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“You use a layer to make a statement,” says Marcos Seseña, director of Seseña layers and the fourth generation of his family to direct the boutique and the workshop in Madrid. Founded in 1901 by its great -grandfather, Santos Seseña, the company is generally considered the most famous producer in the world of what Seseña describes as “the most wonderfully dramatic of all garments.”
The drama raffle probably explains the list of customers of Sesaña. Pablo Picasso was buried in his corporal, Federico Fellini bought four, Russian actor Yul Brynner possessed six, while Ernest Hemingway and the movie stars Ava Gardner and Gary Cooper were also fans. The most recent customers include Jeremy Irons, Jeff Bezos, Nicolas Cage and Hillary Clinton. Seseña remembers that to accommodate the busy agenda busy of the former lady, she was sent a selection of layers in the American embassy in Madrid; After selecting one, he used it while approaching Air Force One.
Most customers buy the layers for their practicality and comfort. “A Cape Can Become a blanket or chal, ”says Seseña. “They can also be casual or formal, bohemians or traditional depending on what you are wearing, but the silhouette and the way they fall is always so elegant.” The styles are still very popular among the Spanish aristocracy, he says.
Behind the deep red facade of the tent reigns a beautiful kind of beautifulness; The black and white photographs of the sixty ancestors hang on the walls, and the mahogany mirrors await the following adjustment. The best -selling layer is the classic Spanish layer, or 1901 layerwhich consists of two layers: a circle of 5 m lined with red velvet of wine, and another that covers the shoulders. Like all SESURA Layers (which have a price from £ 255 to £ 1,347), this is hand cut and sewn from a special merina wool produced in Béjar, a city near Salamanca, west of Madrid, known for its experience in Cabo Wool. “A corporal that is not made of this fabric is not a good end,” says Seseña firmly. But they are also open to innovation. The most recent designs include waterproof cotton layers and versions in lighter fabrics such as linen, which can be used in warmer months.
Many customers who grew up with a father or grandfather who carried a cape of Seseña enter to buy their own style, “once they are well established in life,” says Seseña, who studied the administration and writing of business before taking care of the business. “Our layers become relics, because they basically last forever.” If a repair is needed, the seseña pieces can be taken to the store, where the internal seamstress team will repair them.
Of course, beyond Seseña, Capes occupies a significant place in Spanish culture. It is believed that they have been associated with the bull fight during the festivals of fair “gentlemen” in the Middle Ages, when the noble layers were used to bow the bull load. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, they were one of the most commonly used external clothing garments in Spain, mainly by men. In fact, “originally, we only made layers for men,” says Seseña. In 1978, his great -grandmother suggested that they introduce a line of layers for women, and today the business is divided evenly.
Although the corporal is no longer widely used, Seseña has no doubt that they will survive. “Layers have a place in the DNA of each child’s imagination. Children tie towels around their necks to become superheroes because they understand the power of a layer. So, when an adult tries a corporal, these happy and long memories often return, ”says Sesaña. They are special pieces of clothing, believe. “They make people feel safe.”
Layers Seseña, Calle de la Cruz, Madrid; SESENA.com