Saint Laurent Revives its Couture House

Perhaps we should have known right from the onset when Slimane notoriously tinkered with three of fashion’s most sensuously entwined initials that there were more thrills to come. And amidst his definitive genius, reviving the house’s couture legacy is unquestionably one of the most logical yet admirable climaxes, essentially signifying the return of a facet so fondly remembered: Yves.

It has been well over a decade since Yves Saint Laurent had bowed out of couture’s disciplined universe. On Tuesday, the French fashion house, which last staged its final couture collection created by Yves himself in 2002, announced a return to couture, along with releasing a series of campaign shots of the maison’s refurbished atelier, Hôtel de Sénecterre in Paris, an initiation that began not long after Slimane was appointed creative director in 2012.

The new space, originally built in 1685 is located at 24 Rue de l’Université in Left Bank of Paris, just a stone throw away from Yves Saint Laurent’s last couture house. It houses three separate floors: the Salon Couture, where clients will be outfitted; the Atelier Flou, for dressmaking; and the Atelier Tailleur, for tailoring. On top of which, it also boasts Slimane’s beloved “geometric garden”.  The house will be producing hand-sewn pieces for clients, movie stars and musicians on a case by case basis for both men and women. Slimane will then determine which of these pieces will bear the fullness of the Maison’s glittery insignia, once more: Yves Saint Laurent.