Ingie Chalhoub, President and Managing Director of The Etoile Group and Creative Director of INGIE Paris, has participated in an exclusive International tribute project in remembrance of the late designer Karl Lagerfeld. In celebration of his memory, the Maison Karl Lagerfeld invited Ingie Chalhoub to create her own design inspired by Karl’s iconic high collar shirt.
As Karl Lagerfeld once said, “If you ask me what I’d most like to have invented in fashion, I’d say the white shirt. For me, the shirt is the basis of everything. Everything else comes after.”
Ingie Chalhoub’s incarnation of the shirt replicates Karl Lagerfeld’s ethos of elegance, keeping the design simple and chic, thus reflecting Karl’s inner identity and his boundless creativity, intellect and impeccable eye for detail. The concept of the shirt reflects a sense of modernity of fashion in contemporary times, whilst infusing Ingie Chalhoub’s own creative influences into the design, combining glamour with sophisticated couture.
“I didn’t want to overcomplicate things,” said Ingie “this wouldn’t be him,” referring to the late designer.
The shirt is designed with a curated assortment of luxury materials including white feathers, using intricate techniques involving embroidery, lace and crystals ornamented onto the shirt itself. The shirt combines both masculine and feminine touches and is a strong representation of Ingie Chalhoub’s own inspirations and wishes to create something special that can be worn by both men and women.
“I am very honored to have been selected to participate in this project because it is a beautiful tribute to a person I have appreciated, admired and followed over many years. I wanted to design an extravagant item that I’m sure he would enjoy being seen worn at anytime by any gender. This shirt will hopefully represent an allegorical bridge between my own creative vision and that of Karl himself, who had a very strong personality, voice and image with a great impact on the world of fashion,” says Ingie Chalhoub.
The original shirt will be showcased in Karl’s office at the Maison Karl Lagerfeld in Paris in September 2019, during Paris Fashion Week and exhibited alongside shirts from other celebrities and personalities, who have participated in this moving tribute.