ATELIER noun: a workshop where an artist creates.  An atelier gives the artist the space needed to create. An atelier is a place for vision and invention. An atelier is part workshop, part gallery, part hideaway. An atelier is a place for unique designs, where ideas travel from the imagination to the drawing board and into the fabrics. From the heart to the hand to the mannequin. An atelier is where focus is on the individual piece and every single element that makes up the whole. An atelier is where the métier takes place. The work required to turn materials into prototypes, the refinements and alterations that evolve into the final piece. An atelier is where a way of doing things becomes a professional habit and a lifetime obsession.

SOFT TOUCH Of the sensory experiences on the bike, touch is one that is sometimes overlooked. Sight, smell and balance all flood through the cerebral connections to deliver the riding experience. Perhaps it’s because the touch points are prepared pre-ride and simply function when on the road. Every touch point is its own multiple-choice question and requires thought and customisation to the rider's requirements. Handlebar tape : leather, ribbon, silicon and even rubber ? Not to mention how it's wrapped. Saddles. Narrow, wide, cut-out, carbon, titanium, and, again, leather ? Shoes – lace-ups, boa straps, custom moulded in-soles, cleats at a specific angle. If one of these three is off, it can ruin a ride. When they are all right, they are invisible. That allows you to get on with the task at hand. Merino blends have been around since what some might call the renaissance of cycling clothing. For a period it was THE fabric to provide a modern yet classic look whilst delivering the famous breathability and thermoregulation that the natural wool fabric provides. The first Café du Cycliste jerseys were made from merino and it has continued to form a crucial part of each and every collection ever since. Striking designs may have become more popular in recent seasons. It can’t be denied that such designs have their place and help increase the choices available. Indeed the Fleurette Faded jerseys and Floriane R X Centifolia collection are prime examples. However such designs can’t be transferred onto merino cycling jerseys. Merino sports blend requires to be dyed. That results in deeper, richer shades and block colours. It doesn’t mean style decisions are reduced : mono-colour jerseys can provide a timeless look or, they can be combined with coloured bib-shorts and socks to make a statement. But. The real rider experience is in the touch. Hold a merino jersey in your hands and there is a distinct impression of a premium fabric. Because that’s what it is. Put in on and feel the difference. Ride in it, sweat in it, climb in it, descend in it, drink espresso in it, fix a puncture in it. Maybe you won’t notice it. That would be a good thing. A great cycling garment disappears during the ride and merino cycling jerseys are a fine example. The Marina is a central part of the Café du Cycliste merino collection. With a race fit and a lighter blend, it has been ridden through the Niçois summer and wicked every bead of sweat into the atmosphere. merino cycling jerseys is nature’s finest fabric and it is here to stay.

R. x Centifolia PETAL TO THE METAL Inspired by the scents of summer in the south, a new collection of jerseys, bib shorts and gilets for men and women that found their form nestled in the hills away from the sea. In the sun and the soil that nurtures the flowers and makes the town of Grasse the perfume capital of the world. There is a familiarity about the confluence of natural conditions and the combination of elements to make a whole. Each piece we make combines the performance needed to handle the roads we ride with signature design fed by the enduring beauty of the Alpes-Maritimes. Floriane, Capucine and Petra are no exception. R X Centifolia for Summer 2020. A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME A TOWN & A FLOWER Grasse is perched on what we call a ‘colline’, a small hill. Behind are the higher mountains of the Park National Préalpes d’Azur. Around the town, riders will find many rollers, some longer hills but no hors category climbing. One of the most famous flowers for its scent is the rose. And at the top of the rose tree is the centifolia variety. It’s also known as the Provence Rose, no prizes for guessing why. Hermès, Chanel, and Dior, all source their roses here. READ MORE CAPUCINE Featuring a premium chamois and grippers integrated into the main fabric, the bib shorts feature a deep print paquerette pattern leg section, a technique only compatible with premium textile fibres. VIEW MORE PETRA A super lightweight race cut gilet, featuring a fully windproof and water repellent core section which covers the front and shoulder areas. Available in paquerette for men. VIEW MORE

