Germaine des Prés

Germaine des Prés takes its name from two personal references of founder Pascale Gransagnes: "Germaine," a childhood nickname given by classmates on account of her German mother, and Saint-Germain-des-Prés, the bohemian Left Bank neighborhood where she grew up. A former screenwriter with family roots in rural Aveyron, Gransagnes launched the label almost by accident -- sewing underwear as Christmas gifts for friends one year, and finding the response enthusiastic enough to build a business around it. Founded in 2011, the house has centered its collections on eco-responsible lingerie and homewear, working principally in GOTS-certified organic cotton and eschewing elastane. Its most distinctive material choice is a milk-fiber textile Gransagnes discovered during trips to India, where much of the line is produced; the innovation was covered by the French trade press (FashionNetwork) as a rare example of a lingerie house building a signature fabric around a biological byproduct rather than synthetic elastane. The panties that built the brand's reputation are cut from crocheted organic-cotton lace, offered across a wide color range, and the wider homewear line has kept the same handmade, Left Bank-inflected sensibility that gave the label its name.