Innholdsfortegnelse for January/February 2024 i My French Country Home

Dear Readers, Welcome to the first MFCH Magazine of 2024 — now entering its sixth year of publication! We trust that you've spent a wonderful holiday season filled with many joyful moments with your loved ones. Our team extends its warmest wishes for a year brimming with peace, happiness, and all the beauty that France has to offer. As always, our mission to bring you sumptuous French interiors, gardens and cultural glimpses remains unwavering, and with this edition, we have collected a veritable cabinet of curiosities to get you feeling inspired for the coming year. Beginning with our Discovery Guide, we take you on a snow-laden tour through Chamonix, and all the winter activities that this beautiful mountain town, located at the foothills of Mont Blanc, has to offer. For…

A mbitious, creative and patient Alix Reynis has been a key player in Paris’s artisanal revival. A self-taught creator, her artistic range includes ceramics, candles and jewelry that embody the essence of sustainable luxury. Today, Alix’s creations grace the homes and bodies of the Parisian élite — but her path to success in the creative world was far from conventional. After several successful years as a notary, Alix longed for a creative outlet alongside her legal career. Passionate about sculpture, she enrolled in a part-time course at a local art school. Five years later, in 2011, she launched her eponymous ceramics collection and since then, her creative prowess has continued to flourish. Alix now has two boutiques in Paris, in the Marais and Saint-Germain-des-Prés, and her pieces are also stocked…

I find myself following the low winter sun around the house like a lost child during the long, cold month of January. Looking for a moment to sit and create a tiny bouquet and capture it before the daylight disappears over the horizon (where it frankly seems to be having much more fun). Installed in my studio I switch on a side light that throws a warm glow across the flowers on my table. I extend my fingers towards the lamp, wondering if it will warm them up. My studio is bitterly cold this time of year. I plead my case for some extra heat, as the multiple layers of sweaters I’m wearing make any sudden body movement a near impossibility. My husband suggests lighting the fireplace. I note that…

Tish Jett is an author, journalist and former editor at the International Herald Tribune and American ELLE. She pens our regular “Just Between Us” column.  www.tishjett.com /@tishjett Teddy Verneuil is a French photographer who shoots across France and abroad to capture all the best things to do while traveling. He provided the photos that accompany the truffle recipes from L'Escapade.  www.lezbroz.com /@lezbroz Joanna Maclennan is a professional photographer whose work can be found in World of Interiors, House & Garden and The New York Times. Her serendipitous lens captured Provence in the snow, as well as images for our features on La Ciergerie de Prémontrés and the elegant Provençal home of Victoria Stainow.  www.joannamaclennan.com @joannamaclennanphotography Géraldine Levard is a former project manager turned professional food blogger who has made a…

The region’s offerings are so bountiful, that the town has started a second — rather unorthodox — tradition: La Messe aux Truffes (“Truffle Mass”), which celebrates its 100th year this winter. At this unique celebration, held every third Sunday in January, the faithful make offerings of truffles, rather than traditional monetary donations, to the church. These precious fungi are then auctioned in front of the Hôtel de Ville (town hall), with the proceeds dedicated to the preservation of the church’s buildings. It is from this backdrop that L'Escapade, one particularly fine Richerenches restaurant run by Sandrine and Nicolas Pailhes, draws its inspiration. Their seasonal menu boasts a fusion of classic and daring dishes, reflecting the local terroir (the "taste of the place"). However, in the winter season, it is the…

Stepping inside the warehouse-like atelier of the Ciergerie des Prémontrés, one is instantly met by a hint of something ancient, even sacred: the musky, softly sweet smell of beeswax. The scent grows stronger, and the air warmer, with each step up the stairs to the workshop’s top floor, where a small team of artisans whisper amiably as they work. The process is delicate and requires patience. There is not a mechanized tool in sight. Everything here is accomplished with human hands — using virtually the same dipping and shaping techniques that were invented more than 500 years ago. It is the kind of contemplative work that one can easily imagine being done by medieval artisans huddled next to a crackling fireplace — or perhaps inside the walls of an ancient…

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Standing on the terrasse, gazing open-mouthed at the stupendous grande allée that stretched miles into the forest in front of us, could Felicity and I ever have imagined the adventure that we were about to commence? Behind us, the exquisite but fading beauty of Château de Purnon whispered the story of her sad decline. We yearned to change the direction of our lives by embarking on a project that combined our love of French architecture, history, culture and style with our boundless energy — while we were still young enough to commit to something that would take decades to complete. Saving a crumbling château seemed like the perfect plan. We had already visited fifteen wonderful properties, but it was Château de Purnon in the Vienne department, just south of the…

Will There Be Wine? By Whitney Cubbison A genuine and tragically comic tale about Austen, an American in her 40s who lands her dream job in Paris. Her husband follows … and they promptly divorce. The novel follows Austen on her journey of self-discovery through a string of disastrous dates, relationships forged in a deep cultural divide, world travels and lots of wine. Coco at the Ritz By Gioa Diliberto | Pegasus Books A riveting read that conjures the enigmatic Coco Chanel, who struck up a wartime romance with a German spy, provoking suspicions about her loyalty and her eventual detention by members of the French resistance. Diliberto’s fictionalized account explores the designer’s motivations and imagines how she came to terms with her complex personal choices. Extraordinary Collections: French Interiors,…

