Jeanne Lanvin

Il faut se méfier de l’imagination. L’imagination doit d’abord servir à voir d’avance les défauts de ce qu’on imagine. »
(“One should not trust imagination, its premier purpose is to let us see beforehand the defect of what we imagine.”)
- Jeanne Lanvin

PROFILE

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chronicle

1867: Birth

On 1 January 1867, Jeanne Lanvin was born in Paris. All her childhood, the family lived in great poverty, and she had to work in hat shops since age 13, one of which sent her to Barcelona.

1885: first shop

In 1885, after working for various hat and headwear shops, Jeanne Lanvin decided to open her first own hat shop thanks to one of her clients and some of her suppliers. Four years later, in 1889, she opened her first boutique, mostly selling hats and headwears.

1896: first marriage

On 20 February 1896 Jeanne Lanvin married italian count Emilio Di Pietro, with whom she had a daughter named Marguerite, or Marie Blanche in 1903. It would be her only child, who will be her life long inspiration. In fact, it was when she made dresses for her daughter she had idea for her first child collection.

1909: Maison Lanvin to Haurte Couture Lanvin

In 1909, Jeanne Lanvin launched her first women collection, and that same year, she became member of la Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, which means since then Maison Lanvin was recognised as one of the official haute couture houses in Paris.

Jeanne Lanvin dress: “Jolibois”, silk dress , autumn winter collection 1922-23

Jeanne Lanvin Logo

Jeanne Lanvin model illustration for magazine Gazette Du Bon Ton, 1915, illustrate by Valentine Gross

Jeanne Lanvin model illustration for magazine Gazette du Bon Ton, 1922, illustrate by Pierre Brissaud

1920s: Lanvin decoration and Lanvin Parfum

Jeanne Lanvin achieved great commercial and critical success with her dresses for women, more than her contemporary and great rival Coco Chanel.

“Jolibois”, silk dress , autumn winter collection 1922-23

Starting 1920s, Jeanne expanded her business to interior decoration and perfume.

In 1924, she launched her first perfume my sin, three years later, in 1927, she launched Arpège, one of her most famous fragrances.

For Lanvin Décoration, Jeanne Lanvin worked with Armand-Albert Râteau, one of the most important French interior designer of the Art Deco style, who also designed the interiors for her boutiques.

In 1928, Rateau designed the whole interiors for Jeanne Lanvin’s mansion on 16 Rue Barbet-de-Jouy, this would be their most significant collaboration, which established Râteau’s principle style.

Armand-Albert Rateau

n 1965, when the building of Jeanne Lanvin’s mansion was demolished, the decoration ensemble together with the furniture were donated by her daughter Marguerite and son-in-law to musée des arts décoratifs de paris.

1946: Death

Jeanne Lanvin died in Paris on 6 July 1946, but Jeanne Lanvin the legacy lives on, today, Maison Jeanne Lanvin is the oldest Paris Haute Couture house in the history.

designing style

Colors:

Jeanne lanvin loves colors, the “lanvin blue” is the color that is most identified with her name and the couture house she founded, she also loves to use Polignac pink because of her daughter Marguerite (who in 1924 married count Jean de Polignac), and a Velasquez green. But her favorite color, was black, which she believed is the color of ultimate chic (« chic ultime »), she herself would wear black for the rest of her life.

In 1923, Jeanne Lanvin established her own dye house in Nante to maintain the exclusivity of her colors.