Phoenix Rising ~ Christine Silk
By ELLEN LEWIS
In a culture dedicated to simplicity and price, I have begun to muse about the position of silk lingerie in today’s evolving shopping environment. It brings back memories of my early days (the 1980’s) in Intimate Apparel, when, at the helm of the Macy’s private label initiative, I was tasked to research the rise of a business whose momentum was just picking up. The business was silk. The front-line was at Victoria’s Secret who had just opened a boutique on Madison Avenue that was gaining quite a lot of attention. The shop, staged as a Victorian boudoir was a sea of colorful silk separates, basic in design, priced to sell, a new key item strategy for a perceivably luxury item. Those days at VS are long gone, but the influence of the message did not escape me. Silk has risen and fallen in popularity throughout the evolution of the lingerie market, but its viability is not in doubt. A natural fiber whose fortunes depend on the prosperity of a worm, silk remains an elemental fabric in the Intimate Apparel market. This season, we are witnessing a renewal of interest because of its aspirational, evocative and comfortable qualities. For this reason, I am embarking on a journey down the Intimate Apparel Silk Road starting with the most classic of all brands, Christine Silk.
Christine’s Phoenix Collection, delivering now, inspires my first silk story: “Phoenix Rising”. The phoenix is a mythological symbol of cyclical rebirth. She never dies; rather she evolves. A symbol of perfection, vibrant and colorful, the phoenix is the perfect analogy for silk. Christine Silk has, for 40 years, sustained its legacy of extraordinary print design on luxurious 19mm silk. The combination of intricate patterns in rich colors, have defined this company’s aesthetic. And today, as I follow Christine on social media, her constant quest for beauty remains cogent. Observe here Christine’s Phoenix robes available S-L and delivering now. The consumer’s appetite for silk ebbs and flows, but never really dies. The resurgence of silk can be attributed to its organic birth, its sensual hand and its crossover style potential all abetted by charismatic brands like Christine Silk.
