Extracts from The Olympia Press

Were it not for my busy and demanding study schedule of university life I would have every intention to learn to knit or to pay someone to knit a cute and kitsch jumper with my name on it. The red jumper named 'Olympia' was made by the artist Olympia Le-Tan's mother for her sweetheart and works well with this wonderfully subversive image. Use of cheery reds in gingham and knit as well as the felt headband (also made from the Le-Tan studio) complements the childish youth and bright-eyed exuberance displayed by this youth. But the wild eyes in pale green/ grey, blue dyed tongue and motif of pills on the 'Valley of the Dolls' clutch held offers a refuge of darkness. I wish there were more images in this manner used to advertise the collection of Olympia, not that there's anything wrong with the current online store presentation. I think I just prefer to see how these wonderful creations can be incorporated into outfits and the luck and advantage of certain children over myself.

Sisters Olympia and Cleo pulling off sweet chic 1960s flair with high raised bangs on the forehead, hair scarfs as well as gorgeous looking evening coats. If I were the sole creator of such magnificent accessories, then I'd show them off in public as well. The reason I want to have two daughters is exemplified in this photograph- the two seem to be the best of friends with matching styles and red lipstick. Ideally they would share clothes and be two halves to one whole (oddly enough I don't want twins).

As well as the creator of many finely stitched accessories and tidbits, it appears from the Olympia Press Tumblr that there is also avid collection and collaboration in their own comes of curiosities worldwide. I believe the flag to be French but there's also the purchases of Korean stitched pencil cases and 'My Neighbour Totoro' curiosities speckled about the place.

As wonderful as it is to see Le-Tan book clutches used in fashion shoots and editorials, I can't help but more from this. The use of black dress and matching accessories was far too safe and the makeup too safe. I lust for something more dramatic and spectacular, such as the first image of sweet and sugar-weened child posing a kooky pose with wild-eyes.

A girl dressed like she's straight from a fairy tale should only be reading the stuff of fairy tales and cheesy romances. Midi skirts that skim from between the knees and ankles seem to be the most popular this season in patterns both new and old. What's appealing about this photo is the sickly sweet candy tones about the whole image and the swirling braids atop the models hair like small sandcastles.

My mother as of late has been watching many an Agatha Christie murder mystery and Poirot- it must be the melting pot of strange, foreign accents and a good gory murder that entices her. If I were more generous and had the money to splash around I would love to buy her this. On the basis of, if she rejects the gift I will be more than happy to adopt the poor darling.

Early in the Le-Tan past there were gorgeous swirling scrolls of parchment in pink and blue with horrible curse words. This is something that I would love to try for myself were it not for the fact that I constantly worry about offending people around me to the point where they beat me up. Again this is my dark and subversive self creeping out from the dark and dank pits of my stomach. If I ever find the time for myself to be kooky and crafty again I should try something similar for myself in the way of ferrying heavy textbooks from home to campus.

My favourite Frenchies of the last year have been two kinds of Olympias; Olympia Le-Tan who creates minaudières and Charlotte Olympia who gives birth to the most wonderful and creative heels you will ever clap eyes on. Pictured above is what I believe to be, Olympia Le-Tan's apartment featuring a mouth-watering assortment of heels featuring cats as well as her own fluffy feline. Anyone who likes cats in my books must secretly be a superhero and ignores all James Bond logic. I was absolutely ecstatic when I discovered that the Le-Tan's had cats and they also bought shoes from the prestigious label, Charlotte Olympia.

Despite all the eclecticism of adopting other original illustrative works, I'm impressed to see a collection and cohort of the minaudières made with fine French standard and common threads throughout. Each piece is made lovingly by hand using a pinch of fairy dust and ground unicorn hair to make them look as splendid as they do. While I do love each piece I pour my eyes over like an individual child; I really would love to claim ownership over the bottom right clutch in red and random spread of letters spelling Olympia.

Olympia Le-Tan Pre-Fall 2012 Part 2

Just as I think the flow of previews of the new collection are coming to a stop, she just keeps the lovely little sneak previews coming. I had previously written a post collaborating the Pre-Fall pieces released on the Olympia Le-Tan Tumblr but since then there have been even more additions and I think it's only fair I admire and adore them as well. I've noticed the change within her online store and website so it's only a matter of time before her Pre-Fall 2012 will be released but then again for a born and bred Parisian maybe her Pre-Fall collection will probably come in the midst of my Southern Hemisphere Winter and closer to my birthday...

It's the purple/pink coloured book clutches with medieval embroidered detail and designs that I'm most eager to see, this being the second best of that specific genre I've created. They're all wonderful and I'm eager to get any of her collection at a good price but since her new collection holds such promise as well as mystery about it I'm willing to go with the flow at this point. With that said though, I've already let a few get away from me at 75% off and I will not let such an opportunity pass me by again.

