Scarves Show us your "Exceptional" scarves !

Adding a few pieces to this thread that fit with "Exceptional" as we've defined it for ourselves here. Not all of the pieces I'm posting are technically classed as Exceptional by H, but they seem to me to belong more here than in any other thread. They have in common considerable hand work or other forms of labor, and can't be mass-produced or even produced in the quantity that regular carrés used to be in the hand-screening days. To me that makes them all small-e exceptional even if some of them were just classed as "Precieux" or "Artisinale" when they were released.

Here they are in a row, with individual pictures and titles below.

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Cheval de Nuit is current season, and-- I'm going to say this a lot in this post-- damnably hard to photograph. Its faceted sequins are black on black, so to see its shimmer, you have to see it in person. It reminds me of some of Hermes's best "dressy" sterling silver pieces-- no bling, just elegant, refined shimmer. The white parts are created by negative-ink printing. A TPFer who was with me to try it on pointed out the momme of the silk seems to be significantly higher than what's used for regular scarves; it's very thick and luxurious.

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Next is the Indigo Camails Kantha. This is the most camera-shy scarf I've ever owned. Every photo I take of it makes it look muddled and dull, although having seen Hermes's official mug shot of it, I can reassure myself I haven't made it look as blah as they did! In person this piece is rich, vibrant, complex blue with the most incredibly even and tiny lines of hand-stitched rainbow thread. The stitching creates a unique texture in the scarf and makes it a bit more sculptural when worn than the average scarf is, without making it stiff in any way.

IMG_3959 3.JPG IMG_7495 2.JPG

This is H en Fil H Etoilé from 2010. It's less heavily-beaded than many of the scarves that H classes as Exceptional, and I'm not sure the "Etoile" technique was categorized as such by H. It's a gorgeous geometric design with the beads hand-tied in India. I have some more photos of it here in the mousseline thread. I find it very wearable and surprisingly un-scary considering it's fundamentally a piece of chiffon with glass attached to it. :biggrin:

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Au Clair de Lune has been photographed and described better by many others in this thread, fortunately.

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Finally, two Jamdani stoles from the Year of India, one gold and ivory and the other a peachy-orange and ivory. @arabesques has explained a bit about the special, UNESCO heritage weaving technique here. Hermes classed them as "Artisinale" when they were issued, and given the amount of hand-work and labor involved, I think they belong in here. They have to be seen in person to appreciate the unique texture of the fabric, the sheen of the threads, and the fine embroidery. They are absolutely ENORMOUS and I'm guilty of never having worn them-- eek!

Just realized I photographed the reverse side of the gold one-- whoops.

IMG_1650.JPG IMG_6886.JPG
 
Next is the Indigo Camails Kantha. This is the most camera-shy scarf I've ever owned. Every photo I take of it makes it look muddled and dull, although having seen Hermes's official mug shot of it, I can reassure myself I haven't made it look as blah as they did! In person this piece is rich, vibrant, complex blue with the most incredibly even and tiny lines of hand-stitched rainbow thread. The stitching creates a unique texture in the scarf and makes it a bit more sculptural when worn than the average scarf is, without making it stiff in any way.

ACH]

Oh, Love that Camails Kantha!
 
Adding a few pieces to this thread that fit with "Exceptional" as we've defined it for ourselves here. Not all of the pieces I'm posting are technically classed as Exceptional by H, but they seem to me to belong more here than in any other thread. They have in common considerable hand work or other forms of labor, and can't be mass-produced or even produced in the quantity that regular carrés used to be in the hand-screening days. To me that makes them all small-e exceptional even if some of them were just classed as "Precieux" or "Artisinale" when they were released.

Here they are in a row, with individual pictures and titles below.

View attachment 4272816

Cheval de Nuit is current season, and-- I'm going to say this a lot in this post-- damnably hard to photograph. Its faceted sequins are black on black, so to see its shimmer, you have to see it in person. It reminds me of some of Hermes's best "dressy" sterling silver pieces-- no bling, just elegant, refined shimmer. The white parts are created by negative-ink printing. A TPFer who was with me to try it on pointed out the momme of the silk seems to be significantly higher than what's used for regular scarves; it's very thick and luxurious.

