Behind the Seams: How We Make a Collar

A Velvet Collar piece begins as a sketch on the back of a menu, usually the fish course. It is then draped on a mannequin cat named Dolly, whose patience is saintly, and pinned, repinned and finally abandoned in favour of improvisation.

The velvet is cut on the bias, which is the diagonal, a direction beloved by all fashion people and avoided by all geometers. Each collar takes 14 hours and includes 3 fittings, 2 emergencies and 1 emotional collapse. A final inspection is performed by our head of quality, an elderly Burmese named Madame Tulle, who runs a paw along the seam and says, ‘No.’ We begin again.