For five years now, The Socialite Family has been honouring the family. Via its media presence, which is where the adventure began but...
This year, The Socialite Family is 10 years old, the age of the grown-ups. And to blow out the candles of our first decade, we have chosen to invite to the party the personalities who have made the history of our decoration brand. Starting with Anne Millet – founder of the children’s fashion brand Bonjour – with whom Constance Gennari has teamed up to bring a breath of fresh air to the key pieces of our collection as well as to a selection of new textile pieces. These four-handed creations are covered in five acidic patterns from the summer 2023 collection of the Porto-based family business. Whether floral, checked, striped, floral jacquard or chequered, these delicate designs gently complement the baby and child universe proposed by our Parisian design studio. Gioia table lamp with a floral shade, candy cushions, revisited household linen essentials, a scarf to divert, a toiletry bag or a birth kit: to celebrate the arrival of the warm weather, our two friends offer you a host of regressive and generous novelties to make your own. And this, whatever our age! The two artistic directors reveal the secrets behind these real Proust’s madeleines in this article.
Bonjour & The Socialite Family can be discovered from now on on on our website and in The Socialite Family boutiques at 12 rue Saint-Fiacre (Paris, 2nd arrondissement) and 54 rue Auguste Comte (Lyon, 2nd arrondissement) as well as in our brand new boutique-caffè, L’Appuntamento, 38 rue de Sèvre at the Bon Marché Rive Gauche (2nd floor of the Espace Maison).
Constance, Anne: how did you meet?
I met Anne almost 9 years ago when The Socialite Family adventure had just begun. Anne and her family were one of the first we featured in a shoot. She lived in Nantes and had a knack for mixing prints used on seats. Her living room was extremely colourful, featuring a profusion of patterned textiles that she’d brought back from her trips to India. And then she founded her children’s fashion brand, “Bonjour”.
Constance came to meet us at our home in France 9 years ago. Bonjour didn’t exist back then. At the time, I had a blog called “mymobilhome”.
Why did you want to partner up and combine your two worlds?
The world that Anne created with Bonjour reminds me of my childhood with Liberty smock dresses: a quirky poetic look. Bonjour takes us back to a time of innocence, a time of truth when we would dress up in elegant outfits that were also very modern thanks to their cuts. The Socialite Family’s bed linen collection lacked textile pieces that filled children’s bedrooms with communicative energy. I think this capsule does us good, in its own way it pushes the boundaries and gives our homes a sense of freedom.
I’ve always enjoyed reading your articles. The interiors are eclectic and have their own interesting particularities, they are a continual source of inspiration. I also love the choice of materials, shapes, colours and patterns in The Socialite Family’s collection. They’re always very bold! In order to unite our two worlds, we decided to dress up a selection of iconic pieces such as the Divino cushions and the Gioia table lamp with prints from my brand Bonjour’s Spring/Summer 2023 collection. There’s also household linen designed for children, but it’s not limited to kids. Likewise, we have tablecloths with wide ladder stitching that can be used as big curtains in a country or holiday home.
The world that Anne created with Bonjour reminds me of my childhood with Liberty smock dresses: a quirky poetic look.
Rainbow checks, checkerboard, blue floral garden pattern, aqua stripes, a vanilla strawberry hydrangea: why did you choose to work with these five prints in particular?
I love bargain hunting for vintage fabrics in flea markets or at markets all over the place. I then modify and recolour them to create a coherent harmony which reflects my personal taste. This sums up Bonjour’s DNA. I have been in love with India for over 20 years. Since I first visited this country, but also thanks to its craftspeople’s unique expertise, and the bewitching beauty of its colours; I enjoy mixing floral fabrics, checks, and retro chequerboard patterns. Nothing scares me. On the contrary, it’s like a pretty, colourful hotchpotch!
A standalone print alone has less impact than a print which blends with other lines or colours. I love the vocabulary that this collection evokes. Namely, a set of unusual patterns that can be matched up – or not – at will. Printed jacquard cotton blends with pink and green checkerboards, and for the boldest look, a floral pattern. This is exactly what our collection was missing, and it’s guaranteed to bring a breath of fresh air to your homes this spring. We wanted to decorate little ones’ worlds as well as our own!
“When decoration has fun with children’s fashion styles”: this is the collection’s promise, can you tell us more about it?
Decor and fashion are linked, they can’t be separated from one another. We gathered themes from children’s clothing prints and applied to them to kids’ bedroom decor. They dress up children’s beds in a joyfully crazy way. In general, we use a lot of fashion fabrics in The Socialite Family collections. For example, some velvet jacquards or the leopard jacquard, which is very much a couture pattern.
I like the idea that you can dress up your home according to the seasons and your desires. Swap the cushions, lay a new tablecloth and why not round off your look with a new bag or scarf?
I think this capsule does us good, in its own way it pushes the boundaries and gives our homes a sense of freedom.
How do you see these pieces coming to life?
You can choose which side of the duvet cover you want on display, depending on the seasons, your mood and your desires. You may fancy stripes one day and a floral liberty pattern the next. You can then pair it up with striped pillowcases and a white or a pink and green checkerboard pillowcase for a more plus 80’s feel. It isn’t about having a matching, all-over look.
From one room to another, like the Gioia table lamp with its printed blue garden lamp shade that can be easily moved from the living room to the bedroom.
Who did you design them for?
This collection is designed for people who love freedom, patterns and colours! People who like to take a risk and dare to mix things up. These patterns bring light into a room.
Perfect for all ages!
This collection is designed for people who love freedom, patterns and colours! People who like to take a risk and dare to mix things up.
Photography: Constance Gennari – Text: Juliette Bruneau @thesocialitefamily
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