View attachment 4272820

View attachment 4272815

Next is the Indigo Camails Kantha. This is the most camera-shy scarf I've ever owned. Every photo I take of it makes it look muddled and dull, although having seen Hermes's official mug shot of it, I can reassure myself I haven't made it look as blah as they did! In person this piece is rich, vibrant, complex blue with the most incredibly even and tiny lines of hand-stitched rainbow thread. The stitching creates a unique texture in the scarf and makes it a bit more sculptural when worn than the average scarf is, without making it stiff in any way.

View attachment 4272821 View attachment 4272819

This is H en Fil H Etoilé from 2010. It's less heavily-beaded than many of the scarves that H classes as Exceptional, and I'm not sure the "Etoile" technique was categorized as such by H. It's a gorgeous geometric design with the beads hand-tied in India. I have some more photos of it here in the mousseline thread. I find it very wearable and surprisingly un-scary considering it's fundamentally a piece of chiffon with glass attached to it. :biggrin:

View attachment 4272811

Au Clair de Lune has been photographed and described better by many others in this thread, fortunately.

View attachment 4272812

Finally, two Jamdani stoles from the Year of India, one gold and ivory and the other a peachy-orange and ivory. @arabesques has explained a bit about the special, UNESCO heritage weaving technique here. Hermes classed them as "Artisinale" when they were issued, and given the amount of hand-work and labor involved, I think they belong in here. They have to be seen in person to appreciate the unique texture of the fabric, the sheen of the threads, and the fine embroidery. They are absolutely ENORMOUS and I'm guilty of never having worn them-- eek!

Just realized I photographed the reverse side of the gold one-- whoops.

View attachment 4272813 View attachment 4272817
Absolutely exquisite each one Calexandre. Thank you for sharing your silk exceptionals and for their stories!
 
Adding a few pieces to this thread that fit with "Exceptional" as we've defined it for ourselves here. Not all of the pieces I'm posting are technically classed as Exceptional by H, but they seem to me to belong more here than in any other thread. They have in common considerable hand work or other forms of labor, and can't be mass-produced or even produced in the quantity that regular carrés used to be in the hand-screening days. To me that makes them all small-e exceptional even if some of them were just classed as "Precieux" or "Artisinale" when they were released.

Here they are in a row, with individual pictures and titles below.

View attachment 4272816

Cheval de Nuit is current season, and-- I'm going to say this a lot in this post-- damnably hard to photograph. Its faceted sequins are black on black, so to see its shimmer, you have to see it in person. It reminds me of some of Hermes's best "dressy" sterling silver pieces-- no bling, just elegant, refined shimmer. The white parts are created by negative-ink printing. A TPFer who was with me to try it on pointed out the momme of the silk seems to be significantly higher than what's used for regular scarves; it's very thick and luxurious.

View attachment 4272820

View attachment 4272815

Next is the Indigo Camails Kantha. This is the most camera-shy scarf I've ever owned. Every photo I take of it makes it look muddled and dull, although having seen Hermes's official mug shot of it, I can reassure myself I haven't made it look as blah as they did! In person this piece is rich, vibrant, complex blue with the most incredibly even and tiny lines of hand-stitched rainbow thread. The stitching creates a unique texture in the scarf and makes it a bit more sculptural when worn than the average scarf is, without making it stiff in any way.

View attachment 4272821 View attachment 4272819

This is H en Fil H Etoilé from 2010. It's less heavily-beaded than many of the scarves that H classes as Exceptional, and I'm not sure the "Etoile" technique was categorized as such by H. It's a gorgeous geometric design with the beads hand-tied in India. I have some more photos of it here in the mousseline thread. I find it very wearable and surprisingly un-scary considering it's fundamentally a piece of chiffon with glass attached to it. :biggrin:

View attachment 4272811

Au Clair de Lune has been photographed and described better by many others in this thread, fortunately.

View attachment 4272812

Finally, two Jamdani stoles from the Year of India, one gold and ivory and the other a peachy-orange and ivory. @arabesques has explained a bit about the special, UNESCO heritage weaving technique here. Hermes classed them as "Artisinale" when they were issued, and given the amount of hand-work and labor involved, I think they belong in here. They have to be seen in person to appreciate the unique texture of the fabric, the sheen of the threads, and the fine embroidery. They are absolutely ENORMOUS and I'm guilty of never having worn them-- eek!

Just realized I photographed the reverse side of the gold one-- whoops.

View attachment 4272813 View attachment 4272817
They year of India was such an amazing year for scarves, bags and well everything! One of my favorite years! Thank you for sharing these treasures!:flowers:
 
Oh, Love that Camails Kantha!