PRINT Delivered to your door, enjoy the magic of French living in a beautiful collector’s-quality magazine. US$79.95 for one year (6 issues)*  US$14.95 for one issue* Yearly print subscribers get FREE access to the digital version of the magazine. DIGITAL Enjoy the same beautiful My French Country Home features, photography and delicious recipes - wherever you are. Ideal for commuting or holidays, read the latest issue of MFCH on your smartphone and escape to France with the click of a button. Yearly digital (and print) subscribers get issues conveniently stored within the Bookshelf, accessible from your My French Country Home account. US$39.99 for one year (6 issues)  US$7.99 for one issue Enjoy easy reading with adaptable viewing modes, interactive live links for online shopping and a personal library of back…

Azzedine Alaïa, Couturier and Collector Azzedine Alaïa left Tunisia for Paris in the 1950s, where he worked for Dior and other prestigious couture houses before breaking out on his own. He also built a priceless collection of some 140 exceptional pieces. On show for the first time. Runs until January 21. www.palaisgalliera.paris.fr/en Chagall at Work: Drawings, Ceramics and Sculptures This exhibition of drawings, sculptures and ceramics brings together more than 100 pieces that are representative of Marc Chagall’s work after World War II. Offering a fascinating glimpse into the artist’s process, it runs through February 26. www.centrepompidou.fr/en A Thousand and One Orchids Show Don’t miss this annual display of hundreds of orchids in the enormous greenhouse of the Paris Botanical Garden — a small fraction of the Garden’s permanent collection of 92,000…

It is a place that defies easy classification, even for the initiated. Part museum, part boutique, part time capsule … Maison Deyrolle is, without a doubt, one of Paris’s most unique institutions. Founded in 1831, Deyrolle is a revered name in the worlds of taxidermy, science, education and art — a universe where the eerily lifelike remains of exotic animals great and small rub elbows (and paws and wings) with iridescent birds and insects, ethereal crustaceans, fossils, and the occasional chimaera. Much of the charm of Deyrolle comes from the sheer randomness of its collection, which jumbles hundreds of artefacts of natural history with objects from the world of fantasy and legend: a winged unicorn, for example, or a fluffle of horned rabbits also known as “jackalopes.” Dense swarms of…

This is a great area for a vacation with family or friends, offering endless diversions and opportunities to explore. Filling up a big house with a fun crowd, and making the most of the local markets and restaurants, enhanced by the fine Provence weather, is a perfect way to spend quality time together. And we just happen to know a great address…. The Mas de Mousquety is a traditional 19th century house set on nearly 5 acres of land that gently descends down to the banks of the pristine Sorgue River. Quiet without being isolated, the estate — which takes its name from the village doctor who once owned it — sits near the remains of an 18th century château and two water mills that were used for grinding the…

SPECIALITY: 18th century objects, painted wood artifacts and painted furniture LOCATION: rue Geoffroy Saint Hilaire Paris 75005 CONTACT: Tel: +33 (0)6 20 28 64 72 IG account: @epoquesetpatines Website: www.epoquesetpatines.com OPENING TIMES: By appointment only Growing up, the Italian-born daughter of a successful Paris lawyer always assumed she was destined to follow in her father’s footsteps. Yet when Marie Laëtitia was finally admitted to the bar, she found she had little passion for it. She yearned for a different path that would indulge her love of history and give her freedom to develop her creative side. It was around this time that she and her new husband were looking for a way to elegantly furnish and decorate their shared Paris apartment — on a newlyweds’ budget. Thus began Marie Laëtitia’s first foray…

*Business Woman It’s more than just a product, it tells a story about ‘la vie intérieure* ’CEO and Founder of Volubilis ParisVirginie CourtieuInterview by Olivia Hoffman You have held senior positions at a number of well-known companies, including the French television group Canal+ and tech giants Google and Apple. That all seems worlds away from the footwear industry! Yes, I loved my career, both the mission and the environment. But after the first Covid confinement in spring 2020, I had a desire to do something different. Taking this peculiar opportunity to step back and look at my career, I realized I wanted to do something more entrepreneurial. As I rose up the ladder at these big companies, I had less of a hand in the creative and operational aspects of the…

As I’ve discovered over decades of living in France, cultural differences can be either delightful or disastrous. Case in point: A New Year’s Day open house party I hosted about 30 years ago. “I have a brilliant idea,” I remember saying to My-Reason-For-Living-in-France, having just wrapped up our Christmas celebration. “Why don’t we continue the festive spirit of the season by inviting friends to an open house chez nous on the first of January?” “What’s an ‘open house’?” he replied. “You know….” I said. (He didn’t.) “It’s when you have lots of food and drink and you invite friends to arrive anytime after, let’s say, 11:30am to enjoy the above-mentioned sustenance and then they leave whenever. They can stay for hours or depart after an expeditious 30-minute “Happy New Year,…