Lange 1, 38.5 mm
A. Lange & Söhne
Finished twice, assembled twice. Worn every day without ceremony.
Paris · Nice · Saint-Tropez
A House, Reconsidered.
Rooted in the spirit of French ready-to-wear, Maison de Philippe explores the places, objects, and craftsmanship that inform a contemporary way of living. An editorial world connected to the revival of Philippe Salvet.
The Original House
Heritage · The Original House
A name with a documented past
Philippe Salvet was a French fashion figure whose work was associated with Paris, Nice and Saint-Tropez during the mid-to-late twentieth century, and with ready-to-wear on the Côte d’Azur. A pair of his corsair trousers, dated to about 1972, is held by the Palais Galliera in Paris. The woven label reads Nice – St-Tropez, made in France, 100% cotton, dyed by hand. The Original House sets out what the record documents, and where the record ends.
Read The Original HouseThe Contemporary Maison · Places
All placesNapa Valley, slowly
Wine Country · California
Harvest begins before the light does.
In late September the pickers are in the rows by five, headlamps moving through the fog. By nine the valley smells of crushed fruit and woodsmoke, and the restaurants in Yountville are setting tables for a lunch that will run long. Napa rewards the unhurried. Arrive on a Tuesday. Book the small rooms, not the large ones. Ask for the second pressing.
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The Considered Object
Lange 1, examined
Every Lange is assembled, regulated, then taken apart and assembled again. The calibre L121.1 sits under a three-quarter plate in German silver, the balance cock is engraved by one hand, and the off-centre dial has not changed since 1994 because it did not need to. At 38.5 millimetres it sits under a cuff without announcing itself. This is the recurring examination of one object, taken on its construction, its materials and its history.
Read the examinationObjects
All objectsAlso of note
M11-P Safari
Leica
No red dot, no name on the front, no screen worth mentioning. Film habits, digital patience.
Weekender, full leather
Moynat
Full hide, hand-stitched, no canvas pattern and nothing printed on the surface. Recognised by the cut alone.
Roll-neck, baby cashmere
Loro Piana
Undyed ecru, knitted fine enough to fold into a coat pocket. No label faces outward.
The Maker
Three fittings, one suit, ten years
A first commission at a London tailor takes three fittings and about ten weeks. The cloth is cut by hand, the shoulder is set by eye, and the result carries no visible name at all. The Maker is the Maison's recurring profile of the workshops behind the things in these pages: the people, the benches, the methods that have not changed because they work.
Read The Maker
The Atelier
Philippe Salvet represents the clothing and the collections. Maison de Philippe represents the cultural world surrounding the house. In The Atelier, that world is traced into cloth: garment construction, fabrics, tailoring, and the design philosophy of the original era interpreted for contemporary European tailoring.
Editorial note. Maison de Philippe is the editorial world connected to the revival of Philippe Salvet. Coverage of the fashion house in these pages is identified as such.
Enter The AtelierThe Journal
All storiesThe Latest Journal
Gstaad, after the lifts close
Our Swiss flagship, and the village at its best at 6 p.m., when the day skiers have gone and the promenade belongs to those who stay.
The case for one watch, worn daily
Thirty-eight millimetres, no date window, a movement finished by one pair of hands. That is the whole argument.
The Stelvio, before breakfast
Forty-eight hairpins, one hour from Bormio, and the road to yourself if you leave by six.
Notes from Elsewhere
North by sail: Lofoten under canvas
A 62-foot sloop, a skipper who has fished these waters for forty years, and four days with no schedule beyond the weather. Read in the Journal
Monaco, before the harbour wakes
The Rock at dawn, a swim at Larvotto, and the case for May over August.
Paris, the repeat visit
The quartiers and houses worth returning to, taken in a considered order.
Normandy, out of season
The abbey crossed at low tide, Deauville quiet, and oysters landed that morning.
Newsletter
The Letter
Occasional notes on places, objects, and things worth knowing.