Absolutely exquisite each one Calexandre. Thank you for sharing your silk exceptionals and for their stories!

They year of India was such an amazing year for scarves, bags and well everything! One of my favorite years! Thank you for sharing these treasures!:flowers:

Thank you so much, everyone! Getting to share them with other scarf-lovers has gotten me excited about these pieces all over again, and I'm determined to make more use of them. :smile:
 
Adding a few pieces to this thread that fit with "Exceptional" as we've defined it for ourselves here. Not all of the pieces I'm posting are technically classed as Exceptional by H, but they seem to me to belong more here than in any other thread. They have in common considerable hand work or other forms of labor, and can't be mass-produced or even produced in the quantity that regular carrés used to be in the hand-screening days. To me that makes them all small-e exceptional even if some of them were just classed as "Precieux" or "Artisinale" when they were released.

Here they are in a row, with individual pictures and titles below.

View attachment 4272816

Cheval de Nuit is current season, and-- I'm going to say this a lot in this post-- damnably hard to photograph. Its faceted sequins are black on black, so to see its shimmer, you have to see it in person. It reminds me of some of Hermes's best "dressy" sterling silver pieces-- no bling, just elegant, refined shimmer. The white parts are created by negative-ink printing. A TPFer who was with me to try it on pointed out the momme of the silk seems to be significantly higher than what's used for regular scarves; it's very thick and luxurious.

View attachment 4272820

View attachment 4272815

Next is the Indigo Camails Kantha. This is the most camera-shy scarf I've ever owned. Every photo I take of it makes it look muddled and dull, although having seen Hermes's official mug shot of it, I can reassure myself I haven't made it look as blah as they did! In person this piece is rich, vibrant, complex blue with the most incredibly even and tiny lines of hand-stitched rainbow thread. The stitching creates a unique texture in the scarf and makes it a bit more sculptural when worn than the average scarf is, without making it stiff in any way.

View attachment 4272821 View attachment 4272819

This is H en Fil H Etoilé from 2010. It's less heavily-beaded than many of the scarves that H classes as Exceptional, and I'm not sure the "Etoile" technique was categorized as such by H. It's a gorgeous geometric design with the beads hand-tied in India. I have some more photos of it here in the mousseline thread. I find it very wearable and surprisingly un-scary considering it's fundamentally a piece of chiffon with glass attached to it. :biggrin:

View attachment 4272811

Au Clair de Lune has been photographed and described better by many others in this thread, fortunately.

View attachment 4272812

Finally, two Jamdani stoles from the Year of India, one gold and ivory and the other a peachy-orange and ivory. @arabesques has explained a bit about the special, UNESCO heritage weaving technique here. Hermes classed them as "Artisinale" when they were issued, and given the amount of hand-work and labor involved, I think they belong in here. They have to be seen in person to appreciate the unique texture of the fabric, the sheen of the threads, and the fine embroidery. They are absolutely ENORMOUS and I'm guilty of never having worn them-- eek!

Just realized I photographed the reverse side of the gold one-- whoops.

View attachment 4272813 View attachment 4272817
What amazing treasures!! Thank you soo much for sharing these special beauties with us!! :heart:
 
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Had the chance to try TR exceptional shawl in 2009 - fell in love but did not have to funds to buy it. The following photo was on my bedside table for years (!!) because I knew it is good to visualize your dreams ;):
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I got another TR CSGM in the end (not an exceptional one) and buried my wish for this special shawl. However, the dream stayed with me and I promised myself that one day I will get it... And dreams do come true!!! :love: This is me wearing the beauty finally after nine years!! :yahoo:
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Happy Holidays to all of you and may all your dreams come true in 2019!! :hbeat:
 
Had the chance to try TR exceptional shawl in 2009 - fell in love but did not have to funds to buy it. The following photo was on my bedside table for years (!!) because I knew it is good to visualize your dreams ;):
View attachment 4289036
I got another TR CSGM in the end (not an exceptional one) and buried my wish for this special shawl. However, the dream stayed with me and I promised myself that one day I will get it... And dreams do come true!!! :love: This is me wearing the beauty finally after nine years!! :yahoo:
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Happy Holidays to all of you and may all your dreams come true in 2019!! :hbeat:
Sammy,
This is DREAMY! (No pun intended) Truly the most beautiful exceptional I've seen. CONGRATULATIONS and Happiest of Holidays to you!!!