UTRAMOD
Image: Ultramod, Textile Tours of Paris with Rebecca Devaney
Guest Edited by Rebecca Devaney
The hat-making district of Paris was just a few steps beyond the cradle of Haute Couture fashion at Opéra Garnier and Rue de la Paix. In 1832, a new boutique called Ultramod opened its doors to supply discerning milliners, or modistes, with the finest materials needed to make hats for fashionable ladies; felt forms in wool and fur, sisal, buckram, sinamay, grosgrain, silk-flowers, exotic feathers, ribbon, and silk voilettes. Ultramod was a success and in 1920 they expanded to open a cavernous haberdashery. A haberdashery sells small notions particular to sewing and in French the term is mercerie. Like the milliner, the knowledgeable haberdasher, mercièr, would take the time to advise their elegant customers on fashionable trends, good taste and quality materials needed to replicate the latest looks in printed fashion plates.
Image: Ultramod, Textile Tours of Paris with Rebecca Devaney
Both of the Ultramod boutiques are still there today, the Mercerie and the Fournisseurs des Modistes mirror each other across the narrow street with dark green wooden facades and large glass window displays. Monsieur Morin bought the haberdashery in 1990 and then the milliner's supply in 1995. Madame Anne Christine Morin ensures customers are welcomed with the same charm, friendly customer service and savoir-faire as in bygone days, no doubt this is why Ultramod is the oldest haberdashery in Paris.
Image: Ultramod, Textile Tours of Paris with Rebecca Devaney
The old-world atmosphere of the haberdashery is captivating; an antique cash register at the end of a long wooden counter; walls hung with original fashion plates from the 19th century, vintage sewing machines on top of cabinets. Wooden shelves stacked with boxes of buttons, beautifully organised by colour and material, neatly indexed with examples on the front; ceramic, enamel, mother-of-pearl, metallic, velvet, jewel, horn, plastic, fabric, novelty and more. A well-worn rug leads the eye to all manner of passementerie; braiding, piping, tassels, pom-poms, fringing, continuing on through soutache, grosgrain, lace and a rainbow of satin ribbons. The suspended ceiling lamps cast a warm glow on the sumptuous colours of vintage silk velvet ribbons from St Etienne. A large wooden work table invites you to unfold the bolts of richly nuanced vintage silk Duchess satin and taffeta woven in Lyon until the 1950s. Underneath the table, boxes of silk flowers are arranged by colour, the blossoms and blooms conjure romantic images of sashes, shoes, and the crowning glory of any ensemble . . .
Across the street in the hat supply, shutters creak open to reveal even more vintage treasures, boxes filled with silk voilettes and perfectly preserved feathers, shelves lined with wooden hat blocks and teetering piles of hat boxes. A library of the softest felt forms in their original sleeves and bolts of woven straws. When the Morin family purchased the premises they had the foresight to purchase the original stock. Nowadays many of the materials are no longer produced in France and the vintage stock has become another part of the valuable heritage encapsulated by Ultramod.
Rebecca Devaney is running a tour in partnership with Selvedge on 1 - 9 June 2023 (subject to change). You can find more details on our website Selvedge Textile Tour, Paris