This point is written from the Patine Studio amidst the boxes, the construction site of the future pop-up shop, and the cries of exclamation generated by the arrival of the future first coat whose photos are being prepared.

The beginning of the end? No, the end of the beginning!

I'm feeling a joyful nostalgia. As I took my 6-year-old daughter to her last day of preschool, I felt that familiar, almost nostalgic, feeling of endings, the kind that's both eagerly anticipated and a little sad. The last week, the one where we could bring Monopoly and candy to class. The prospect of summer vacation, but also of friends we'll never see again. Summer vacation, even if it doesn't seem so long when you're an adult, is forever linked to this ambivalent feeling of wanting to cling to these last moments while simultaneously dreaming of the promises held within the new school calendar.
"Is this the end of the beginning? Or the beginning of the end? Is there more or more? Is it today or tomorrow?" Emilie Jolie.

Next week we're closing Patine Studio on Rue Martel. I loved this place, but it was a huge burden for our small team. I'm choked up, but at the same time, we're closing it to grow stronger. We've learned so much here. And we have so many ambitions for Patine. I can't wait for the fall; we'll be back in the Marais on August 30th, while we find our new home.

My wonderful childhood friend Astrid, a costume designer at the Geneva Opera, is wearing the new Willie dress in a heavy tomato red. She's very particular about the finishing touches. She approves of the dress.

Every second counts

I can't watch The Bear without always finding parallels with what we experience at Patine.
Note that this is not literally true: my family is less dysfunctional, I barely know how to cook an omelet, and I know that The Bear is fiction, Ayo Edeberi is not a chef, just one of the coolest actresses of the time (and the best dressed!).
Nevertheless, the recently released season 4 tells the story of how an entrepreneur who wants to prove himself and others must balance his own high standards, his personal struggles, and the success of his project, which also depends on the well-being of his team. That's what I'm trying to learn today. Chef Carmy wants to change the menu every night, putting everyone under pressure. For my part, I want to reinvent the wheel every day, to be able to improve until the very last second. My brain often questions the big picture instead of following the plan. I'm exhausting, so I can't thank Josephine, Lilas, Faustine, and Solune enough, who's finishing her internship... Thank you to the Patine team, you're amazing!
At the beginning of September, we'll be launching the Open Space Nostalgia wardrobe. For the third year running. We're really getting into the swing of things with the wardrobes. And we're still sticking to our founding principle of a concise selection: few pieces, but only the very best. Just like at The Bear restaurant, really :)

(Goodbye

In recent weeks I saw an absolutely brilliant, feminist and sensitive documentary about Marilyn Monroe on Arte, directed by Michèle Dominici.
I also saw the Worth fashion house exhibition at the Petit Palais. Beyond the sublime dresses, it's fun to see the photos of masked balls attended by the upper class of the time, their outfits immortalized in paintings and photographs, and the TikTok influencers of the era :) The media has evolved, the pace has intensified, but nothing has changed: seeing and being seen!
Finally, I've revisited my heavy Willie tank dresses. Blatant product placement, I know! But still: I think they're even more beautiful than last year, the drape is amazing. I have 200 ways to wear them again. I love the long one with a belt (did we mention we're releasing our first belts this fall?). My latest find is the mini tank dress over pants, an outfit I'll love until I'm 90, even when my arms are a bit flabby, I'll have my Tony shirt to wear over it!