FLEURETTE AND LA FOURNAISE LIGHT AND SHADES Summers in the south can be hot, riding can be hard and climbing can be brutal. La Fournaise, the furnace of a French Riviera summer, descends on the coast and the back country behind Nice and holds the region in its grip for weeks on end. The Café du Cycliste Fleurette jersey was built for the heat and badged to celebrate La Fournaise rather than hide away from it. A super light construction, semi-mesh fabrics and slightly longer cut sleeves are the type of details that count. And that make riding in the heat just that touch easier. In five new fades for Summer 2020. NOT JUST HOT BUT HEAT THE HEAD The casquette is almost as French as the baguette. In fierce heat out on the road, a cycling cap will not only keep the sun from your eyes but absorb sweat as well. Ours come in different designs, including classic as well as animal and col series. MEN'S CAPS | WOMEN'S CAPS THE HEART It's counter intuitive to some but adding a base layer in hot weather will help keep you cool. Choose the ultralight Cecilia which has a specifically designed horizontal mesh construction to fully optimise air flow across the body. MEN'S BASE LAYERS | WOMEN'S BASE LAYERS MEN'S FLEURETTE Each cycling jersey is inspired by not just where we ride but the conditions we ride under. In SS20, Fleurette for men comes in three shades of fade. Red, blue and yellow. The classic block colour Fleurette jerseys are available in black, white, navy and new orangeade. MEN'S FLEURETTES WOMEN'S FLEURETTE Each women's cycling jersey is inspired by not just where we ride but the conditions we ride under. In SS20, Fleurette for women comes in two shades of fade. Blue and pink. The classic block colour women's Fleurette jerseys are available in misty rose and new orangeade. WOMEN'S FLEURETTES

TOILE DE JOUY PAINT A PICTURE Toile de Jouy paints a picture and whatever the palette used or scene depicted, the picture is almost always indomitably French. Our Toile de Jouy collection for SS20 includes Valentine jerseys for men and women, the Annabelle bib shorts for men, the Cecilia base layer for women and both a classic musette and casquette. All in bleu, blanc and rouge. What else? FRENCH BY DESIGN THE OLD With an iconic French aesthetic, the famous fabric pattern Toile de Jouy was born in Jouy-en-Josas which sits only a few kilometres from the palace of Versailles. READ MORE THE NEW From French cycling royalty going head to head and shoulder to shoulder, to cobbles from the classic, the Café du Cycliste Toile de Jouy reinvents the genre. It is a selection of scenes with meaning which is what it should all be about. READ MORE VALENTINE MEN Featuring a modern take on a French design classic, the men's Valentine is a high performance road jersey built for warmer weather. Available for men in both gravure bleu and gravure rouge and can be matched with Annabelle bib shorts. VIEW MORE VALENTINE WOMEN Featuring a French design classic re-imagined, the Women's Valentine jersey is built for maximum performance during warmer weather rides. Available for women in both gravure bleu and gravure rouge and can be matched with a Cecilia base layer. VIEW MORE

Leg Days Every day is leg day. As seasons change, dressing les jambes can be tricky business. So don't put all your legs in one basket, keep your options open. JOSEPHINE Classic bibs for the Indian summer. If you are lucky enough to have the required heat, Josephine are all you need for end of summer and early autumn rides. Built for all types of riding, they've done everything from an Everesting to critieriums in Monte Carlo to a joint win of the Italy Divide adventure race. A product evolved to do its job so well, you forget it's there. ADÈLE For autumnal chill and spring classics, Adèle have a brushed fleece interior, extra length and water repellency. Enough heat mixed with performance for the those who prefer to keep their legs exposed for as long as meteorologically possible. ADÈLE + LILI Combine Adèle with Lili Rain Warmers for flexibility to follow mother nature's lead. Lili are an evolution of the traditional leg warmer, made longer and with a redesigned top section. Together they form a cold weather solution for hard rides or for those riders who don't want full bib tights. Available in black, navy and alpine green. For the evergreen rider. ADRIENNE From Belgium, via the Côte d'Azur, with love. Knee protection combined with airflow down below, Adrienne has fleece lined upper and ventilated lower section to be all things to all riders for almost all weather. Just mind the gap between shorts and socks. Discover the full range of options to cover every leg day : MENSWOMENS

LOOKBOOK AW19 ALPS There's an ambiance to the Alps in early winter. Last call on the high cols delivers empty roads and light to ride for.

HUTS & HINTERLANDS Standing still to soak it in. The Alpes-Maritimes are constantly moving but we don't always have to.  

Lookbook AW19 Norway Dark skies meet crisp air meet bright lights meet all roads. Meet the AW19 Collection.

MADE IN THE MED Peonies are perennial flowers that, according to those with horticultural know-how, come back every year to take your breath away. The Atelier Collection returns for Fall / Winter 2019 with a similar intention and Olive is the first new entry, wearing its Peonies on its sleeves. Autumn, aka Fall, is a favorite for many with good reason. Soft light, fresh dry air and a kaleidoscope of nature's best colours. As Stalney Horowitz said, 'Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all.' The Atelier collection is its own mosaic of design and creativity in the form of cycling specific items that go beyond, around, and sometimes take a curve ball from the laid out paths to production. Freedom in design is matched by details that make performance, allowing the creation of a jersey that both stands out and stands up to a wide range of on the road conditions. The mid-weight velvet fabric makes it ideal for summer's fall into autumn. Featuring a ribbed mesh construction and unique styling, Olive is a limited edition, long sleeve jersey. MENSWOMENS

Fall In Olive An Atelier jersey for changing climes, Olive brings free-thinking design and aesthetics to the season of the soul when riding is free and nature makes magic.

