Anaïs Jarnoux

Upholsterer

©Agathe Jarnoux

©Samuel Tomatis

©Anaïs Jarnoux

The parisian upholsterer

Anaïs discovered upholstery at the age of 13
She works for interior architects, decorators and collectors
She established her own workshop in 2017

With unique traditional savoir-faire, Anaïs Jarnoux exercises the profession of upholsterer in its most contemporary form. Based in Paris, she plays with the diversity of her craft to anchor it in today’s society. Anaïs gained considerable experience working for 14 years at the prestigious Maison Brazet, an historic upholsterer’s workshop renowned for the excellence of its true French heritage. From furniture restoration to contemporary design, upholstery sewing to cladding, Anaïs challenges her many skills in each of her projects. By mixing techniques and materials, she keeps on adapting her expertise to find new design solutions. The encounters and collaborations with other crafts are fundamental to her work.

Interview

©Agathe Jarnoux

©Samuel Tomatis

Do you master any specific upholstery techniques?: I learned traditional savoir-faire through the different techniques and raw materials used. Maison Brazet is specialised, among other things, in the restoration of 18th-century furniture. One of my specialities is cladding furniture and more rarely, objects.
How is your craft linked to your home city?: Setting up your workshop in the heart of Paris means contributing to a cultural heritage linked to the craft that has always existed in this city. It also means working with the other players in the arts and crafts professions to build relationships of trust, and also an indispensable network for our crafts.
What are the projects you most enjoy doing?: The projects I am most enthusiastic about are those related to prototyping for designers or research. They constantly feed my savoir-faire. Between exchanges, questioning, discovering different worlds, searching for solutions, each project I work on has its own particularities. It enriches my practice.
Which was a memorable project?: The collaboration with the designer Samuel Tomatis. He brought me the dream project. He created soft materials made from a hundred percent algae (fully biodegradable materials) with an appearance similar to leather. I had to find solutions and adapt my techniques to work with these new materials for upholstery, leather goods or saddlery.

Anaïs Jarnoux is an expert artisan: she began her career in 2001