Louis Féraud

The coat I'm wearing in my previous post is a Louis Féraud original; another vintage label most people have forgotten about now (although it still exists), but in the 1950s-1970s Louis Féraud was huge and known for his 'adoration' of women. He started of designing for Parisian elite in the fifties, soon followed by his first haute couture collection in 1958. Here is a bit about the name you should (from now on) recognize searching through vintage stores!

He opened his first boutique in Cannes in 1955 and he happened to be so lucky a not so infamous lady popped into his shop; she bought a dress there and put Louis Féraud in the spotlight. The lady I'm speaking of was none other then Brigitte Bardot. Many of her outfits were from the Féraud label at the time and he also dressed Bardot in her movies.

Féraud designed for a seductive woman who lived in harmony with life and herself, a woman looking for comfort and freedom. He was fascinated by the different personalities of women and how this inspired him to create different moods and themes. For women, he said, "Fashion is an opportunity to be chic, to conspire between reality and desire." You can imagine his design were always very feminine and elegant. 

Féraud both produced haute couture and more affordable lines throughout the years. During the sixties, Féraud held his first runway show. In the seventies, the first ready-to-wear collection came out in collaboration with the German company Fink. Féraud was a painter as well, so he was well known for the use of colour in his collection, each time a different palet. He proclaimed never to have been influenced by trends. During the sixties Féraud worked with some unknown young designers. In his later career (1970s-1980s), he hired Icelandic designer Helga Bjornsson to design collections. Her designs were theatrical and innovative.

Louis Féraud handed over the company to his daughter in the nineties. These days the company is in the hands of .... the Dutch! The label is still running and producing present-day fashion. However, I believe the modern designs don't compare to how Louis used to create fashion himself.... Féraud took his passion and love for femininity with him when he died in 1999.