It's quite easy to say that we've been taken with Jackie Kai Ellis since we first bit into her chocolate salted rosemary cookie at Beaucoup Bakery years ago. We watched with awe and admiration as The Paris Tours lead to her calling Paris home. We read The Measure of my Powers and felt deeply connected to a woman we had yet to meet.
We are very grateful to now call her a Flax Sleep friend and fan. We are beyond thrilled that she has taken the time to share some of the most special corners of her stunning, newly renovated Paris apartment with us.
The old: One of my favourite pastimes is spending afternoons picking through brocantes and vide greniers, finding treasures to add to the art of a home. I love things that are distressed, are not perfect, because they in fact are more interesting and feel as though they have a life of their own. Here, I found a piece of coral and some old folding chairs. I also love my books, they are so beautiful in content, but there is nothing that thrills me more than a gorgeous book with paper that feels good between my fingers. I’m also a sucker for a home that smells nice, so I have scented candles throughout. This one is from Buly in Paris, which is an otherworldly, magical place frozen in time. It’s a must visit when in Paris.
The cup: I usually have one or two coffee mugs that give me intense joy to use. Whether it is how the ceramic feels in my hand, the colour, the weight, or just that it makes me laugh to drink out of a leopard’s head. I drink coffee every morning, it’s a ritual, so why not make sure I enjoy every aspect. (
Astier de Villate makes my favourite mugs).
The bath: I think a good bath is akin to a religious experience. It’s been nourishing, meditative, self-loving, sensory, holy stillness. It’s why I put so much care into making my bathroom (often and afterthought in a renovation) as luxurious and rich as possible. I love my floors, I first was struck by this pattern while traveling in Valencia, and had it recreated for this space. I also love all the sensual components of the bath ritual, the nicely scented soaps, the sound of running water or of toes dipping in and out, warm water like a blanket...put on a face mask (I love the REN glycol lactic radiance renewal mask), exfoliate (I love The
Aesop redemption body scrub), sip coffee or a glass of wine (
Beaucoup Bakery just came out with their own blend of
49 parallel that I’ve been drinking in Paris), and just take good, loving care of that beautiful body of yours.
The cook: I love cooking, I love cooking for people. It’s my way of caring for and loving my dearest. My kitchen was created for the purpose of feeding so it’s the centre of the home, open concept with lots of shelving for flea market finds. My oven is one of the most lovely machines I’ve ever purchased (
lacanche) and it gives me joy to use it each time I make a roast or boil an egg.
The bed: Finally, the place where we rest our weary heads, the bed. I bought my antique bed, dirty and in pieces out of an old cave from a Parisian who just didn’t want it. I cleaned it up and it’s now one of my favourite pieces, in one of my favourite rooms. I believe that we should have bedding we love (this is not just something I’m saying because this post is for a
bedding brand). Each morning I wake up, the first thing I feel on my skin is the fabric wrapped and tangled in my limbs and resting under my cheek. When it feels good, i wake up grateful and thankful, instead of launching into “to dos” which sets a tone for the day. It’s a small detail but makes a difference.
The Rose Room: Just as this apartment has become renewing for me, I bought it with the intention that it would be a place for others to be renewed and nourished as well. The guest room (or Rose Room because “rose” is “pink” in french) is a little nest I’ve created for friends who visit. Friends are my religion, they are everything to me and to be able to give them a place that could inspire them, is a great gift to me.
