This 100-year-old rug and fabric atelier has worked on interiors for Audrey Hepburn, Lee Radziwell, and the White House – we journey through the design stories

What do Karl Lagerfeld, Yves Saint Laurent, and Audrey Hepburn have in common? For one, they're three of the most admired icons to have shaped design history – but they also have the same taste for interiors. The uniting thread: La Manufacture Cogolin, the French rug and fabric atelier who has designed pieces for the most recognized homes (and people) on the planet.

Since 1924, La Manufacture Cogolin has produced rugs of unrivaled elegance, hand-knotted or woven by local craftswomen on 19th-century looms. Preserved with vigilance and respect, it has conserved its essence and captivating ingenuity through the generations – collecting renowned clientele along the way. Since its founding, La Manufacture Cogolin has dressed the interiors from the SS Normandie ocean liner to the Elysée Palace, Versailles, to the Vatican and the White House, along with countless actors and designers' homes. It's more than simply one of the best places to buy rugs; it's a luxury atelier with a place in history.

'La Manufacture Cogolin has had the privilege of working on exceptional projects, often for high-profile clients – in our early days, for the Art Déco cruise ships like the France and the Normandy and decorators such as Da Silva Bruhns, André Arbus, Jules Léleu, and Jean-Michel Frank. In the mid-to-late 20^th century, we worked for well-known personalities such as the Agnelli family, Audrey Hepburn, Lee Radziwell, or fashion designers such as Hubert de Givenchy or Karl Lagerfeld,' comments the managing and creative director Sarah Henry, in a conversation with H&G.

In the contemporary day, the atelier remains just as sought-after among celebrities – often the result of working alongside top interior designers who count the famous among their clients.

'It’s quite flattering for our production team to know that their work is going into the home of someone that they have seen in the press, that someone who could literally purchase pretty much anything is willing to wait to have a custom-made piece woven in our atelier. Knowing where the rug is going helps the team to take special care in creating each rug – the process is less anonymous and feels more human,' Henry says.

'Every time we work with a designer on a collaborative collection or a custom project, we learn something about what we can achieve with our own production. In this context, we often receive requests that are different from what we typically make, that sometimes push the limits of our savoir-faire, and sometimes quite simply change a detail in a way that we just hadn’t thought of, that can create a big difference in the how a rug will look. Having an outside perspective is always interesting and definitely influences the evolution of our production techniques over time.'

Alongside designers and celebrities, La Manufacture Cogolin has dressed the most prestigious properties globally – from Versailles, the Vatican, and the White House. Inevitably, these properties have contributed to the atelier’s legacy, and, of course, their reputation.

'We most often work with designers and decorators on projects, and they come to us knowing that there is a guarantee of quality, authenticity, and expertise when they purchase from us. We have a unique way of weaving – on 19^th-century Jacquard hand looms – a quite particular approach to color and materials and a certain culture influenced by 100 years of working with well-known artists. Our design team has an art background and decades of experience in rug design and production, so we are at ease interpreting a client’s vision in woven textiles, taking care to respect the original design intent,' Henry comments.

'It can be quite impressive to see our completed project list, but the most important thing for us is to know that our client really loves their rug and appreciates how special and unique it is.'

How can the atelier ensure the next 100 years are as successful as their first? It's a tall order, but they're off to a strong start. They released a book (available below on Amazon), while, in Paris only this week, they presented the first of several new collections that will launch over the next 18th months.

'Paysages is inspired by abstract landscapes, oriented towards a beach villa environment, but the designs could also be at home in an urban apartment,' Henry says.

'We are also working on a “winter” fabric collection as a follow-up to our Bord de mer fabric collection, and we have started working on a couple of collaborative collections that are still top secret for now.'