Out of the Past

Hermès's Collection Hors-Série, created from leftover fabrics and employing exquisite needlework, melds tradition with modernity.

- Lynn Yaeger

Some designers cling strictly to the calendar, releasing their collections in rigid sequence, but others have imaginations that cannot be tied down to a particular season. For Nadège Vanhée, the artistic director of women’s ready-to-wear at Hermès, this desire to break free, to throw out the old rules, has resulted in an exquisite, extremely limited edition (a mere 16 looks!) that she refers to as sleeping beauties—their formal name is Collection Hors-Série, Women’s 2023 Savoir-Faire Collection.

Each of these creations, from the embroidered ivory swing coat to the silk jacquard Spencer jacket to the micromini woven with ribbons, is made f rom fabrics left over f rom previous collections. You might call it deadstock, but of course the end of a bolt of Hermès cashmere is not exactly a prosaic remnant; a swath of organza that forms the basis of a guipure-lace dress is no ordinary love.

Vanhée didn’t just want to breathe new life into old materials; she was also determined to salt her work with ancient needlework techniques— intricate embroidery, lace making, weaving, beading, passementerie— crafts that still exist, though sometimes just barely, in ateliers hidden throughout France. The designs are a balancing act between old-world skill and contemporary fashion. “I find it quite playful,” Vanhée explains. “It’s crazy cool, but it’s also conservative.”