Area

Area’s first couture-format collection separated one-off and made-to-measure work from its ready-to-wear drops during the fully digital Spring 2021 couture season. The 14-look presentation cast Precious Lee and Yasmin Wijnaldum in crystal rib cages, metal-trimmed smoking jackets, organza-circle dresses and panniered duchesse-satin forms.

Thousands of components were embroidered, hand-finished and assembled between specialist workshops and Area’s Canal Street atelier. The collection drew on Berber coin embroidery and historical couture by Ungaro, Saint Laurent and Balenciaga while rejecting old sample-size conventions. Area remained outside formal Paris haute couture membership, but the project established a durable internal division for private clients and exceptional construction.