Weave A Spell

HERMES’S FAMOUS SILK SCARVES draw on history, design and the glories of the natural world,  so it’s no surprise to see its new collection has been informed by elements of all three. Called ‘Appaloosa des Steppes’, it is inspired both by the geometric patterns and beautiful colours of the felt carpets made by Kyrgyz nomads, guardians of the remote Tian Shan mountains in Central Asia, and by the spotted coat of the Appaloosa horse bred for centuries by Native Americans in the north-west of the United States – which some believe originated in what is now Kyrgyzstan.

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Hermès is well known for its luxury leather goods, but its silk and cashmere scarves, with their intriguing designs and bold use of colour, are arguably what the French fashion house is most famous for. This latest collection comes from illustrator Alice Shirley, who was initially intrigued by the ‘spotty horse’ and its Kyrgyz origins. This led her to the London studio of Felt, the first company to import the rugs directly from Kyrgyzstan to the United Kingdom, after Felt’s Tim Moock set up a fair trade agreement with the makers.