All I knew about French style while growing up in America during the late 20th century fit into a single description. “French Provincial.” I didn’t understand it. The phrase was spoken with reverence, almost whispered. My 10-year-old brain was unsure about this mystery. But my inner designer was already sketching ideas to improve my upstairs bedroom in south Wichita. With its window seat and walk-in closet, it had real potential.
My friends in fifth grade thought the pencil drawings on notebook paper I shared during assembly were uninteresting. I thought those girls lacked what I later learned could be intellectual curiosity. But, in the moment, I realized I did think about different things than the elementary school students around me. It was certainly unclear how that might go. I saw over time that it would not be my last challenge to explain a creative idea.
I was raised in a home with beautiful Mid-Century Modern pieces by Drexel and others. All of it was bought new and “on time” from local furniture stores as the budget permitted. One of those many solid wood pieces was known as a “breakfront.” More recently referred to as a hutch or cabinet, it lives in a hallway of our Colorado home. This cabinet is not French; but it is now old, heirloom and high quality. Sixty years after it was constructed, it peacefully coexists with old French neighbors in other rooms because it has meaning and a history.
Formation of my own household brought “early American marriage” decor. It was a fun and relatively expensive mix of American traditional, sleek Scandinavian, and combined household odds and ends. A few years later, French Country entered the chat on the cover of national design magazines. I ran headlong into it. From that point, everything selected for our home fed my obsession, including my cookbook collection.
To my husband’s regret, I bought an old French side table from an antique store in the East Bay of northern California. It was so “distressed,” the drawers stuck and have never worked despite countless no-fail fixes. But, it was SO FRENCH. And, because it was, it still IS so French.
Fast forward 25 years later to 2023, and we’ve launched French Home Shop online.
The mission of French Home Shop is simple – bring handcrafted French-inspired style to American life.
After several decades of working for other people in both large publicly traded and privately held corporations, small businesses, and service groups…for names you know, for brands you may have in your pantry or your pocket…it’s time for a new type of life and living.
Today’s world offers ways to partner with many household and personal goods suppliers. Some of them are living and producing their products in America. We’ve come a long way from the days when French-inspired products and the style of France were only available by being there.
In The Shop, you’ll find a deliberate theme of simplicity and practicality that moves French design ideas past style and into lifestyle. Here are classic, daily use products that will last with care – handcrafted, hand-carved, woven, or sewn from natural materials like wood, linen, cotton, iron, jute and more…
We’d love to hear about your fascination with all things French or French-inspired. Thanks for joining us on this new adventure!