WIND CUTTERS Gilets for days when mother nature can't make up her mind or is about to put on a new season. Go with the wind, not against it. 

FLOAT ON Mesh wonders for dog days, a selection of featherweights that let the air flow so that the road can continue to go. Lighten the load to handle the heat. 

THE CITY OF LIGHT A moveable feast from Montmartre to la Concorde. Limited edition lightweight in Parisian bleu, blanc and rouge. Badged with Marianne, the face of La France.

FADE TO SUMMER L'Été. Summer. Sunshine, melting tarmac and sharpening tan lines. Favourite kits for hot summer roads. Fleurette is an original piece constructed for La Fournaise, the furnace of the Riviera's high season. For SS19 it comes in different shades of super-light material so you can fade for the sun not in the sun. The all-out limited edition summer style. A spectrum of solar colours blended into Raspberry bibs. Celebrate the sun. Summer is about blue skies and zero worries rides. Fade to blue. Red hot heat bleeds to blue. Fine white dots complete the colours of the tricolour. The colour purple. Faded out, it's a story about the coming of style. For those who find it hard to tear themselves away from monochrome. A grey fade to be combined with classic black bibs. MEN'S FLEURETTES WOMEN'S FLEURETTES

Lookbook SS19 : Fleurette Sunrise x Marinette Raspberry - LTD Edition The solar spectrum faded for La Fournaise - the furnace - of the high summer on lightweight Fleurette. Matched to Raspberry Marinette bib shorts for added pop. In limited numbers for those seeking to pin their colours to the road.

PUT YOUR FEET UP Socks maketh the sartorial cyclist. In a sport which is almost entirely about les jambes, socks are an important - perhaps THE most important - accessory. Colour socks, striped socks, dotted socks. Café du Cycliste has your ankles and up to your calves covered. All at the correct height, whatever the most recent debate might have determined that is. THE SKATE SOCK With the film Mid 90s bringing focus back on the four-wheeled urban freedom machines, this trend has come around again. That's why we'll never stop making them. DOTTED SOCKS A bit of class in design. Noir et blanc for those who like to keep duo colours, with some frizzante on top. Cool like a fresh Perrier. FULL COLOUR SOCKS Revolutions in colour for turning heads as well as pedals. Plain style to be worn high and paired with your chosen tones of cycling threads. MEN SOCKS WOMEN SOCKS

LOOKBOOK SS19 ATELIER Atelier. A limited edition collection of pieces produced without limits. Design let free, craftsmanship uncompromised. Bring more beauty to cycling.

ATELIER COLLECTION Atelier is a collection by Café du Cycliste comprising one-off pieces produced in small quantities. Uniquely styled, the collection mirrors the freedom of the road within the design and development process itself. ATELIER

CASQUETTE KINGS These guys were wearing casquettes with, dare we say it, panache before the concept of luft even entered the new wave of cycling chic. Before the boudin (the sausage helmet) and the modern plastic version, the older generation of Riviera cyclists rolled with cycling caps perfectly placed on their tanned heads. So we turned to the kings of Côte d'Azur cycling to model our SS19 casquette collection : these are the statesmen of Olympique Cyclo Club d'Antibes. Name : Patrick Waroquier Age : 72 Riding since : 1961 Cycling hero : Eddy Merckx Favourite Parcours : The Pavé of the Paris-Roubaix Casquette : Sardine Animal Series Name : Gerard Allo Age : 61 Riding since : 1970 Cycling hero : Claudio Chiappucci Favorite parcours: The Boucle de Sospel. Casquette : Toile de Jouy Bleu Name : Jean-Pierre Zanini Age : 75 Riding Since : 1960 Cycling Hero : Federico Bahamontes Favorite Parcours : Les Trois Cols loop of Col de Champs, Col d'Allos and Col de la Cayolle. Casquette : Col Series Tai Mo Shan Name : Marc Icard Age : 58 Riding Since : 1973 Cycling Hero : Sean Kelly (the others say Marc is Sean Kelly's long lost French brother .... ) Favourite Parcours : The arrière-pays of Antibes Casquette : Col Series Passo Dello Stelvio Name : Daniel Allo Age : 64 Riding Since : 1967 Cycling Hero : Paolo Bettini Favourite Parcours : Col St-Roch Casquette : Classic Noir Name : Pierre Herman Age : 76 Riding since : 1971 Cycling Hero : Alain Bondues (individual pursuit cyclist, silver medalist at the 1980 Moscow olympics) Favourite Parcours : The Kemmelberg Casquette : Octopus Animal Series Name : Jean-Pierre Rosso Age : 77 Riding Since : 1958 Cycling Hero : Jacques Anquetil Favourite Parcours : Col de la Bonette Casquette : Classic Bleu Name : Michel Icard Age : 62 Riding since : 1972 Cycling Hero : Luis Ocaña Favourite Parcours : Le Col de Braus Casquette : Citron Fruit Series