Hello hello, and welcome to Episode 95 of Life On the Brink!
I’m so excited for today’s episode, as it’s inspired by a delightful book that focuses on the art of designing one’s home while speaking to my Francophile heart. The book is “Home Sweet Maison: The French Art of Making a Home” by Danielle Postel-Vinay, and what a delight it is!
As you may well know, I’ve spent much of this year slowly renovating and settling into my first house, and this book has inspired me anew.
Much about the French way of living aligns with what I try to emphasize here at Life On the Brink: the celebration of the everyday, finding comfort in curated rituals, and emphasis on conversation and culture, among others. To that end, I have carefully combed through this book, making note of the things that I either have already enjoyed in my home or am now inspired to incorporate as I continue to renovate and decorate. Naturally, different things may strike you more than others, so I highly recommend reading the book if this episode inspires you.
What’s in my teacup? Cold-brew green tea with homemade nectarine purée
To paint the picture, I’d like to share the last line of this book which truly sums up the motivation behind this episode: “There is nothing on the planet that knows you and nurtures you like your home. You simply need to give it the tools to take care of you.” Whatever your home or family situation, may these ideas simply inspire you to give your home the tools it needs. Investing in your home is ultimately investing in those that live in it.
Without further ado, allow me to introduce ma liste from “Home Sweet Maison.”
FRENCH ELEMENTS TO BRING INTO THE HOME: my takeaways!
1. Use the front entrance to introduce others to you and your home. In the first chapter, Postel-Vinay expresses the importance of the French entrée, sometimes referred to as the “foyer” here in America. This space acts in a way like a portal, the crossing over from the outside world to the world of your home. It is meant to welcome not only you, but all those who enter your home with the essence of those who live there. The author recommends we, “choose books, artwork, or objects that tell your personal story – objects from your past, present, and even future. Don’t be afraid to dream. Use objects that express hopes for your future endeavors...”
Of course, it’s also a good place to have a coat rack or other furnishings to help with the “crossing over of worlds” as it were.
My home has a small landing that steps down into the living room, but is not large enough for either a coat rack or lots of memorabilia. Instead, it includes a shoe rack and a hanging shelf for keys, bags and small things that I tend to look for on the way out the door. In terms of personality, hanging right next to the door is a painting my grandfather made for me. Also, I intend to continue the idea of the entrée to either the downstairs hall or perhaps to the landing at the top of the stairs (still visible from the front door). The idea is simply to combine practicality with very personal touches to quickly transport you into the home.
2. Let the living room live.
One thing I really identified with while learning about the French home is the idea that every room serves a purpose, and that purpose is tied to the space. That’s even true for the most ambiguous room in the house: the living room. Postel-Vinay writes that the American way of doing everything from studying to conversing to entertaining to eating in the same room, in the French mindset, diminishes the purpose of that room, the salon, which is ultimately designed for the exchange of ideas through conversation. She says that, "mixing these spaces is confusing to the French. It’s a problem of multitasking, choosing efficiency over intimacy and pleasure.”
Now, I still have a bit more of an American flexibility when it comes to these spaces, but I have tried to design this house’s living room so that it invites conversation. There are two armchairs angled slightly inward, as well as the piano on the other side, already ready for a concert.
The real bump in the road is, of course, the television. To the French, “it goes against everything that they love about their salon: it creates quiet viewers, rather than active conversation. It creates passive reception of information, rather than the active sharing of ideas and news.”
There are certainly quite artful ways to conceal a television (in my home growing up, the wooden structure that housed it had shutter doors to hide it), but currently in my home I’m just enjoying the fact that the room is quite large. The T.V. sits on one side of the room, and all of the furniture is on the other, slightly turned inward, so that the space still feels complete without the presence of the television. Entertaining and conversing feels natural and encouraged.
3. Invite ritual and enjoyment into the dining room.
If nothing else, the French are always known to take pleasure in food. But not just in food, but in the ritual of the meal. It makes sense that the dining room should be respected as the place where meals are taken. To Postel-Vinay, the main motivator is togetherness.
“Together is the essential word and idea: the point of their meals is not so much the eating, but the togetherness. Although food is important, and a great part of the pleasure of the ritual, it is the act of setting the table together, sitting down together, sharing the meal together, and cleaning up together that is so important.”
To that end, I recommend investing in a dining set that you love and keep it clear of clutter when you can. I like to keep a vase of flowers on it always, as it makes the space homey and ready to enjoy at mealtime.
“Rituals is one of those things that seems antiquated and stuffy when we use them in the United States. We rolled our eyes at the idea as teenagers and disregarded it as adults. But there is something more than hollow pontification in this idea of respecting the ritual of dinner. By respecting the cook, respecting the food, and respecting the togetherness we feel when we eat, we are honoring the bond between ourselves and others.”
Additionally, the author suggests a hutch or buffet in the dining room for: “everything needed to set a table, napkins, placemats, candles, serving dishes, even the china and silverware.” While I personally keep my dishes in the kitchen, I do have a cabinet for napkins, candles, teapots and other serving dishes. The record player also lives in the dining room, as I enjoy putting on a little soft background music at dinner.
Now, if you live in a very small space, don’t fret! In my first apartment the dining room was subtly divided from the living area by the record player and bar cart, and removable wallpaper accented one wall.
4. Be militant with your organization.
Nothing gets me excited like organizing. When everything has a place, tidying feels refreshing rather than overwhelming. In this book, there are two places where organization reigns above all else: la cuisine et les archives
In the kitchen, it’s essential to have order in order to be efficient.
