Sonia Rykiel returns to her roots with a stellar new knitwear collection for H&M.
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Right in the middle of it all — the marching geese, the cheerleaders, the Ferris wheel and merry-go-round, the Eiffel Tower, the “magical forest” shrouded in puffs of dry ice, the cigarette girls offering mini chocolate eclairs, the unicyclist/waiter pouring coffee from a pot balanced on top of his head (“Est-ce que vous voulez un café?”), the fortune teller, the mountains of cakes and candies, the magnums of champagne and the parade floats helmed by a small army of gorgeous models wearing frizzy red wigs in homage to a fashion icon — Sonia Rykiel, looking quite tiny and frail in the group of revellers, could be seen giving her daughter, Nathalie, president and artistic director of the company, a thumbs-up. It was an intimate mother/daughter moment in an otherwise over-the-bigtop fashion spectacle to launch two Sonia Rykiel collaborations with H&M: lingerie (which became available in December) and a knitwear collection that is due out in stores on February 20. While the brand is beloved in Paris, it’s not as well known in North America. The partnership with H&M should change all that.
“The idea behind the show was to bring out the child in everyone, to see a sparkle in their eyes,” says Nathalie, who is still recovering from the previous night’s festivities. “I left the party around 2 a.m., and when I got home I found that my daughter had invited eight friends over, so please forgive my voice — it’s nearly gone,” she whispers. But Frenchwomen are indefatigable fashion warriors, so, despite her low energy, she looks seriously chic in a black silk slip dress, high leather boots, a fur coat draped casually around her shoulders and two fabulous rings: one a giant turquoise, the other a diamond.
Learn more about Sonia Rykiel's daughter on the next page ...
Video: Sonia and Nathalie chat about passion for knitwear
