november-2012

LUXURY CRAFTSMANSHIP
Louis Vuitton, it is older than Belgium itself: its founder,
Charles Delvaux, began manufacturing travellers’ trunks in
1829, a year before the country became a constitutional
monarchy. It is the grande dame of fashion in Belgium,
where bags are passed down through the generations: a
trim, boxy ‘Tempête’, perhaps, in firm, fine-grained calfskin,
or an elegantly-buckled ‘Cobalt’.
Now in its 183rd year, Delvaux is having a fashion
moment. As a heritage label that has never been over-hyped,
it possesses a rare cachet appreciated by the cognoscenti:
achingly cool fashion photographer Garance Doré, for one,
carries a vintage Delvaux satchel. Its bags have begun to
appear on the glossy pages of Vogue, its designs tipped by
influential style blogs. A growing list of stockists, meanwhile,
runs from Barney’s in New York to Dover Street Market in
Tokyo and London – and, more recently, Selfridges.
In an age of conspicuous consumption and mass
production, Delvaux has stayed true to the old values.
Clockwise from top left: Bags from the current
collection on display at the atelier; a 19th-century
trunk in the company’s museum bearing the Delvaux
stamp; Princess – now Queen – Paola of Belgium
carries her ‘Mon Grand Bonheur’, presented as a
wedding gift in 1959; detailing from a trunk that
dates from 1840
Theirs is an old-fashioned take on luxury, grounded in
impeccable craftsmanship and materials and bearing a
discreet letter ‘D’; aside from the odd dalliance in the 1970s,
ostentatious branding is not their style. Nor is the ‘It-bag’.
While new designs are added to the range every season, the
most coveted bag remains the iconic ‘Brilliant’, launched in
1958 to mark the Brussels World Fair.
Here at the company’s headquarters in central Brussels,
the atelier hums with industry. Along one side runs the
glass-walled leather store, where floor-to-ceiling shelves are
stacked with rolls of leather. Some are taurillon (young bull)
or goat, but the vast majority are fine calf leathers from Italy,
France and Germany. There are 30 to 40 different finishes,
from agate-polished box calf to woven toile de cuir, in
custom-blended colours that run from soft greys and tans
to forest greens and bright cherry red.
Most beautiful of all are the exotic skins draped over a
nearby rail: crocodile from Africa, knobbly ostrich skin and
30 november 2012
FLY TO brussels from 50 european destinations. brusselsairlines.com