Karl Lagerfeld · Métiers d’Art

Karl Lagerfeld · Métiers d’Art

An exquisite collector’s coat in emerald sequinned tweed, with hand-arranged Lesage mosaic embellishment and Gripoix jewelled buttons. Its high collar and richly ornamented sleeves give the Paris–Byzance runway silhouette a striking presence, sustained in the smallest details.

Karl Lagerfeld · Métiers d’Art

An exquisite collector’s coat in emerald sequinned tweed, with hand-arranged Lesage mosaic embellishment and Gripoix jewelled buttons. Its high collar and richly ornamented sleeves give the Paris–Byzance runway silhouette a striking presence, sustained in the smallest details.

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

Karl Lagerfeld · Métiers d’Art

An exquisite collector’s coat in emerald sequinned tweed, with hand-arranged Lesage mosaic embellishment and Gripoix jewelled buttons. Its high collar and richly ornamented sleeves give the Paris–Byzance runway silhouette a striking presence, sustained in the smallest details.

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

This coat concentrates that vision within a gently flared, above-knee shape. Emerald tweed provides the recognisable Chanel foundation; the mosaic collar, ornamented sleeves and square jewelled buttons transform its boundaries and fastenings into places of concentrated colour.

Karl Lagerfeld · Métiers d’Art

An exquisite collector’s coat in emerald sequinned tweed, with hand-arranged Lesage mosaic embellishment and Gripoix jewelled buttons. Its high collar and richly ornamented sleeves give the Paris–Byzance runway silhouette a striking presence, sustained in the smallest details.

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

This coat concentrates that vision within a gently flared, above-knee shape. Emerald tweed provides the recognisable Chanel foundation; the mosaic collar, ornamented sleeves and square jewelled buttons transform its boundaries and fastenings into places of concentrated colour.

AS SEEN ON

Princess Caroline of Monaco
Emerald tweed and mosaic jewels, carried with quiet poise

Karl Lagerfeld · Métiers d’Art

An exquisite collector’s coat in emerald sequinned tweed, with hand-arranged Lesage mosaic embellishment and Gripoix jewelled buttons. Its high collar and richly ornamented sleeves give the Paris–Byzance runway silhouette a striking presence, sustained in the smallest details.

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

This coat concentrates that vision within a gently flared, above-knee shape. Emerald tweed provides the recognisable Chanel foundation; the mosaic collar, ornamented sleeves and square jewelled buttons transform its boundaries and fastenings into places of concentrated colour.

AS SEEN ON

Princess Caroline of Monaco
Emerald tweed and mosaic jewels, carried with quiet poise

Lily Allen
A variation on the same Paris–Byzance theme, with a playful edge

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

This coat concentrates that vision within a gently flared, above-knee shape. Emerald tweed provides the recognisable Chanel foundation; the mosaic collar, ornamented sleeves and square jewelled buttons transform its boundaries and fastenings into places of concentrated colour.

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

This coat concentrates that vision within a gently flared, above-knee shape. Emerald tweed provides the recognisable Chanel foundation; the mosaic collar, ornamented sleeves and square jewelled buttons transform its boundaries and fastenings into places of concentrated colour.

AS SEEN ON

Princess Caroline of Monaco
Emerald tweed and mosaic jewels, carried with quiet poise

For Paris–Byzance, Karl Lagerfeld drew on Ravenna’s Byzantine mosaics and the figure of Empress Theodora, alongside Gabrielle Chanel’s affinity for richly coloured costume jewellery. Presented in the rue Cambon salons in December 2010, the collection brought those references into tweed, tailoring and knitwear through mosaic embroidery, gold accents and elaborate jewelled fastenings.

This coat concentrates that vision within a gently flared, above-knee shape. Emerald tweed provides the recognisable Chanel foundation; the mosaic collar, ornamented sleeves and square jewelled buttons transform its boundaries and fastenings into places of concentrated colour.

AS SEEN ON

Princess Caroline of Monaco
Emerald tweed and mosaic jewels, carried with quiet poise

Lily Allen
A variation on the same Paris–Byzance theme, with a playful edge

Raised emerald yarns cross a dark woven ground, with fine metallic glints and tiny sequins appearing between them. The surface retains the depth and tactile character of tweed beneath its shimmer.

Raised emerald yarns cross a dark woven ground, with fine metallic glints and tiny sequins appearing between them. The surface retains the depth and tactile character of tweed beneath its shimmer.

• Emerald and shadow: pronounced yarns give the colour dimension, with darker intervals revealing the structure of the weave.

• Scattered light: small sequins illuminate the body and back, creating a finely broken reflection across the textile.

• Contrasting surfaces: the textured tweed sets off the smooth, glossy mosaic elements, making their colour and individual contours especially distinct.

Raised emerald yarns cross a dark woven ground, with fine metallic glints and tiny sequins appearing between them. The surface retains the depth and tactile character of tweed beneath its shimmer.

• Emerald and shadow: pronounced yarns give the colour dimension, with darker intervals revealing the structure of the weave.

• Scattered light: small sequins illuminate the body and back, creating a finely broken reflection across the textile.

