As part of her somewhat antitrend aesthetic, Jeannie Lee is on a mission to revive the bandeau.
Lee, the owner of three Satine boutiques in Los Angeles and Venice that are popular with starlets coveting brands like A.L.C., Preen and Thakoon, introduced $35 bandeaux last June as part of her new label, Shibuya Mon Amour.
Easy and effortless, the small line of minimalist silhouettes in a neutral palette arose from a simple desire: “We need bandeaux,” Lee recalled of the impetus to launch the made-in-L.A. line, which retails for up to $595. “Nobody makes cute bandeaux. Nobody makes a good jumpsuit.”
She produces about 500 pieces a season for Shibuya Mon Amour, and sells them in her own stores.
After bandeaux and jumpsuits, the third component of the countertrend group is a silk maxidress that is boho enough for Stevie Nicks but sleek enough for a cool fashion chick. Since the line’s debut, Lee rounded it out with cropped pants tinted blush pink and a gray felted wool coat that is already hanging in Kate Hudson’s closet.
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Lee is no novice when it comes to making clothes. Three years ago, Satine launched its namesake label with Kelly Sawyer, who piles on more trends and statement-making pieces than Lee does with Shibuya Mon Amour.
A year earlier, Lee collaborated with Louis Verdad on a black strapless dress fitted with a corset top and full skirt. She first dabbled in intimates in 2008, when she partnered with Virginia Pereira to create a collection of bras, panties and chemises called Bacini for Anthropologie.
To complement the all-black bandeaux, cut from nylon-cotton fabric in 4-inch or 10-inch swaths, Lee plans to add tube tops that measure at least 14 inches wide. She’s also drawing up short overall jumpsuits and flowing maxiskirts for the summer ensemble.
Lee said the skirts will be “kind of high-waisted, so you can wear them with tube tops. That’ll be a summer Venice look.”