JANUARY AND HAPPY TO BE HOME

January is keeping us busy. It’s that time of the year where we look back at the previous months and take a bit of perspective on what we’ve done, what we’ve liked, and what we want to do. Time flies, and we’re also working on some new pieces for the primavera, with some woven garments made with upcycled fabrics, lighter wool and cotton knits for the warmer days and new colors for you to shine. Stay tuned! I’ll be sharing some more here very soon. But come on - it can’t all be work. So I’m taking some time to treat myself and do some improvements in our home, all of it in music.

I was fortunate enough to travel to Paris before Christmas to see some of our friends there, and I got my hands on Alice Roca's wonderful cookbook. I’ve always enjoyed cooking, but lately it has taken a more important part in my life. It used to be something more functional, but now I’ve decided cooking’s a great opportunity to fully dedicate myself to a single activity - we’ve got so used to doing a thousand things at a time, we eventually lose the essence of anything we do. I just enjoy these little pleasures of peeling veggies, cutting them into pieces, making the most of our senses, with the idea in mind to receive friends around a good meal. In that sense, Alice’s book is wonderfully made, focusing on seasonal ingredients (the book is divided in 4 chapters, each about a season of the year) with beautiful photos. 

As a person, Alice inspires me very much, for her generosity, her kindness, and the things in life we share: a mom and an entrepreneur, living in the countryside, her love of art (we nearly bumped into each other last summer in Arles watching Christian Marclay’s film The Clock). My favorite recipe so far? Her winter pie served in Marion Graux beautiful plates (those that inspired our collaboration last autumn).

I’ve also taken the time to listen to more music, something that’s always played an important role in our lives, oldies and newbies, tunes that sooth me and inspire me when I work, songs I like to share with my kids, listen to with my husband, dance to… by myself! Here’s my selection of the moment, including my 2021 favorite Hermanos Gutierrez, Natalie Bergman’s debut, Orlando’s SALES, and the energizing Tony Allen’s Cosmosis. 

And because it’s cold up here in our mountains… well I guess making knits helps! The piece I’ve been wearing most these past weeks? Our Klein blue AGNÈS. Its bright color acts as some sort of chromotherapy. In these months of winter, it makes me feel like I look good when I wear it. Colors certainly help me living through these uncertain times right now! Julie