There wonderful thing about viewing the minaudières created by Olympia Le-Tan with help from her sister Cleo made in their studio in Paris is that there's such a great variety of colours and techniques- the strength of their label is that they recreate designs from other artists and transport it into a different type of media. So sometimes the book covers are wordy as well as scrolled with embroidery thread and then there's the artistic and bold impressionist view of the human body show above. There's a great variety too of fonts and the way their blended in to the book cover design in order to attract readers, or in the case of this medium those eyeballing and ogling the Le-Tan collection.

This lovely cover has had the gracious honour of being my computer background for the last week or so and I think I was most appreciative of the fine speckled detail in black felt for the beast, as well as the large sewn title of Il Gattopardo. I find writing beautifully to be laborious enough but to be able to create felted letters or stitch the title of a book in another language must be extraordinarily difficult. Red was my favourite childhood colour and the shade used for this particular book cover and minaudière matches the detail of the eyes and mouth of the feline beast- beige and red is a favourite contrasting and classic pair for the Le-Tan range of clutches it seems.

Amongst all the finely threaded and embroidered details as well as meticulously cut pieces of felt ringlets for a leopard-like beast, it's nice to be able to also see a relatively plain book cover amongst the collection. 'La Storia' written by Elsa Morante and recreated by the skilled hands of Olympia Le-Tan and sister Cleo features well cut block letters in bright green felt on a bright blue background. One of my favourite things about watching the released of the book clutches is the variety of colour and also technique in creating each and every one of the minaudières by hand.

 

Admiring the finely stitched shapes as well as neat letters and multiple fonts makes me wish I had pursued my love of textiles and taken on further study in my final years of high school but I was already ambitious enough and juggling many projects. I remember carefully doing needlework in front of the television mindlessly toiling away but to create something of such fine detail shown above a cleanly kept studio space would be necessary. I'll never be crafty enough to produce something as elegant and seamless as the Olympia Le-Tan minaudières which are a thing of beauty but it's still fun to admire her handiwork and her collection releases.

Olympia Le-Tan at DN'A

All of the book clutches made by Olympia Le-Tan each with their brass edges as well as print lining by British label Liberty have already been sold, so I suppose I don't mind sharing the images with you as a means of cataloguing what may well be some of Olympia Le-Tan's earlier works but there's still the fine detail and crafty kitsch about them. If I had all the money I needed, I'd buy them all and have a little library of them where I can touch their covers and also collect a list of great classic books to read as well. I loved the contrast of shapes for the yellow hats and their little red ribbon brims as well as the white stitching to create lines and flows of crease along the red dresses for the above book clutch, 'CES DAMES AUX CHAPEAUX VERTS'.

There's more detail for some design than others and the simplistic silhouette shapes in felt of a hand here, a face there as well as hair and a chef's hat on a red background can be enough to keep some people happy. I've worked with felt before, on the most basic and simple of levels and at times I struggled to cut out the perfect shapes and also manipulate my dull scissors in such a way to manufacture the perfect shape and sharp edges of the material. I wonder how much practice Olympia and her sister Cleo have had with felt and how many pieces they throw out if they don't succeed at first attempt.

Ironically I had the chance to buy an Olympia Le-Tan book clutch for about $400 online of the title of 'Ex-Husband' but it sold before I was able to scrape together the funds and a means of paying for it online. 'Ex-Wife' seems to have more meticulous detail and shading, especially about the neckline and the expression captured in here eyes is simply wonderful, in an unhappy sort of way. I do hope that Olympia Le-Tan continues to make her book clutches in the time it will take to me to graduate from university as well as settle into a high-paying job. I couldn't die a happy woman if I didn't have a Olympia Le-Tan clutch as well as some Charlotte Olympia kitty flats in my possession.

I know in my heart of hearts that the visual design of this book is very simple and there's nothing extraordinary about it, but seeing those bright and wonderful squares contrasted on this black background set my heart a flame- as it were. I love seeing photographs of the Le-Tan studio space almost as much as her book clutches long since sold- there's bookcases full of the original classic novels that have inspired a book clutch of their own and an untold story about them a younger generation now has access to.

What's interesting about the Le-Tan book clutches is the variety in book covers they assimilate and recreate- there's boundless energy about them whether they focus on the title of a cover or an illustration of a woman, Her latest designs seem even bigger and better than before some featuring an entire tableau of a city and background and finely stitched cities and renaissance scenes about them. I can't wait till the whole lot is released in her online store, and there's also been rumours of a few pieces of clothing too!

