01 A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE ENCOUNTER BETWEEN HAUTE COUTURE AND HIGH-END COSMETICS

The quintessence of rare and precious luxury, Orchidée Impériale Black The Cream is discovering, in its exceptional new edition, a particularly radiant work devised and created by socially conscious fashion designer Kevin Germanier. A spectacular encounter between Guerlain heritage, contemporary luxury and an eco-friendly upcycling¹ approach, which confirms Guerlain’s twofold commitment to the art and sustainable development. This collaboration has given rise to a precious porcelain jar embellished with upcycled black Swarovski crystals.

¹Term meaning recycling “upwards”. It involves salvaging unused materials to create a work of superior quality.

02 DESIGNER OF A NEW, SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS FASHION

True to its commitment to young design and sustainable development, Guerlain turned to this fast-rising couturier. A finalist in the LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers in 2019, Swiss fashion designer Kevin Germanier combines a fondness for upcycling with a joyful dose of eccentricity and humour in his work. He created his eponymous brand in 2018, offering astonishing dresses reusing fabric offcuts and accessorising them with beads, rhinestones and sequins. Work crafted by hand using artisanal techniques unique to the designer. Passionate about elements cast aside, forgotten and sometimes set to be destroyed, he offers them a splendid second life.

03 ORCHID DREAM

For Guerlain, Kevin Germanier pays homage to the Black Orchid, magnifying it in an adornment of gold and black beads. The recycled beads have been carefully chosen by the designer, who offers them a new lease of life. From a previously drafted template, the designer has created an ultra-couture petal dress. Each of the 15 pieces is crafted by hand using a highly technical and meticulous method. Threaded one by one by the artist, the beads follow one after the other and come into juxtaposition. When both ends of the thread are pulled, the structure comes to life, the orchid petals take shape, adopting the outlines of a kind of lace with shiny reflections.

04 THE FLAMBOYANT METAMORPHOSIS OF AN ICON

At the centre of the couture flower, the precious refillable porcelain jar embellished with upcycled black Swarovski crystals is revealed: a metamorphosis in which creativity focuses on what already exists, reusing and enhancing it. For this special edition, the Maison Bernardaud workshops reworked the porcelain’s enamelling to obtain a deep black over the entire jar. Kevin Germanier then turned to his personal “embroidery” technique to assemble the elements. Like a goldsmith, the designer meticulously positioned the crystals one by one on each piece.

05 A MASTERPIECE OF FINE COSMETICS

Created in 2016, Orchidée Impériale Black The Cream paints a new picture of the art of skincare. An exceptional cream, rare and exclusive, high-end skincare, the quintessence of research based on an orchid with extraordinary powers.

06 THE BLACK ORCHID: RARE, POWERFUL, ENDURING 

Selected among 30,000 species thanks to the Guerlain Orchidarium®’s experts, this orchid with phenomenal adaptation capacities was chosen by Guerlain research to develop a cutting-edge technology. At the heart of the Orchidée Impériale Black line, the BlackImmune™ technology encapsulates the Black Orchid’s¹ power to help skin to protect itself against skin ageing. This technology targets 95% of the epidermal cells involved in skin’s self-defence mechanisms². Protected, skin can thus concentrate all its resources on its regeneration. 

¹Cycnoches cooperi cultivated. ²In vitro test on ingredients.