A room at the Château des Joncherets.
Photo: Renata VociThat evening, I returned to Paris just in time to take advantage of the newly reopened Fondation Cartier’s late-night hours. Having had the fortune to study abroad in and visit Paris many times, I always prioritize temporary shows and openings. While the institution exhibits some of the greatest contemporary art, I was especially interested in Jean Nouvel’s architectural transformation of the fondation’s cavernous halls, which once housed the Grands Magasins du Louvre, a 19th-century department store.
Day 2: Rive Droite Essentials, Art Deco Galore, and Antique Soirées
The following morning, I walked to Rue du Mail, one of Déco Off’s buzziest patterned-lantern-lined streets, for a duo of my personal must-sees: Sahco and Samuel & Sons. Since leading Scandinavian textile purveyor Kvadrat acquired Sahco in 2018, the German fabric house has developed one of the most interesting offerings on the market, largely thanks to creative director Bengt Thornefors. Having co-founded cult-favorite Swedish bed linen brand Magniberg and worked extensively in fashion design for companies like Saint Laurent and Acne Studios, Thornefors not only produces some of the most distinctive color combinations, but his fabrics work equally well across upholstery and clothing. Sahco’s presentations usually nod to Thornefors’s fashion background, whether it’s displaying fabrics as garment bags or on cowboy boots.
A few doors down, I stopped at Samuel & Sons, a family-owned passementerie company headquartered in NYC. Their tassels, braids, borders, and fringe have become ubiquitous in projects by the world’s top designers, many of whom they partner with for collections. This year, they’ve launched the Romaunt collection with one of my favorites, Martin Brudnizki, who took inspiration from the romanticism and artistry of the Pre-Raphaelites.
Not far from Samuel & Sons is the studio of arguably the godfather of French textiles, wallpapers, and rugs, Pierre Frey. After walking through the Little Tokyo neighborhood (my favorite for treats, such as the matcha- and red bean-filled dorayaki from Tomo—thank me later), I viewed the company’s three new collections. Perhaps the thing that most struck me as I became more entrenched in the design world is just how vast new collections are. Whereas in fashion, there could be anywhere between 20 to 100 looks, design brands easily churn out hundreds of designs (none more so than Pierre Frey) in a multitude of colorways. The 2026 headlining collection is Jardin à la française, which ranges from more abstracted garden-path geometries to charming prints based on Le Nôtre’s original sketches for the gardens of Marly and Versailles, housed in France’s National Archives. Meanwhile, Mémoires Colorées was born out of Patrick Frey’s (who currently helms Pierre Frey) close friendship with Belgian artist and paper sculptor Isabelle de Borchgrave. Before her passing in 2024, the two conceived a vivacious collection based on her artwork and studio, which was also recreated at one of Pierre Frey’s rive-gauche showrooms.