[ savoar fer ]

Who: The fashion designer Eliane Heutschi, founder of the womenswear label [ savoar fer ], re-appropriates with each collection a technique or expertise neglected by contemporary fashion.

When: After graduating from the Institute of Fashion Design at FHNW, Basel, Heutschi enrolled on the Entrepreneur Program at the Institut français de la mode in 2017. She worked for two years at Lutz Huelle in Paris. In 2017 she set up her own label and exhibited at Les ateliers de Paris and Designer’s Apartment, the showroom of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.

Where: It was in Peru, during a three-month stay with the NGO Threads of Peru, that Eliane Heutschi discovered her interest in old crafts and understood that in order to stay alive, they need to leave the museum and have their creative potential confront and challenge contemporary fashion.

What: Her latest collection is dedicated to the pleated technique associated with sheer materials, such as organza, and the elegant dresses of haute couture. Heutschi decides to explore the pleat either by using it horizontally, giving the fabric new volumes, or by applying it to different, rougher materials and classical cuts, for example reinventing the jeans jacket.

Why: [ savoar fer ] integrates old knowledge into contemporary culture, developing a self-conscious and distinctive line of business built on innovation and quality.