I have decided to work through all of my Scarf of the Moment posts and update them in line with the structure I used for the more recent ones. Also, as and when the scarves are reissued I will add in information about the format and images of the colourways.

This Scarf of the Moment post about Parures de Samouraïs has been updated on 02/02/18

This scarf post is about my scarf, Parures de Samouraïs, designed by Aline Honoré for Hermès Spring/Summer 2017 season. Mine is a silk twill 90cm scarf, in high demand, with a great deal of interest being shown in the huge range of different colourways available. I am almost certain that it will become a sought after scarf of the future.

Parures de Samouraïs by Aline Honoré for Hermès

Description

The scarf design shows Japanese Samurai armour in incredibly fine detail in the centre, with elements from the armour displayed around it in a balanced composition. All of the design has beautiful shading giving a wonderful 3D effect. In my version, colourway #07, numerous shades of aqua, coral and blue give a harmonious impression to the whole scarf. The scarf also ties beautifully as all four corners are different and the contrast hem sets everything off nicely.

Here is a wonderful Instagram post by living.la.vida.fifi describing the scarf really beautifully. Look at the lovely pictures too!

The collage below shows some of the amazing details of this wonderful design. As I don’t own any of the older, classic Hermès scarves, I had not seen detailed work like this before. The only scarf I own that gets anywhere close to this is another one by Aline Honoré, Au Coeur de la Vie, and even that is a reissue that apparently is not as detailed as the original design. This collage below shows close-ups from a number of different colourways. Many thanks to kind tPF members who allowed me to crop their images to use in the collage.

Parures de Samouraïs- Hermès- fine details

Colourways

I had a really hard time choosing which colourway to go for. Here are all of the 12 colourways that were produced by Hermès for the silk 90cm. Again, be aware that the website images are not quite true to the original colours, to avoid faking. In fact, I spent a long time on The Purse Forum looking at members’ modelling pictures so that I could see the real colours and I also asked for advice, which was very kindly given.

For Spring/Summer 2018 Hermès has produced a cashmere/silk 140cm version with these colourways:

Design story

The scarf story is, as usual, very interesting:

The samurai warriors of medieval Japan had richly ornamented armour. Fourteen such elements from the 14th to the 18th century can be found in this composition designed by Aline Honoré. At the centre is a suit of armour in bronze, iron, gold, leather, silk and lacquer, crafted by two armourers of the Myochin school. This adornment from the Edo period (1615-1868) is certain to have belonged to a daïmio – a rich landowner. The ornamental details feature floral motifs or clan coats of arms. These pieces are preserved at the Ann & Gabriel Barbier‑Mueller Museum in Dallas, United States. This private collection of samurai armour put together by the 3rd and 4th generations of the great art‑collecting family, the Barbier-Muellers, contains close to a thousand pieces and is one of the largest of its kind in the world.

Details

Here are some close-ups of my scarf in a slideshow format:

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How I wear the scarf

The #07 colourway’s main shades are cream, aqua and coral. As well as the main colours, the rolled hem is a pale lime green and there are shades of a deep fuchsia, green, pale pink and ice blue. The scarf looks lovely with my coral cotton twin-set from Lands’ End and I also have an aqua cotton jumper that sets it off well too. White or cream would also work and I have a range of accessories in those colours that I wear with this gorgeous scarf – see the collages below:

Outfit of the day 01/09/17 with Hermès’ Parures de Samouraïs

Outfit of the day 13/06/17 with Hermès’ Parures de Samouraïs

Outfit of the day 29/03/17 with Hermès’ Parures de Samouraïs

Scarf ties

The collage below shows a range of knots that I tried when I first bought it to showcase the beauty of this scarf. As you can see, it ties wonderfully!

Parures de Samouraïs- Hermès- scarf ties

Scarf knots, clockwise from the top left: cowboy-cowl knot, cowboy-cowl knot reversed, bias fold, asymmetric knot, criss-cross knot, Edo knot, half-bow knot, asymmetric knot reversed. Horn shawl ring by MaiTai.

Background information

Samurai armour:

Wikipedia
Japanese armour
A very detailed article.

Khan Academy
Japan
Interesting information about the Samurai and the background to the period.

The Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller Museum
Collection of Samurai armour
Sharp eyed members of The Purse Forum spotted the exact same suit of armour used in the design of the scarf in this amazing museum.

More information about the scarf itself:

An excellent thread with beautiful modelling photos can be found on The Purse Forum here.

MaiTai’s Picture Book
New scarf…
How MaiTai wears her first colourway of Parures de Samouraïs.
Parures de Samouraïs #2
How MaiTai styles her second colourway purchase of this scarf.

Passion for Elegance
Parures de Samouraïs by Aline Honore
A lovely blog post by a tPF regular.

I hope that you have enjoyed this updated version of this post. As ever, please let me know if I have made any errors or if you have any new information I could add.

Best wishes,

❤💜💚💙💛