Chic By Accident Mexico City

Jan 22

Written By Sky

Chic By Accident has never seemed like a shop to me. It feels like entering someone’s imagination.

Part gallery, part workshop, part studio, it is a space shaped by contrasts: traditional Mexican folk objects beside beautiful mid-century pieces, antique treasures next to playful contemporary inventions. The entire composition is orchestrated by French antiques dealer and self-taught creative Emmanuel Picault, whose eye for the unexpected has transformed the gallery into a quiet pilgrimage destination for design lovers the world over.

Founded in 2000, the project initially concentrated on vintage furniture and twentieth-century Mexican design. It didn’t take long for the international design community to take notice. By 2007, Chic By Accident had published its own book, complete with a foreword by Philippe Starck — not as self-congratulation, but as acknowledgement of a distinct aesthetic voice.

Over time, the project grew in unexpected directions. In 2010, Picault partnered with architect Ludwig Godefroy, to establish an architectural and interior design studio, taking on residential and commercial commissions worldwide, including Expendio de Maíz Sin Nombre — still one of our favourite places to eat in the city.

But what stays with you is not the résumé. You wander from room to room, discovering reimagined folk objects, modern collaborations with local artisans and artists, playful nods to Mayan and Aztec motifs. A monumental sculptural piece may sit beside a tiny oddity that makes you laugh out loud. Everything feels chosen with humour, affection, and just enough irreverence.

On our first visit, we met Emmanuel himself — charming, curious, and entirely without pretension. Within minutes, we were sharing mezcal with him and friends who had dropped by. It felt less like visiting a gallery and more like being welcomed into a private salon.

We left with a few treasures of our own: a mezcal flask co-designed by a Mexican artist, a large silver nautilus-shaped champagne bucket, and a dark, beautifully bizarre Huichol skull that still holds pride of place at home.

Revisited

Since 2019, Chic By Accident has been housed in a beautifully restored neoclassical mansion from the 1920s. High ceilings, aged timber floors, and plenty of natural light filtering through the windows contrast wonderfully with the eclectic objects inside. The setting is now more grand and expansive. On our second visit, we met Emmanuel again, and his warmth remained unchanged; we found ourselves talking for ages on the rooftop. Though if I’m honest, I still feel a slight nostalgia for the intimacy of the original space.

Chic By Accident is exactly what its name suggests: a place where discovery feels spontaneous yet impossibly precise, where history and modernity collide, and where design is not sterile or self-serious but joyful, tactile and deeply human.