Brian Coleman - D. Porthault: The Art of Luxury Linens

D. Porthault

The Art of Luxury Linens

Brian D. Coleman

Erik Kvalsvik

D. Porthault

The Art of Luxury Linens

Digital Edition 1.0

Text 2017 Brian D. Coleman

Photographs Erik Kvalsvik

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any means whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except brief portions quoted for purpose of review.

Gibbs Smith

P.O. Box 667

Layton, Utah 84041

Orders: 1.800.835.4993

www.gibbs-smith.com

ISBN: 978-1-4236-4451-4

I would like to thank, first and foremost, Joan and Bernard Carl, who welcomed my proposal to write this book and were enthusiastic and supportive from beginning to end.

This book would not have been possible without the tireless assistance and organization of Porthaults Director of Public Relations Beth Rigler, who was always there for everything, from contacting the designers and homeowners and arranging the shoots to identifying the names of each fabric.

I cant thank enough all of the homeowners and designers, both in the States and in France, who graciously opened their homes to be photographed: you are the foundation of our book.

Merci beaucoup to Jean Michel de Tarrazi and Thomas Ponsada at Maison D. Porthault and all the employees in France, who extended a warm welcome when we visited the showroom and factories, patiently answering our many questions in our fractured French.

A special merci to Julien Goudard-Lemoine and Javier Garcia-Lemoine, who went above and beyond the call of duty to help during our shoots in France.

We will be forever grateful to Christiane, Thierry and Jrome Millet and Chantal Simon at the Chteau de Champigny and John Grew in Southampton, who made our visits so enjoyable.

Thanks go to Amy Astley for her enthusiasm and support with her lovely Foreword, and of course the New York Porthault staffCarol Caruana and all of the others who were always ready to assist us.

A special and heartfelt thanks goes to Gibbs Smith publishing company and especially my editor, Madge Baird, who has supported my writing for nearly two decades with just the right combination of grace, good humor and critical commentary to make it all worthwhile.

By Amy Astley

Editor-in-Chief, Architectural Digest

I n the early 1990s, as a junior editor at House & Garden, I used to line up with other obsessed New Yorkers in the early morning for the legendary semiannual sales at the D. Porthault townhouse on East 69th Street. I couldnt afford full price or, lets be honest, sale pricebut I was smitten with the utterly charming prints and the unparalleled feel of Porthault in the hand. My collection began modestly with cheerful guest towels and little boudoir pillows, all assiduously ironed by me! Eventually I graduated to complete sets of towels and sheets, which, I admit, I thoroughly enjoy surveying in their colorful, tidy towers in my linen closet New York Mille Fleurs and Coeurs pink and blue (Porthault signature prints) for my two daughters bath; Demoiselles and Mariage for their beds; and Fougres and Coquelicots, my favorite patterns, for myselfall merrily mixed together.

Meeting Joan Carl, the American owner of Porthault since 2005, was profoundly satisfying. A stylish and dynamic woman, she embodies the graciousness, classicism, and femininity that are hallmarks of this nearly 100-year-old French company. Joan has made breathing a new spirit into a venerable company (and being awarded the prestigious Chevalier de la Lgion dHonneur along the way) look easy, but of course it takes the sensibility of an artist, the personal skills of a diplomat, and a keen instinct for business to chart a fresh course for so sophisticated a cultural treasure as D. Porthault. I think it is Joans reverence for craft that has sealed her success and ensured the companys continued relevance. She speaks with great appreciation of the master mixer who personally develops all paints in Porthaults workshop in Normandy, and about the painstaking year spent logging ancient notes, exquisitely handwritten on index cards, into a computer system to create a master pattern file; and she emphasizes her deep admiration for the dedicated staff who print, stitch, embroider, hand roll and iron all of their products.

Whimsical Libellules cotton percale scalloped bedding lightens the boldly patterned, upholstered walls in this Hamptons bedroom by Aerin Lauder.

Joan, who studied drawing and painting before college, and art history at Vassar, was taught needlework by her strong New England motherherself a Porthault clientand confessed to me that she first won the respect of the artisans at Porthault (perhaps wary of a new owner) with her own ability to sew. I have personally observed this unpretentious work ethic: once when Joan came to visit me in New York, she issued gentle instructions on how to handle the retour on the extra-long European sheets (expertly and prettily remaking my beds in the process) and also gave me a much-needed lesson in ironing the sheets properly!

Joan and I share a deep satisfaction in seeing new generations of young people fall under the spell of Porthault. It is wonderful to know that the tradition of quality and beauty can and will continue at this most beloved institution. I cannot wait to see what comes next.

Palmiers linen placemat and napkin set is hand embroidered for a tropical touch to this elegant table in Palm Beach.

By Joan Carl

Owner, D. Porthault

Fleurs des Champs, Oeillets, Violettes, and Fragrance freshly printed fabrics ready for confection.

O ne of my earliest memories is of summering in Chatham on Cape Cod. I shared a bedroom with my sister, and our mother would raise the windows so the ocean breezes could come in. She would sing along with the rustling grasses and ask us to breathe in the fragrance of the flowers that surrounded our cottage. Then she would tease us that she had brought the flowers inside and put them on our sheets so that we could sleep in beauty the entire night!

This was my first introduction to the light-hearted joy and comfort that has always been associated with D. Porthault. Only when I was older did I begin to understand the craftsmanship, as well, that sets Porthault apart from any other linen house. And only now, as my children and I continue to use and add to my mothers collection, do I truly appreciate Porthaults timeless appeal.

After college and my husbands graduation from law school, we lived in Washington, DC, and I was hired into the linen department of one of the citys most elegant stores. My first reaction was that I wanted to be in fashion, not in sheets and towels, and especially not in the stockroom organizing mattress pad covers, where I was assigned. After majoring in English literature and art history, I wasnt sure where this was all heading. But soon I was promoted to be the buyer of this department and was allowed to take some risks. Seemingly overnight, my white-and-ivory retail space was transformed into a garden of color and design. I was emboldened to make this move because I remembered how, decades earlier, D. Porthault had introduced (for the first time in the linen industry) colored prints and how instantly devoted their following was. And I remembered my happy summers wrapped in Porthault in our beach house on the Cape.