It is a house of creation of wedding dresses like no other. Founded in 2013, installed in Montpellier, theAtelier Marielle Maury, named after its designer, became the first certified workshop in January 2020 BIO GOTS, a label that guarantees respect for the environment and the social conditions of workers throughout the production chain.
An accomplishment for this house which, once the wedding ceremony is over, offers a second life to its outfits by giving them a place of choice in the ready-to-wear wardrobe of their owner. « Artisans prefer to talk about what they do and not who they are ", says Marielle Maury, 2022 winner of the Ministry of Culture’s call for fashion projectsInterview with a passionate designer.
Why did you start making wedding dresses?
My personal taste led me to work on beautiful materials and sophisticated cuts that are precisely those found in the world of marriage. Apart from this particular event and a few rare occasions, we have little opportunity today to dress with sustained elegance.
The eco-responsible dimension seems to be inseparable from your activity, it even seems to be in its DNA…
That DNA word sounds right to me. Environmental sensitivity comes from my upbringing and my family culture. After studying commerce and tourism, I worked for eight years in a regional nature park. Nature, whether it’s a plant or ice on the windshield of cars, always amazes me as much. In return, I always think we shouldn’t destroy it. This awareness and commitment is naturally reflected in my work. It is out of the question that I have pleasure in my work but that in return a person or nature pays for it. The textile sector is one of the most polluting and exploitative sectors of human life. Hence my approach to obtain GOTS certification. Two parameters are taken into account: on the one hand, the social aspect – the working conditions of the people who are employed in the textile industry – on the other hand, respect for nature, in other words that there are no pesticides, inputs or GMOs in the products.
Nature, whether it’s a plant or ice on the windshield of cars, always amazes me as much. In return, I think we shouldn’t destroy it
Where do you source your raw materials?
I try as much as possible to source in France, but to have my products certified, my suppliers must themselves have received the certification, from which, in addition to France, the use of producers in Italy, Germany and Belgium, in any case in Europe.
What about the second dimension of GOTS certification?
Each supplier must send me not only a GOTS certificate but also a quality certificate guaranteeing the safety of the products. Each practice tests on the subjects he uses. For example, dyes must comply with the specifications, and the use of metals is prohibited. For the aluminum-coated buttons I use, I have to prove that there is no prohibited material. The same goes for wool: I have to prove that it is not the result of practices that harm animals. The specifications are revised every year so that new constraints appear to guarantee and go as close as possible to what is environmentally and socially responsible.
Some companies make major efforts to obtain local raw materials but then have to export their product, thus ruining the entire ecological benefit of their approach. How to remedy this paradoxical situation?
It is a paradox indeed. This year, I asked myself that question for a client who lives in Canada and who had me do her dress remotely. She got married in Greece and stopped on the way to get her dress, but that didn’t stop me from wondering if all this made sense. However, I know that my customer base is large. The idea is also to develop my online store. The objective is to do everything upstream so that the customer receives their product as close as possible to what has been decided. I only sell a few coins a year on the online store, but since its launch three years ago, I’ve only had one feedback on a size error.
How will you use the grant from the Ministry of Culture?
The idea is to use these funds on the one hand to promote artisanal know-how, which is local work that has all the qualities found in sustainable development, and on the other hand to develop the online store precisely, and especially the so-called ready-to-wear range. I hope that these wedding dresses can be worn afterwards. The goal is not to make thousands of copies. We stay on an eco-responsible luxury product with personalized advice. I always start from the person’s needs. My bespoke approach shapes the way I see ready-to-wear, which will remain for great occasions. This line is addressed in the first place to the bride but also to all the women who gravitate around her, the mother, the sister, the cousins, the bridesmaids… Especially since in this segment of chic and eco-responsible fashion, there is still very little offer.
As a designer, I take everything into account, from the beginning to the end, what includes the connection with the person, how they will move, how they will feel in their dress
And on the first aspect, the valorization of craft work?
We would do that with short videos. The idea is to tell a gesture or a reflection upstream of the work, to show in a way the submerged part of the iceberg. In fashion, we never see the work that can be done on the person, his figure, his proportions, on how to use the right fabric for the right cut, it is a know-how, which is generally called sewing, which is not well known. We are a group of bridal dress designers who came together after the Covid crisis and we realized that we were suffering from this lack of knowledge. We do not work in the haute-couture sector but we are also not retouchers, we are in an intermediate niche where we are in turn stylist, model maker, seamstress, first of workshop... and business owner supposed to have a strategy for moving forward. The idea is to express in images, without demonstration, the know-how at the heart of creation.
A kind of pedagogy by the image, in short...
That’s right. It’s specific to independent creators. As a designer of wedding dresses, I take everything into account, from the beginning to the end, which includes the connection to the person, the way they will move, how they will feel in their dress. The goal is naturally that she feels confident, that she is comfortable, that she is in some way at the top of her list, while remaining herself. It is a delicate balance that can only be achieved from person to person over time. It may seem counterintuitive to develop a ready-to-wear collection, but it’s actually a back and forth between pieces.
We are thinking of the automation that is increasingly present today in the fashion sector. What do you think?
Automation is a big step forward, but we’re staying on an unanimated object. We walk and wear our shoulders in a certain way, we have arms and legs, so many basic clothing specifications. There is the fact that we move and feel, but no machine can tell us that. Some people feel uncomfortable if it’s too light, others if it’s too heavy. The idea of videos is also to have a poetic approach.
L'Atelier Marielle Maury in 4 dates
2013: foundation of the Atelier Marielle Maury
2020: l'Atelier wins the GOTS eco-responsible label
2021: launch of Hybrids, « the capsule collection that shakes the codes »
2022: Atelier Marielle Maury is the winner of the call for fashion projects of the Ministry of Culture
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