S/S 22: Linen gets to the heart of the collections The 16 March 2021 - Yarns - Fabrics - Première Vision Paris

While linen’s lab-proven thermo-regulating properties, which derive from its breathability and insulation, has demonstrated its value even in winter, its ventilating properties make it one of the top summer materials.

Immediately inspiring freshness, it also boasts a high comfort index, as proven by tests. This makes it a natural for next season’s chic or casual knitwear collections. Whether pure or blended with cotton, linen proudly manifests a plant-fiber feel and the natural quality of its visible irregularities –  perfect for adding character to this season’s men’s polos.

When elaborated in fine fleece, linen updates knits inspired by Homewear and Athleisure, for sweatshirts with an added fullness and jog-pants designed to be worn both indoors and out. Knits are sometimes enlivened with quite regular ribs, and can be imagined in body-hugging, ultra-pared-down shapes to be worn right against the skin, for a combination of well-being and sensuality.

In smooth, mercerized versions, jerseys have a subtly lustrous look, for casually elegant tee-shirts in no-frill shapes.

In shirtings, the use of linen, or, in particular, linen/cotton blends creates a fine balance of authenticity and refinement. Color wovens go in for a simplified fantasy, with more or less evenly-spaced two-tone checks. Slub yarns strive for a low-key yet noticeable effect, with a distinct plant-fiber quality and a pleasant feeling of dry freshness for genderless shirts. In plains, warm and deep shades look whitened, as if faded by time, with visible plays on wefts.

On clean women’s shirts and blouses, the fineness of slubbed effects, enhanced by carefully-elaborated finishings, expresses a low-key sophistication. Linen fibers blended with silk and cotton have a delicate silkiness, accentuated by the use of pastel colorways. Weights are masterfully lightened, and resonate with the season’s overall call for lightness.

For feminine outer pieces, linens grow precious, and feature silky reflections. Chintzes have a heightened gleam, for fancier-looking dresses for spring events and ceremonies. For eveningwear, fabric surfaces are adorned with a silvery, coppery or golden metallic coating.

In tailoring, color-wovens and stripes recall a chic fantasy. Patterns underline their timelessness, with deckchair stripes and micro checks that are gently revived under the influence of sunny color ranges. They can be worked together, for a total look, or mix and matched, depending on the day’s whim. Weaves are softened thanks to washed finishings and stonewashed effects, which lend a tender patina to these luminous colorways: a solar embellishment induced by the passage of time.

This sympathetic relationship with the past is reflected in the gently worn effects on fabrics intended for casual outerwear.

With subtle wrinkled, creponned or seersucker effects, more substantial and supple linens flaunt their textures, for summer trenches and coats with a clean, relaxed look.

A denim spirit also infuses casual jackets and blousons. More or less thick plain weaves, in stretch-free cotton and linen blends, highlight the naturalness of the fibers. Their looks evoke a Japanese-artisan spirit and an assertive, comfortable solidity. Linen’s natural irregularity enriches surfaces, and is just right for straight, mandarin-collar jackets with workwear details, or lighter and more relaxed overshirts.