Hermès Festival of Craft

The Hermès Festival of Crafts kicked off tonight with a cocktail party and special invitation only viewing at a space next door to the Hermès Gold Coast Boutique. The festival highlights the workmanship of the men and women behind the iconic French luxury brand. Visitors are able to observe master craftsmen at work and get a “behind the scenes” look at how everything from bags to watches are made. You can go see this fascinating, beautiful and informative exhibition starting tomorrow Friday, March 11, through Wednesday, March 16 at 110 E Oak St.

My far-and-away favorite part of the Hermès brand are the fabulous silk scarves which the company has been making since 1937. So it was a real treat for me to see how these beautiful objects are brought to life. The artistry and pain-staking, multi-step process by which they are crafted is truly remarkable.

Of course I had to wear a little piece of Hermès. I had no idea the time and human energy that went into crafting this little gorgeous kerchief.

First, engraver Nadine Rabilloud inks the designs onto screens. Each color that appears on a scarf requires a separate screen. For the design that they were demonstrating no fewer than 10 screens were produced.

Because the Hermes silk scarf is so precious, it is kind of shocking to see them here around all this ink!

The first screen is inked and pressed.

This is the basic outline of the design.

With each subsequent color another screen is inked.

Red is added.

And orange.

Now we're getting somewhere!

This is a true work of art. The richness of all the colors is just beautiful.

Silk printer Henri Lely holds up the final piece with all the inks on it before the hem is hand-stitched.

 View more pictures of the event on Très Awesome's Facebook Page