Isabel Marant pour H&M
By Hend Seif El Din
Born and raised in Paris, Isabel Marant has always been a bit of a rebel. She started customizing her own
clothing while still at high school. It did not take long before schoolmates asked to have them, too. A graduate of Studio Berçot, Isabel worked her way up the fashion system starting with a jewelry line, then adding knitwear, and finally launching her eponymous collection in 1994. Having opened her first boutique in Paris in 1998, today Isabel runs an internationally successful fashion powerhouse with a string of thirteen boutiques worldwide. Her carefree Parisian chic style, a mix of bohemia and masculine tailoring, speaks to women of any age. In contrast to other designers, who fantasize about women, Isabel concentrates on dressing them, encouraging customers to interpret collections however they prefer. Androgyny, handiwork, sportswear, contrasts, poetry, comfort and practicality are the company’s hallmarks, along with tie-and-dye, embroidery, weaving and savoir faire. The Isabel Marant world also encompasses a younger line named Etoile. ISABEL MARANT pour H&M is Isabel’s first collaboration of this kind.
Isabel, your work is very personal. How would you describe yourself?
I am an Aries, so I am quite stubborn. I am energetic and discreet: I don’t like to be under the spotlight that much, and prefer that my work speaks for itself. I like criticism, for instance, because it gives me a chance to progress. I am loyal, most of all, and think being loyal is an essential quality. It is for me in the way I deal with my friends and collaborators as in the way I deal with my customers.
Do these qualities translate into the collections?
Fashion is a natural extension of my personality. I fell into it because I wanted to dress myself. When I design, I do not work on a fantasy, but on a reality: my aim is to dress real women in their everyday lives with clothes that have a function but also give an attitude. As a woman of today, I know their needs and what they look for in a dress, but I also know how they feel in front of the mirror, which are their insecurities. I constantly try to solve these problems while creating pieces that express the energy of the moment. I work instinctively, but I am also a perfectionist, because I think that the most simple pieces need to be perfect. Not a single stitch can be overlooked.
How important is Paris to you?
I was born and raised in Paris: the city has had an influence on my taste and me. There is a style that is unmistakable, which is about a certain chic with not too much effort. Paris has a great mixture of cultures that is always inspiring; from the class of the ninth arrondissement to the trendy energy of the Marais. Very bourgeois women surrounded me when I grew up, so my taste was largely a reaction to my environment. Nonetheless, it gave me a great appreciation for quality, which I think is very Parisian too.
Were you surprised when H&M approached you to design the ISABEL MARANT pour H&M collection?
I was flattered. H&M always works with the best designers, so being part of this project felt–in a way–like recognition of my work. This made me happy. As a designer, in fact, I do not think I belong to the school of creative geniuses capable to let their imagination run wild. I am more of the Coco Chanel or Sonia Rykiel belief: I want to dress women of my time. H&M is an expression of the time, too.
The possibility to reach a wider audience through H&M is something that excites you?
Absolutely. I do not have a specific client in mind when I design: I am creating something for everybody. I am happy I will be able to reach women and teens everywhere with this collection.
How would describe your style?
It has a certain carelessness, which I think is very Parisian. It’s about being perfect, with little imperfection: you dress up, but do not pay too much attention and still look sexy. My collections are infused with this kind of easiness. Everything can be mixed in a personal way, even with things from previous collections: I can’t stand throwaway and consumerism. We all have to be responsible. I work a lot on the way clothes fall around the body and their fit: this is a crucial part, and something that is extremely time-consuming. I won’t let anything go until the proportions are right. I want my pieces to have a certain lived-in air too, like those “old friends” you constantly keep in your cupboard and never get rid of, interpreting them in new ways every time.
Embellishment and craft seem to be another signature, right?
Traveling and getting close to other cultures is important to me. I love what men can achieve with their hands, what they can express through craft. This is something I always incorporate into my collections…taking clues from different cultures of the world. I think it is important to keep this handwork and savoir-faire alive. I love to work with knits, too, and I like fabric as a material. Most of our fabrics are developed exclusively for us.
Have you included all these elements in the ISABEL MARANT pour H&M collection?
The collection is a synthesis of my style: I included all the iconic pieces, from outerwear to jewelry and accessories. Embellishment – prints, piping, jacquards – gives character to many of them.
How would you describe the collection?
Again, it is something very personal. I have a bunch of clothes in my own wardrobe, which I love and wear all the time. They come from different collections and are all mixed. I bring them with me when I travel, always thinking: if they loose my luggage, I am lost, all my favorite pieces will be gone! So, when I started working on the IM pour H&M collection, I assembled it thinking of that selection. I picked up the best from my career and put together what is actually a small wardrobe. Of course nothing is the same the second time around, so I have reinterpreted all the pieces in a way that suits the moment.
Does this also apply to the teen wardrobe?
The difference is mainly a matter of sizes, and a stronger stress on prints. I would like moms and daughters to exchange their wardrobes, if they feel like it. When I say that everything in the collection can be mixed together, I really mean everything!
What about the accessories and the jewelry?
They add the finishing touches and are as easy and carefree as the rest of the collection. They’re skinny scarves and beaded belts, necklaces and bangles – which is where everything started for me, even though I hardly wear any. I love shoes, way more than bags, and do my best to create great footwear that mixes attitude with comfort. The success of our trainers is a recognition of my hard work in this sense.
Can you describe your creative process?
I’d say it is instinctual. I have a feeling for a silhouette, proportion and details, and go for it. Texture is very important, too: I like to experiment with the way different fabrics can work together. I am like a cook, in a way: I know my ingredients, and I mix them. The starting point of a new collection, however, is a feeling of rejection for what I have done before. From there on, I pick up and go.
What inspires you?
Everything can inspire me, but I always try to keep in mind the real needs of everyday life. I am not good at creating fantasies: never have been. Clothing, for me, should be functional, first and foremost.
How would you explain the success of your label?
I think my collections respond to certain needs with clothes that are easy to wear, easy to mix and well-made.
There is a lot of talking about style today. What does style mean to you?
I think self-confidence and being at ease with oneself is a good definition of style. I am intrigued when I see women on the street interpreting my pieces in an unexpected ways. I find it a bit uninspiring, on the contrary, to be faced with exact replicas of the catwalk in real life.
What are your favorite pieces from the ISABEL MARANT pour H&M collection?
I really can’t pick one: the whole collection is my favorite, because it is an edit of the best pieces I have created. I also like the fact that you can pick up everything, even from the teen, man or boy collection, and mix them up. Fit is crucial, and we worked hard on that to get it right.
Did you have to compromise on something?
There was neither need nor pressure to compromise anything; otherwise I would not have accepted this
collaboration. Working with H&M ha been great: they delivered something that is high in quality and finishing. I am surprised how they make it and am very happy with the results.
How would you sum-up the spirit of the H&M collaboration?
It is all about the sharing. My office is my family and I like to work in an open space that we all share. To share things with people is a nice way to deal with life. Generosity is important for me.
