Born in New York.
Made in France.
Founder and Creative Director
Sceaux Scully is a luxury fashion accessory brand by creative Kathleen Scully. Created to help women and men have proper head coverings in all seasons, snow or sun, wind or rain, that is not lost.
Each pieces is meticulously handcrafted, and hand finished by our founder for each client. An innovative strap ensures that when you take off your hat, it won't be lost. Slip the loop over your wrist or on a hook nearby as your hat whispers, "Never Let Me Go / Ne me laisse jamais partir"
With values rooted in sociological and environmentally conscious production, the supply chain is located largely in France—from designer-end cuts, through trims, to production—to ensure both the highest quality and lowest environmental impact. The production process ensures that the legacy of millinery know-how is preserved for future generations. Moreover, it supports employment in France, primarily women. (I've been to the workshop and met the people making the caps!)
About the Founder: Kathleen Scully, a New York native, holds a Bachelor of Fine Art degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology, and a Master of Industrial Design degree from Pratt Institute. While designing bags and luggage for Tumi, she was recruited to work for Louis Vuitton in Paris, France.
With an impressive resume in the world of luxury fashion, she brings her creative vision and an unwavering commitment to quality to this renaissance love story.
She now returns to her first love: millinery. In the late 1990's in the harsh and cold winters of New York she lost about a hat a day and took to making her own. From the beginning she has, sold them off her head, when people inquired about them.
The Mission.
From yesterday’s left-overs we create with care and intention today for the future’s heirlooms.
We discover the quality of materials, we work with artisans at the top of their game to bring limited run production, we leave no scrap left behind finding a use for every last thread. We offer full transparency on our material supply chain so you as our client understand the pricing structure and global impact.
We refurbish well-loved or forgotten heirlooms to given them new life and save them from being discarded.
b. 1976
Graduate of Marcellus Central High School in 1994; she was awarded a scholarship to further her studies in art, her choice being The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Her sophomore year spent in Florence, Italy made her fall in love with Europe as she submersed herself in the culture. She rented with five Italians in an apartment overlooking Piazza Santa Maria Novella - the heart of Florence. From there she walked to Polimoda, and took weekends and school holidays to explore Italy.
Upon her return to NYC she started to make hats. Playing with form and lightweight structures using three dimensional space she sculpted with delicate, noble materials in unlimited colors which has remained important in her work.
1998
Graduate Cum Laude from the Fashion Institute of Technology with an internship turned to Design Assistant she worked for Koos van den Akker where she honed her skills in fabrics, color, materials and sewing making one-of-a-kind wearable art pieces for New York Society along side Koos.
1999
When Bill Cunningham took my photo at an opening at The Fashion Institute of Technology I just about fainted. This was an incredibly special evening, and my younger self would never believe what would be in store for her.
As featured in New York Magazine
The early aughts gave her valuable corporate career experience at Ann Taylor, working on seasonal trends, colors, prints, woven and knits on a large design team of about 40 people. Her desire and ability to work not just on fabrics, but in what they were to become lead her to continue studying.
2006 proved to be a pivotal year as she was embarked on a trip for work to Asia that spanned Korea and China; for personal vacation - to Europe. Landing in Amsterdam, by chance, or fate, during design week. It was there the realization of the effects of her decisions at work, and those that she could not influence that contrasted the playfulness and irony of Droog design she saw in Amsterdam that became the impetus to study Industrial Design at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.
With a Master's of Industrial Design degree in hand, in 2010 she freelanced with Movado and Coach. Landing a dream job as a Designer at Tumi in 2011.
The work was vigorous, dynamic and fulfilling. Daily she was able to utilize everything she'd done up to that point combining colors, trends, prints and applying them to existing and new shapes and forms that she created.
2017
In 2015 she received an email from a recruiter that she thought was spam, but replied anyway - for a position as a Senior Luggage Designer for Louis Vuitton in Paris.
By mid 2016 she was an official resident of France. The daily rigor at Tumi was just a warm up for what followed in the years to come at the legendary house. There were weekly trips throughout Europe: London, Austria, Germany, South of France, Italy and Spain. Collaborations and working under the tutelage of Marc Newson, Virgil Abloh and more. It was exhilarating, and not sustainable.
2020 - present
As 2020 impacted the world, the sign was there to take a pause. Taking a re-set, on career and personal objectives took place, and in many ways a full circle back to the beginning of making hats.
During this time she's fully renovated a small apartment outside of Paris where she now resides, improved her French, and started working with a small luxury workshop in France to make exquisite hats in limited edition from designer end cuts.
This new life is suitable, and sustainable to how she has come to think she can best be in this realm of existence in this abundant world.