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Vol.07  Issue 02/05, 18.02.2007

ULTRA Lingerie - Haute Couture Pleasure

Time-honoured refinement and Modern Inventiveness are brought together

It’s an exchange of sumptuous techniques, a challenge which defies the most outlandish requirements: 44 prototypes, one-off pieces, designed by expert partnerships of fabric specialists and designers, where time-honoured refinement and modern inventiveness are brought together once again in an (un)arranged marriage to create the event that is Ultra Lingerie at the Salon International de La Lingerie and Interfilière.

The theme proposed this year "Touch of Madness" is a veritable invitation to step up the audacity, like a desire to shake off the constraints of reason.

Extravagance in any form is accepted and expected: sculptural frills and flounces, lashings of lace, radiant colours, exquisite embroidery, jangling charms, shadowy tattoos, the magic and majesty of boundless volumes, fairylike sparkle ... all brought to life by models who are delighted to take to the catwalk, driven by passion but also by a veritable raison d'être, the unquestionable power of seduction. On this point our participants are unanimous: this is the lingerie of dreams, but dreams that are grounded in reality, like an inspirational icon ...
A number of participants have expressed their feelings perfectly:

Lejaby
" For us, Ultra Lingerie is a way of establishing our creative expertise and traditional workmanship. Naturally, we allow ourselves a degree of extravagance that we could not offer on an industrial level. It's still a great way of developing our creativity, finding new possibilities. "

Eva Herzigova,
Head of the jury.

Gentry de Paris
" We set up our brand in France precisely because French savoir-faire is absolutely extraordinary. A number of manufacturers offer a fantastic level of reactivity. For us, UItra Lingerie is an exceptional opportunity to pursue our collaboration and take it even further. "

Ritratti
" It's a wonderful exercise in style and the level is always very high. It allows us to exceed our artistic limits, which is always important. Also, and above all, it helps us meet manufacturers with whom we may not be accustomed to working. It creates new requirements. And ideas. "

Anya Paris
" For us, Ultra Lingerie is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate our expertise in a variety of techniques, since our customers are not always ready to take the plunge... It's also a way of proving that we are capable of adapting to the requirements of lingerie. Creative fabrics are very popular at the moment. We are collaborating very successfully with Lejaby, Elise Anderegg and Gentry de Paris. "

Codentel
" We worked with Elise Anderegg, Sabrina Nadal, Marjolaine and Keenan. We knew the first three well since we work with them already and got to know our fourth partner this time round. They each use a highly creative and different approach to our lace, allowing us to 'rediscover' it. Our collaboration with Keenan was such a success that it resulted in a collection for the coming season. "

Calvin Klein &
Noyon Dentelle :
Trophée Coup de coeur

ULTRA Lingerie - The future of Tradition

Setting ourselves up for the future - emotion, seduction and pleasure - while reconciling tradition and innovation: this is the vocation of Ultra Lingerie, a dream opportunity, all the more precious since it has set itself a very realistic mission: promoting traditional savoir-faire that has been handed down from generation to generation... and demonstrating the extent to which this heritage of excellence is capable of abandoning well-trodden paths to take an active and exciting role in the most contemporary of lingerie.

From this point of view, the event is perfectly in line with a current mood that affects us all, a spectacular echo of a grassroots trend, as explained by Olivier Saillard, curator of the Musée de la Mode et du Textile:

" Three years ago, the fashion world was predicting the death of French craftsmanship. Today, these same people understand that it is perhaps the very cornerstone of French identity, and what provides 'added value' for foreign consumers. That's why the importance of the traditional craft system is currently being reassessed. In particular, a certain number of ready-to-wear brands are taking the plunge and opening in-house workshops or using the services of a whole range of small-scale craftsmen. They understand that this reversal of fortune represents an opportunity to map out their originality and quality. This trend is clearly a reaction to excessive standardisation and uniformization. Consumers know that clothing in general and lingerie in particular should still be about pleasure. Moreover, we have noticed that a number of them have taken up sewing, knitting and customization, which is yet another form of self-reappropriation."

Passionata & Liebaert,
bow tie and ornaments :
Trophée de l'Audace Matière

To put it simply, this means that luxury is no longer content to simply express itself through couture and it's an excellent opportunity to be grasped.
New technologies and other textile industries need to collaborate more closely with traditional craftsmen. In this respect, compiling a catalogue of addresses would be a useful step, creating some sort of directory of different expertise to put people in touch more easily. This kind of contact is essential. Hence the importance of an opportunity like Ultra Lingerie.

First-class networking

Salon International de la Lingerie and Interfilière, 2nd February, 7.30pm: the curtain lifted on a podium of creations that are unique in the world, but also on an audience of some 1,000 VVIPs (key directors and industry professionals, international press, opinion leaders, designers, etc.) gathered there for an optimal evening of promotion, pleasure, networking, exchange and dialogue. That's the other objective of the Ultra Lingerie event: offering a relaxed cocktail party for networking and consolidating existing contacts, i.e. working together in the same direction, towards a richer, more international horizon.
We all know that it's essential, since to keep moving onwards and upwards, we can't rely on ourselves alone, but also, and especially on others.

It is also an event that enhances the show and celebrates the future of creativity. A jury presided-over by Eva Herzigova and featuring 9 personalities from a wide variety of backgrounds (fashion, couture, press, gastronomy, literature), awarded three prizes:
the "Excess Folies" Touch of Madness Award (Trophée " Excess Folies ") given to the famous house of Cadolle, associated with DGE Engineering, this year’s Interfilière "Paris, capital of design" designer, with a timeless outfit in black and startling blue, combining a pointed bra with butterfly straps, a waist-cincher and suspender belt with retro floral embroidery, tulles, satin and a metallic look;
the Award for Adventurous Use of Materials (Trophée de l’Audace Matière) for a really sexy body-suit with suspenders by Passionata with Liebaert and Papillon Noeuds et Ornements;
and the Jury's Special Prize (Trophée Coup de coeur) to Calvin Klein Underwear for a set in black lace produced in conjunction with Noyon Dentelle.

Some more information :
Ritratti - Designer of the Year 2007
SIL and Interfilière 2007 Summary

To the general Fashion Fairs Calendar 2007
Links to Fair Organizers

Cadolle & DGE Engineering :
Trophée " Excess Folies "