“Your drawers should be orderly: institute extreme organization of your kitchen drawers. Create a simple, clean system for organizing storage containers, kitchen utensils, and napkins, and remove all items that don’t serve you. Be relentless.”
The American equivalent of les archives would perhaps be the classic filing cabinet. If that works for you (as it does my husband), carry on. However, I was fascinated by the French way of filing their personal paperwork.
Gather several oversized binders and lots of clear plastic sleeves. Label the spines for all your main categories (maybe medical, home, tax, vehicle, etc.), and use colored pages to subdivide each binder. Then go through ALL of your papers, putting them into the sleeves and organizing them into the correct space. Then you have clear and immediate access to all your important records!
For both the kitchen and the files, the key is vigilance. You must be consistent. The reward of peace of mind, however, is so worth it.
5. Celebrate BOOKS! I know, I’m talking about a book that speaks about the importance of books, it’s ideal. I just had to bring it up!
“For the French, what you read is more important than the clothes you wear, the car you drive, the rings on your fingers or the watch on your wrist…. In a society obsessed by education, intelligence, and taste, books are also an important link between who you are, and what you tell the world.”
Find a beautiful way to display your books, and perhaps designate a space to read and enjoy them. In my new home, there’s actually a small, oddly shaped room that in time will become a home library! Additionally, I refurbished a small shelf for the kitchen that holds all my cookbooks. I’m never more comforted than when surrounded by books.
6. Collect for the future:
There’s a lovely chapter in this book about the cellar, or cave, where the French store wine for years and years. I don’t have a cellar or basement of any kind, but I love the idea of saving things for the future. Postel-Vinay suggests, “if you are a wine drinker, create a cave to store your wine. The best spot is in the basement or cellar, in a dry cool spot that has no direct sunlight. If you don’t have a basement, a dark closet will do. Get a wine refrigerator to keep the temperature at around 55°F.” She also explains how she bought a few bottles of wine the year she got married and is saving them to give to her children years from now.
Another way to invest in the future of your home is to plant in your garden. Growing trees in particular takes years to grow, and it gives you a beautiful tie to that land. This past April my cousin gave me camellia sinensis (tea plant) seeds, telling me it would take 3-5 years until I could harvest. My seedling now has 5 leaves and I’ve enjoyed watching it all summer. Even though it seems like a long time now, I can’t wait for the day when I harvest the tea leaves, dry them, and brew a pot to share with my cousin. What a special memory!
7. Invite luxury to the bed and bath
I’m by no means a minimalist, but when it comes to the bedroom I think we all enjoy a bit of visual clarity. I prefer lighter colors, softer textures and very intentional details. For this house, I’m also really drawing from inspiration from hotels, from investing in linen sheets and a memory foam mattress, to keeping matching lamps on either side, to storing all my makeup in a vanity. The goal is to be relaxed and comforted. As the author writes, “This is your most private space, the place where you spend a third of your life, where you dream and love and cry and recover from the abrasions of the world in private. Its primary function is to give you peace and pleasure.”
The master bathroom, however, is a long way from its renovation and is currently purely utilitarian. It’s giving me time to design the clean, elegant room that I envision. One element that the French frequently include is a towel warmer, which sounds absolutely divine. It’s a little luxury that makes a bit difference.
8. “Spend like a miser and live like a Queen”
I love the message here, that taste is not inherently connected to wealth. Evidently, to the French, “the value of thrift is a lifestyle choice. It is not a question of money as much as a question of respect for the energy of the home.” It’s entirely possible to furnish and maintain a home on a budget, while enjoying a space that feels completely like you.
Check out your local consignment shops, estate sales, and the ever faithful Facebook Marketplace. Elegance and taste come through, no matter the economics behind it.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these takeaways from Danielle Postel-Vinay’s “Home Sweet Maison.” As I mentioned, there are so many more ideas in the book, so I highly recommend reading it for yourself. More than that, I actually teared up toward the end because you can really feel and understand the love and connection she had and continues to have with those in her life that have inspired the book.
“To find joy in the simple rituals of daily life; to see
the deep beauty of an embroidered napkin, and the scent of musky incense; to create a private world, a universe of my own – these things, once learned,
would never leave me.”
It’s a beautiful thing to have a home, to be able to make a space your own. I hope you have found new ways to embrace your space and wish you bonne chance!
MORE INSPIRATION:
This Week’s Little Joy: Two fantastic shows have premiered their second seasons this year and I’ve loved both so much, despite them being such different shows. The first is
“The Bear,” which I’ve mentioned on this podcast before because it’s BRILLIANT. Truly, this is artful television here. It’s high intensity and sometimes chaotic, but so satisfying. The other show is “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” a whole summer vibe. A little cliche at times, but very genuine at others. I’m enjoying Season 2 even more than the first, and every episode consistently gives you all the summer spaces and adventures you could want.
What I’m Listening To: In true Francophile fashion, I must recommend “The Extraordinary Garden- The Very Best of Charles Trenet,” a most beloved French singer/composer of the 20th century. It has lots of French classics, including the original “La Mer,” which would become famous by Bobby Darin in the States as “Beyond the Sea.” It’s whimsical and comforting, perfect for the home.
Thank you so much for listening! Feel free to leave a comment, or head to Apple Podcasts to leave a star rating or review. If you have any suggestions for future episodes, send an email in the contact form on this site. I’d love to hear from you, and I'll be back in two weeks!
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