Flair Index. I just had a look back at a double page spread from my book, The New Garconne* (published 10 years ago this autumn!) and I love how this lady — below — wore her scarf over her hair. (Photo by the amazing Vanessa Jackman — where is she now???) I had to fight so hard for that double page, but the ‘movement’ demonstrates what I mean about the graphic scarf energising or ‘lifting’ an outfit.
High street retailers have been quick to leap on the Celine scarf ‘trend’. It’s an easy and affordable entry point to an otherwise luxury look and so versatile. Mango* and COS* (below) are both ahead of the curve with the right colours and scale. But don’t feel sad for Hermès, I’ve no doubt the Celine scarf mania will have a lucrative knock-on effect on their silks too.
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WORDS: Disneyrollergirl / Navaz Batliwalla
IMAGES: The Sartorialist; Hermès x Sujimoto; Hermès x Josef Albers; Sandra Semberg; The Sartorialist x 2; Sandra Semberg; Tommy Ton/Celine; The Sartorialist; Vanessa Jackman, COS
NOTE: Most images are digitally enhanced. Some posts use affiliate links* and PR samples. Please read my privacy and cookies policy here
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