The Spring/Summer 2022 ready-to-wear collection is a celebration of French art de vivre—an enticing evocation of a sun-drenched Sunday at a family home in Provence, with generations, gathered around an old oak table set with colorful earthenware and crisp linens.
Linen is a key theme of the collection, not least because Longchamp has collaborated with Charvet, purveyor of the finest French linen tea towels since 1866, to create the season’s must-have iteration of the iconic Le Pliage: a white linen tote bag with a vertical red and blue stripe. Following on from last summer’s successful partnership with Filt shopping nets, two-storied houses come together once more in a fashion-forward tribute to traditional French craftsmanship.
Tea-towel stripes and checks crop up throughout the ready-to-wear collection. A sleeveless mini-shift in crisp white cotton poplin comes with a broad red stripe around the hem, while a below-the-knee dress looks breezy in fine checked cotton. These two silhouettes exemplify the collection’s contrasts between short and graphic, and long and fluid. Accessories too take up the tea-towel theme, notably a striped canvas sun hat and checked hi-top sneakers.
Other artisanal inspirations played on by Longchamp Creative Director Sophie Delafontaine are the brightly-hued earthenware she loves to collect when she’s in the south of France, Provençal boutis embroidery, and the soft floral patterns of traditional counterpanes. She draws these eclectic influences into a collection that is full of energy and far from literal: the spirit may be Provençal, but the attitude is pure Parisienne!
In the color palette, white and cream naturally abound, offset by vibrant yellow, coral, green and blue, either in bold blocks or as prints. A bud pattern captures the fresh spirit of spring, a graphic green diamond motif references glazed pottery, while a tree of life might have been painted by Picasso himself onto a cotton tunic or a softly gathered dress. An array of pieces in soft, sun-bleached denim epitomize the relaxed mood of the collection, as with a mini-dress worn over tea-towel stripe trousers.
Nearly every look is anchored with an authentic detail: a casually knotted belt in natural leather, a straw hat, or a silk scarf tied in the hair. And almost all are paired with clogs, revisited by Longchamp with the urban spirit of a loafer, or espadrille-soled sandals twisted with sporty straps.
Aside from the Le Pliage tote bag, the season’s key bags reference traditional straw baskets and bucket shapes. The emblematic Roseau is reinterpreted as a bucket bag in supple grained leather and LGP jacquard canvas, as well as in motifs inspired by the ready-to-wear: the bud print, a floral tapestry pattern, and a blue and white cotton stripe.
Savoir-faire. Art de vivre. Eclectic energy and elegance. For Spring/Summer 2022, travel with Longchamp from Paris to Provence and beyond.
Longchamp is available at Greenbelt 5, Rustan’s, and www.rustans.com