• Contrasting surfaces: the textured tweed sets off the smooth, glossy mosaic elements, making their colour and individual contours especially distinct.

The coat’s richness develops through these differences in scale. Minute reflections animate the woven ground; larger flashes gather around the face and arms.

The collection’s Byzantine reference takes its most tangible form in the mosaic embellishment, laid out by hand by the artisans of Maison Lesage. Across the standing collar and deep lower sleeves, individual quadrilateral elements build successive rows of amber, pale yellow-green and near-black, traced with slender gold-toned threads.

The collection’s Byzantine reference takes its most tangible form in the mosaic embellishment, laid out by hand by the artisans of Maison Lesage. Across the standing collar and deep lower sleeves, individual quadrilateral elements build successive rows of amber, pale yellow-green and near-black, traced with slender gold-toned threads.

The connection to Ravenna resides in this arrangement: separate units of colour, visible intervals and reflective surfaces assembled into a larger composition. Following the curved collar and encircling the sleeves, the handwork gives the mosaic reference a three-dimensional form.

The collection’s Byzantine reference takes its most tangible form in the mosaic embellishment, laid out by hand by the artisans of Maison Lesage. Across the standing collar and deep lower sleeves, individual quadrilateral elements build successive rows of amber, pale yellow-green and near-black, traced with slender gold-toned threads.

The connection to Ravenna resides in this arrangement: separate units of colour, visible intervals and reflective surfaces assembled into a larger composition. Following the curved collar and encircling the sleeves, the handwork gives the mosaic reference a three-dimensional form.

• The collar becomes a necklace: its raised, stand-away shape holds ordered bands of colour around the throat.

• The sleeves recall broad jewelled cuffs: the unusually deep embellishment gives the lower arms a strong ornamental presence, continuing around the reverse.

• Gripoix buttons repeat the palette in miniature: rounded and teardrop-shaped elements gather within square, rope-textured gold-tone borders. Six buttons form paired columns on the chest; two matching examples accent the back waist.

The collection’s Byzantine reference takes its most tangible form in the mosaic embellishment, laid out by hand by the artisans of Maison Lesage. Across the standing collar and deep lower sleeves, individual quadrilateral elements build successive rows of amber, pale yellow-green and near-black, traced with slender gold-toned threads.

The connection to Ravenna resides in this arrangement: separate units of colour, visible intervals and reflective surfaces assembled into a larger composition. Following the curved collar and encircling the sleeves, the handwork gives the mosaic reference a three-dimensional form.

• The collar becomes a necklace: its raised, stand-away shape holds ordered bands of colour around the throat.

• The sleeves recall broad jewelled cuffs: the unusually deep embellishment gives the lower arms a strong ornamental presence, continuing around the reverse.

• Gripoix buttons repeat the palette in miniature: rounded and teardrop-shaped elements gather within square, rope-textured gold-tone borders. Six buttons form paired columns on the chest; two matching examples accent the back waist.

Lesage’s mosaic work and the Gripoix buttons express a defining Chanel idea through distinct forms of workmanship: jewellery is integrated into the coat itself. The completeness of that treatment—from the collar’s circumference to the small settings at the back—gives this piece its exceptional collecting appeal.

The cut gives the elaborate ornament room to register. Softly rounded shoulders lead into a body that widens gently towards the hem, allowing the emerald tweed to fall in a broad, uninterrupted field beneath the jewelled chest.

The cut gives the elaborate ornament room to register. Softly rounded shoulders lead into a body that widens gently towards the hem, allowing the emerald tweed to fall in a broad, uninterrupted field beneath the jewelled chest.

• A high standing collar creates a sculptural frame around the face.

• Three-quarter sleeves balance the deep mosaic embellishment with an exposed wrist.

• Paired button columns establish a vertical rhythm against the horizontal rows of the collar and sleeve ornament.

• A restrained above-knee flare preserves ease around the body without pronounced waist suppression.

The cut gives the elaborate ornament room to register. Softly rounded shoulders lead into a body that widens gently towards the hem, allowing the emerald tweed to fall in a broad, uninterrupted field beneath the jewelled chest.

• A high standing collar creates a sculptural frame around the face.

• Three-quarter sleeves balance the deep mosaic embellishment with an exposed wrist.

• Paired button columns establish a vertical rhythm against the horizontal rows of the collar and sleeve ornament.

• A restrained above-knee flare preserves ease around the body without pronounced waist suppression.

On the runway, tall dark boots continued the line beneath the hem. That direct, wearable silhouette is essential to the collection’s character: it carries the richness of the ornament with composure.

• House: CHANEL

• Designer: Karl Lagerfeld

• Collection: Paris–Byzance, Métiers d’Art 2010/11 · Pre-Fall 2011

• Colour: Deep emerald green with multicoloured embellishment

• Textile: Sequinned tweed

• Artisan details: Hand-arranged Lesage mosaic embellishment; Gripoix jewelled buttons

• Construction details: Standing collar; three-quarter sleeves; gently flared silhouette; six front buttons and two matching back buttons

• Runway reference: Matching design presented in the Paris–Byzance show