If you love luxury accessories and have seen Emily in Paris you may have noticed that one of the main characters wears a singularly shaped bag, a masterpiece of construction that is the result of a patient balancing act. A model that seemed unfeasible because of its complexity, as designer Kristina Thaden tells us, who when she imagined it never thought it would take her years to finally turn it into a prototype.
“I envisioned The Whole as a work of art. Despite the fact that companies kept telling me it couldn't be done, I never gave up: I came to Italy, began to study the supply chain by reading books and magazines like Leather&Luxury, and contacted dozens and dozens of manufacturers, cashing one no after another. Until I met an elderly Tuscan artisan, Mr. Luigi, who accepted the challenge and helped me turn the design into a prototype.”
The difficulties in making the bag are technically many, as the different sizes of the curves that make up the bag require different reinforcements, and the leather on the ends must be cut in a zigzag pattern to prevent the holes from showing. The side panel must be hand-stitched from the inside, and the seams require pre-stitching. The choice of leather is crucial: through collaboration with Rino Mastrotto, Thaden found the perfect materials that would give her softness and structure.
When the production of the series contacted her, Thaden never imagined that they would choose far more models from her collection: in addition to The Whole, which is worn by Héloïse and Mindy, the latest season also features The Little Rocket, which we see on Emily's arm.
