Glossary of the crafts
The six crafts practised at the atelier. Each with its definition, its history, its procedures at the Maison, and the technical vocabulary that comes with it.
Leatherwork
Definition
The craft of cutting, assembling and finishing a chosen leather by hand to compose a wearable piece. Distinguished from industrial leatherwork by the selection of the hide, hand saddle-stitching, and construction without removable frames.
Origins & history
French leatherwork rose to prominence in the 17th century with the growth of carriages and travel cases. The term originally described the work of Cordoban leather (« marroquin »), before applying to any fine leather piece.
Procedures at the Maison
At the Maison, each hide is examined under raking light before cutting, to identify grain and flaws. Assembly follows a two-thread saddle stitch, neither glued nor reinforced with industrial canvas. Edges are dyed and burnished with a heated iron.
Technical terms
- Sellier
- — Couture main à deux fils croisés, indépendants — chaque point tient seul.
- Pleine fleur
- — Partie externe et intacte de la peau, la plus noble et la plus résistante.
- Tranche
- — Bord d'une pièce de cuir, poncé et teinté pour la finition.
- Refente
- — Face interne du cuir après division en épaisseur.
- Guillochage
- — Ornement gravé au burin sur métal ou cuir, motif géométrique répété.
Hand embroidery
Definition
Ornamentation of a textile or supple surface by counted stitches, with needle or hook. Hand embroidery differs from machine embroidery by the mastery of relief, tension variation, and the manual passing of each thread.
Origins & history
Hand embroidery is attested from Antiquity. It found its royal form at Lunéville in the 19th century with the « Lunéville hook », adopted by the great couture houses. A vocabulary of thread, it survives today in a handful of French ateliers.
Procedures at the Maison
At the Maison, hand embroidery calls upon several stitches: stem stitch, French knot, counted stitch on tulle. Threads are selected in silk or cotton, in graded palettes prepared beforehand. Relief is built by superposition, each layer set with beeswax before embroidery.
Technical terms
- Point compté
- — Chaque point placé sur un fil précis du canevas ou du tissu.
- Passe-plat
- — Point de remplissage horizontal, souvent en soie, effet satiné.
- Point de nœud
- — Point formant un relief rond, obtenu par enroulement du fil sur lui-même.
- Tambour
- — Cercle en bois qui tend le tissu pour la broderie main.
- Fil retors
- — Fil constitué de plusieurs brins tordus ensemble, tenue et tension supérieures.
Featherwork
Definition
The craft of composing, dyeing, cutting and assembling feathers to make decorative material. A French craft of medieval origin, listed as intangible cultural heritage.
Origins & history
Attested in Paris from the 14th century, featherwork saw its golden age in the 19th, serving fashion, theatre and interiors. It survives today in a handful of French ateliers, several of which collaborate with the great houses.
Procedures at the Maison
The feather is received in advance, tweezer-selected, degreased, dyed in short baths, then assembled by « pluchage » — a technique that thins the barb so it embraces the light. Each piece requires between forty and three hundred hours depending on density.
Technical terms
- Pluchage
- — Action d'effiler la plume, barbe par barbe, pour lui donner sa transparence finale.
- Barbe
- — Lame latérale de la plume, en ramification depuis le rachis.
- Rachis
- — Axe central de la plume, qui porte les barbes.
- Bain d'aniline
- — Teinture par immersion, colorant synthétique tendre pour plume vivante.
- Colle de peau
- — Adhésif traditionnel d'origine animale, réversible, utilisé pour le fixage main.
Setting
Definition
The craft of setting a stone, pearl, cabochon or enamel onto a support so that the element is held without being hidden. Setting covers several techniques: prong, bead, bezel, channel, invisible.
Origins & history
Setting was born with ancient jewellery. It reached its technical perfection in the 19th century with the Parisian Place Vendôme, where the techniques still used today were codified.
Procedures at the Maison
At the Maison, hand-setting is applied to cabochons, cut stones, glass beads and crystal. Each stone is placed with a fine burin, a spring mallet and a setting plier. Beads are formed with a raising wheel after placement.
Technical terms
- Cabochon
- — Pierre polie mais non facettée, de forme bombée sans taille angulaire.
- Griffe
- — Petit pilier de métal replié sur la pierre pour la maintenir.
- Grain
- — Petite boule de métal formée sur le pourtour de la pierre après enfoncement.
- Chaton
- — Réceptacle métallique qui reçoit la pierre avant sertissage.
- Sertissage clos
- — Enveloppe totale de la pierre par une bande de métal, sans griffe.
Painting on material
Definition
Pictorial treatment applied directly to a non-flat and non-textile surface: straw, leather, mother-of-pearl, stretched silk, precious wood. The paint espouses the material rather than covering it.
Origins & history
Painting on material goes back to Japanese and Chinese lacquers, precious screens and Persian miniatures. In France, it developed from the 18th century on the wood of snuffboxes and precious cases.
Procedures at the Maison
At the Maison, painting is done with a fine sable brush, in successive thin layers. Each layer is left to dry for several hours. Surfaces are prepared with a specific primer — hide glue for straw, shellac for mother-of-pearl.
Technical terms
- Apprêt
- — Couche de préparation qui reçoit la peinture — permet l'accroche du pigment.
- Glacis
- — Couche de peinture transparente qui module la couleur en dessous.
- Martre
- — Poil animal utilisé pour les pinceaux fins, exceptionnelle rétention de pigment.
- Gomme laque
- — Résine naturelle sécrétée par un insecte, utilisée comme apprêt ou vernis.
- Détrempe
- — Peinture à l'eau liée par une colle animale, mate et souple.
Arts of fire
Definition
The set of techniques that use heat to transform a material: enamel on metal, patinas by controlled oxidation, thermal treatments (annealing, quenching), fire-silvering, mercury gilding (today replaced by electroplating).
Origins & history
Arts of fire have accompanied humanity since metallurgy. Byzantine cloisonné enamel, Limoges painted enamel from the 12th century, Venetian fire gilding — each tradition has refined its own signature.
Procedures at the Maison
At the Maison, enamel is brush-applied then fired at 850 to 1000 degrees depending on colour. Bronze patinas are obtained by successive baths of silver nitrate, iron sulphate or ammonia, each bath giving its colour.
Technical terms
- Émail cloisonné
- — Émail contenu entre des fils de métal soudés qui dessinent le motif.
- Émail champlevé
- — Émail versé dans des cavités creusées à même le métal.
- Recuit
- — Chauffage puis refroidissement lent d'un métal pour supprimer les tensions internes.
- Patine
- — Couche colorée obtenue par oxydation contrôlée à la surface d'un métal.
- Fondant
- — Substance ajoutée à l'émail pour abaisser sa température de fusion.