By 19th Hole Staff
Rolls-Royce recently introduced the luxurious Dawn, a British, handmade 4-seat convertible. The celebrated Rolls-Royce brand and the world of haute couture are bound by a common philosophy – taking the very finest materials and crafting them into the most exquisite and desirable luxury goods as expressions of their clients’ taste and lifestyle.
In creating ‘Dawn – Inspired by Fashion’, Rolls-Royce Design Director Giles Taylor gathered a brilliant team including textile specialist Cherica Haye, who studied at the Royal College of Art and Michelle Lusby, a color and materials designer who gained experience working at the luxury goods purveyor Mulberry.
The design group selected a neutral white canvas of white as a base then added three vibrant colors for the 2017’s Spring/Summer collection: Mugello Red, Cobalt Blue and Mandarin Orange. This color series set the tone for Dawn, the only convertible available in the Rolls-Royce lineup.
“Our clients are arbiters of fashion; tastemakers who sit in the front row of the couture shows, themselves influencing evolving trends,” commented Taylor. “To them, the commissioning of fine luxury objects represents a deeply-involving curatorial process – with different forms of luxury design, craft and execution serving as inspiration for the other. ‘Dawn – Inspired by Fashion’ beautifully expresses the notion that inspiration for truly personal objects is drawn from the passions, tastes and lifestyle of its patron.”
Like couture garments, individuality was forged in the subtle details. Dawn’s interior is a contemporary arctic white and black color scheme highlighted by one of the three vivid colors. The white leather of the seats is accented through the embroidery of the headrests, as well as the stitching and piping of the seats. Seamless stitching, a complex craft technique from the world of fine tailoring, is applied to the steering wheel joining the two colors of leather around the rim.
Tactility, comfort and quality are important attributes of the vehicle. Rolls-Royce’s designers took this into consideration by appointing the car’s front and rear door pockets with fine silks, adorned with an abstract representation of the Spirit of Ecstasy with each emblem set precisely at 55 degrees to complement the lines of the door.
The legendary Rolls-Royce craftsmanship and attention-to-detail is apparent through the dashboard created in piano white with aluminum particles, resulting in a silk-like appearance. This is complimented with the integration of the bespoke clock, set as a piece of jewelry and styled to emit a silver on silver effect, evoking the metallic fabrics seen on this year’s haute couture catwalks.
Dawn’s exterior Andalusian white color scheme is beautifully accented by a hand-painted coach line which drapes over the curve of the car’s hip as the line flows backwards along the car, reflecting the identical splash of color provided when the soft-top roof is in place.
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars ‘Dawn – Inspired by Fashion’ is exquisite in detail and an incomparable luxury.
Images: Courtesy of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