Everything about any book clutch designed and produced in the Le-Tan workshop of dreams is perfect in every single way- I never think that certain elements can be done better or that the title isn't stitched quite right. Nope, nothing is wrong about any clutch and they are all reach their artistic limit and greatness at the hands of their skilled makers, Olympia and Cleo. There's so many elements of design for the above book clutch including the hand wrapped around the clock, the roman numerals as well as the author's name and in between clock hands and the title of the book. Although all these different things are very close to one another, there's nothing crammed in and everything seems relatively spaced out.

A 1920s drawn woman with black lipstick, black hair and eyes with a well placed white thread to create shadow as well as shine? Coupled with the fur coat created around her petite face and the combination of dark green and light pink in neatly stitched words? It seems an impossible task to pick a favourite cover and book clutch from the nineteen shown in this post, but this particular clutch would make the top nine easily.

There's no real preference for me when it comes to the colour of a Le-Tan clutch made be the wonderful sisters Olympia and Charlotte but it's how the cover looks as a whole and I wouldn't even bother to coordinate the minaudière with an outfit. You can be sure that if I had one in my possession I would use it at every opportunity and love the thing to pieces- which may end up being a dangerous pursuit really since they are quite expensive. I suppose I'm drawn to this clutch above for the looping and scrolling thread used to write in such a small font for French and the decorating loops around and in between the two borders.

I've always wanted to read George Orwell and when I finally finish my university enrollment and suss out all the buildings I will be making a trip to the library to borrow, one book at a time, a classic novel and pray that my studies don't swamp me with too much study. However I will be in the science faculty and there's a lot of lectures and tutorials to attend so we'll just see how my social and online life fair when scholastic pursuits once again threaten to take over my life.

 minaudière. Although there are mini-cases available in this colour combination of pink and light blue, there's something irresistible about the allure of the book clutches made with brass on the edges as well as Liberty material lining. Of course beggars can't really be choosers when it comes to the fabulous allure of Olympia Le-Tan and I'll take anything at a low price from this collection. I just hope that the new Pre-Fall 2012 collection is a kind price for my poor wallet... 

Another of my favourite book clutches from the selection that was available at DN'A is this book clutch of Daphne du Maurier's play, 'The Years Between'. It must be the contrast of the grey and beige as well as the red stitched roses and ribboning effect at the top and bottom of the border that seems quite feminine as well as minimalist. I wish that all these lovely clutches were still available for purchase on the online store... instead of having to see the images of purchases I could have made myself.  

Olympia Le-Tan Pre-Fall 2012

While I know I should be really saving my pennies for things such as concert tickets, memberships of clubs as well as the university gym I really want to get my hands on a book clutch with Olympia Le-Tan. She's currently releasing tidbits as well as teaser photographs of her new pieces for the Pre-Fall 2012 collection and has even mentioned that a few clothes will be released as well, though nothing in the way of a runway collection. It must be her work with Chanel at the tender age of nineteen finally sinking in. To think, at that age I'll be studying rocks and evolution and she'll have been working for Chanel and France. It's enough to make an aspiring youth weep with a mixture of conflicting joy and jealousy.

There's a lot more pink covers as well as floral motifs and delicately stitched titles than her previous book clutches so I'm clamouring to get in touch with my inner princess and make one of these coveted treasures mine. While it may not be the most inexpensive of pieces I love the quirk and combination of good literature and books, finally married together. As well as classic cult hits there's a lot more classic French titles with exotic sounding names for this new collection too- sounds like a cultural experience for my eyes and ears alike.

This new Pre-Fall collection for 2012 promises more of meticulous detail including the shading and thin lines of this red curtain and the rich embroidered stitching on the titles. Although this design shown above is very basic and minimalist when drawn, there's so much more detail to consider when bringing the creation to life using arts and crafts as well as making the piece look beautiful inside and out using French seams. On a book clutch produced by Olympia Le-Tan, you will never find a messy seam of rough end of thread anywhere unless you are so foolish you feel compelled to take the damn thing apart. 

My favourite of all the little sneak previews is this hot pink beauty- shown on a shelf of penguin classic books both old and new and what looks to be a black and white photograph of Andy Warhol or his look-a-like on a row boat. Something about the French script as well as the renaissance image of a man dressed in pink as well as striped pants and pointy hat courting a fair dame seems to right. There's a wonderful array of patterns created by stitching and contrasting black and pink felt and I vow I will own one of these one day- mark my words. 

Another favourite in the collection is this comical looking figure in similarly flavoured renaissance clothes complete with a feather plume hat on a bright red background. It's not often you see primary colours used in felt and the title of a French book all mashed together by the mind and hands of a creative genius, so enjoy it while you can.