My 3rd Trip to Switzerland and visiting Jakob Schlaepfer Couture Fabrics Designer in St. Gallen

Lucky me on May 3, 1985 after finishing my sewing creation of cut out cotton voile couture fabric that I got gifted by our Swiss friends, after visiting the famous Jakob Schlaepfer in St. Gallen.

On April 02, 1985 we had traveled from the USA to Amsterdam and next we flew from Düsseldorf/Germany to Zürich/Switzerland where we rented a small Mercedes 190 and drove to Herisau.

It was great for seeing Hans-Jörg and his sister Barbara with husband Max again!

We went on to Austria by car to visit the Sohm family, see previous post below.

Back to Waldstatt where we had supper at Max & Barbara's home and talked till 23:00, mainly about the mushroom business...

Next morning breakfast at 7:00 and Pieter went with Max to the mushroom farm and in the afternoon they both took us on a tour at Jakob Schlaepfer in St. Gallen.

BAMBOLA, the Boutique for Fashion-Enthusiasts

Jakob Schlaepfer & Co AG, Teufener Strasse 11, CH-9001 St. Gallen

The famous Jakob Schlaepfer company's own embroidery boutique. It exports St. Gallen embroidery worldwide and supplies Haute Couture fashion houses.

Having studied fashion design before ending up in the mushroom business, of course I was having a ball!

By the way, Jörg Kuhn, Barbara's Dad also had been in the textile industry before starting into mushroom growing, using the old textile building first.

Jakob Schlaepfer is listed 2nd from the top on the left, among the leading Couture fabrics.

Some other famous Couture fabric brands...

Since 1904,  the Swiss firm Jakob Schlaepfer has produced couture fabrics for Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Lacroix, Marc Jacobs, and Prada, among others. However, last year the company created a collection of couture-worthy textiles specifically for the home. For Jakob Schlaepfer's new Décor line, artistic director Michele Rondelli and his design team created 22 opulent patterns that offer all of the detail found in the company's regular fabrics but have been adapted for use in the home. Standouts in the collection include Evaliia, with embroidered metallic flowers on delicate tulle, each studded with a pearl or Swarovski crystal; Bojan, which is adorned with hand-embossed sequins densely overlapped like fish scales; and Amurpaille, a gold brocade woven with metallic thread, overprinted with a floral pattern, and covered in embossed clear sequins. The collection, available in the United States through Savel, is priced from $ 57 per yard for plain tulle to $ 690 per yard for the more intricate Bojan pattern.

This map also gives you an idea of where in Switzerland in the north east St. Gallen is located.

After first getting a guided tour where they explained the different weaving procedures, we ended up at this famous Bambola Boutique where I became the recipient of a fabulous piece of cotton voile with lace embroidery.

We thanked our friends again for such a regal gift and drove back to the airport for our flight back from Zürich/Switzerland to Düsseldorf/Germany and driving to The Netherlands where we arrived by 22:15.

Mauzie, my Dachshund girl, was as happy with the result as I was on May 3, exactly one month later.

It was quite a challenge for cutting out the embroidered edging. 

With a very sharp, small special scissor I got that done.

Did create a kind of a cummerbund, for wrapping around the waist with buttons and loops in the back.

On September 3, 2000 I'd altered the length in a more usable length.

Still have this Couture gem!

Even the Queen of England used Jakob Schlaepfer for her Golden Jubilee 2012...

From the link below, about Mushroom Friends in Austria on April 15, in 1987, husband Pieter had gotten up at 4:45 for fetching his American Campbell Soup colleagues and driving to the Düsseldorf/German airport for their 8:00 flight to Zürich/Switzerland.

By 9:30 my youngest brother Jan called and told me that his boss needed to drive there by car, in the afternoon, for delivering a new engine...

So I quickly called him and offered for being his chauffeur instead. He gladly accepted.

Jan Thielen picked me up by 11:45 and with his lunch, he took a beer, after asking if I would do the driving. 

So I drove in his BMW to the destination of Full in Switzerland where the Kuhn compost business is located and arrived there by 18:30. 

Hans Jörg and his Dad Jörg Kuhn were a little surprised, Pieter had told them that maybe I would come along as well. By 19:00 Pieter arrived with his colleagues and we had a good dinner at the Bahnhof hotel all together.

Happily snuggled up with Pieter under the down duvet...

Next morning breakfast together at 7:15 and Pieter went on to the Sohm/Austria company, as I went with Jan Thielen to the mushroom farm in Full, and via another stop at a customer in Herrenberg, below Stuttgart/Germany. 

Via lunch in a farmers town by 14:45 heading for Horst, The Netherlands.

Did drive that day a total of 600 km and at a speed of 170 km/hr or 105 mi/hr and reached home by 20:30 where Pieter just had arrived at 20:20...

Some fun trip and for me it was my 4th Swiss visit... Both of us drove once more in 1995 to Switzerland for a visit and on to Italy but no photos, only video...

Related post:

Mushroom Friends in Austria and their Mushroom God Statue | After arriving in Switzerland we drove to Austria 

Previous posts:

Baroque Abbey of St. Gall and Library, UNESCO World Heritage Site 

My First Cross Country Skiing and Special Gift for Pieter's Years of Consulting

Happy Reunion with Swiss Kuhn Family & United States Consulate for our Permanent Visa

Pieter Co-Speaker at ISMS in Amsterdam-Wageningen 1965 | Mentioning Jörg Kuhn Visiting A.G.

Husband Pieter's Design for the Campbell Mushroom Plants in Dublin, GA and Hillsboro, TX

Linfield Mushroom Compost Facility in England | Mentioning Jan Thielen

{My Hand Knitted & Hand Embroidered Sweater} | About the Hand Embroidered Sweater that I wore

Husband Pieter Doing it ALL | manager August Enzler and Hans Jörg Kuhn on new patio in May 1985