Hi there,
How was your week? If you observe Easter, chances are there was some cooking involved in your household. My husband Ron cooks our Easter meals (oh fine, all our meals) and the only time he gets a real break is on his birthday, when we usually go to a restaurant, and this year his birthday happened to be on Easter. But social isolation happens, so his one day off from the kitchen this year meant I had to cook, quarantine style. 😨 In my last email I explained that cooking falls under the category "able but generally unwilling", therefore my kids are not used to seeing me doing anything productive in the kitchen. Imagine their utter surprise! First they asked "what happened, mommy?". Then after my quick explanation, they still looked scared, so I offered reassurance: "it may not taste great, but you will not starve, I promise". They were still worried, but quickly realized this was going to be entertaining. They pulled up a chair and watched me like the National Geographic channel, where a wild animal tries to survive the realities of the Sahara Desert heat... interesting, chock-full of what not to do tips, but not a pretty scene. In any case, I am happy that it was a decent day, and that they enjoyed making fun of me (and the food wasn't as bad as they expected), but I am also (so) pleased to know that Ron's birthday will only fall on Easter again in 2093 🙌 (yes, I checked. Let that sink in).
OK now that I shared my 2020's first and last moment in the kitchen, let's talk about more interesting things. Let me tell you something about fashion: when you work in this industry for more than a few years, you start getting wary of people (PS: if you don't, maybe you are the person we are wary of, eh? Food for thought 🤔). The ego trips, the cult-like devotion that some designers require, the tantrums... so much ugliness coming from people that end up making beautiful things - that disconnect has always felt so weird to me. Listen, I am not saying this ugliness doesn't exist in other fields. Of course it does. But in other industries people are actually embarrassed of these things, and in fashion this has been so normalized that it's sort of expected. Example: "Mary threw her pencils at her interns. She was upset that one of them interrupted her creative moment by telling that her lunch was ready. Hello? She was having a moment. They were lucky it was just pencils...". Everything seems to justify creativity and that's just messed up. A long time ago I was talking to this guy about how people should be more thoughtful, and he said "but "nice" is so boring!". I smiled politely, and left, but what I really wanted to say was "If you are bored with "nice", you are the problem". I wish I could go back and say that, what a missed opportunity to waste my time (yet again) on a clueless man. Maybe next time.
Needless to say, I always love and appreciate so much when I meet people who defy these bad stereotypes. It's so refreshing to meet someone that is creative and talented but also kind and thoughtful. All of this to say - you should meet Camila Sarpi. I met her about 12 years ago: I had just moved back to Brazil after having gone through a divorce, and I was trying to restart my life with a new job, near my family, and with old and new friends. I was working for Tiffany & Co. so I was even more very curious about jewelry, so I was happy to meet her. I loved her jewelry because they were beautiful and eclectic: some of them were more spiritual and emotional, and others were architectural and modern. And she was low key, zero ego, and so, so nice. And definitely not boring! 🏆
When I started Matriark, she was one of the first designers to join us, and I will always be thankful for her trust and support. I caught up with her via Zoom, and it was fun talking to her face to face again, even if far away (Camila lives in Sao Paulo, where I was born).
Check out her lovely pieces like the Lygia Earrings, the Rose Quartz Necklace, the Concha Necklace and the Flora Earrings. also our chat above. You will see that in the middle of our convo she had to take a break to check in with her daughter - all was well and we were able to continue after the break, but that was a sweet reminder of what we are all going through in times of quarantine. Working parents deserve to have a glass (or 2) of tequila doing Zoom meetings, just saying. 😊
Every piece of jewelry at Matriark is handmade by Camila, and 10% of our sales goes to the Southampton Hospital Foundation and the East Hampton Meals on Wheels. Plus you get to support this amazing Brazilian designer, and to add unique jewelry to your collection - as Iris Apfel once said, jewelry is the most transformational thing you can wear after all.
Oh and before I forget: I also included the most hilarious fashion memes for a few laughs below. Because we need all the help we can get. Talk soon Matriarks, we will get through this.
xx
Patricia
How was your week? If you observe Easter, chances are there was some cooking involved in your household. My husband Ron cooks our Easter meals (oh fine, all our meals) and the only time he gets a real break is on his birthday, when we usually go to a restaurant, and this year his birthday happened to be on Easter. But social isolation happens, so his one day off from the kitchen this year meant I had to cook, quarantine style. 😨 In my last email I explained that cooking falls under the category "able but generally unwilling", therefore my kids are not used to seeing me doing anything productive in the kitchen. Imagine their utter surprise! First they asked "what happened, mommy?". Then after my quick explanation, they still looked scared, so I offered reassurance: "it may not taste great, but you will not starve, I promise". They were still worried, but quickly realized this was going to be entertaining. They pulled up a chair and watched me like the National Geographic channel, where a wild animal tries to survive the realities of the Sahara Desert heat... interesting, chock-full of what not to do tips, but not a pretty scene. In any case, I am happy that it was a decent day, and that they enjoyed making fun of me (and the food wasn't as bad as they expected), but I am also (so) pleased to know that Ron's birthday will only fall on Easter again in 2093 🙌 (yes, I checked. Let that sink in).
OK now that I shared my 2020's first and last moment in the kitchen, let's talk about more interesting things. Let me tell you something about fashion: when you work in this industry for more than a few years, you start getting wary of people (PS: if you don't, maybe you are the person we are wary of, eh? Food for thought 🤔). The ego trips, the cult-like devotion that some designers require, the tantrums... so much ugliness coming from people that end up making beautiful things - that disconnect has always felt so weird to me. Listen, I am not saying this ugliness doesn't exist in other fields. Of course it does. But in other industries people are actually embarrassed of these things, and in fashion this has been so normalized that it's sort of expected. Example: "Mary threw her pencils at her interns. She was upset that one of them interrupted her creative moment by telling that her lunch was ready. Hello? She was having a moment. They were lucky it was just pencils...". Everything seems to justify creativity and that's just messed up. A long time ago I was talking to this guy about how people should be more thoughtful, and he said "but "nice" is so boring!". I smiled politely, and left, but what I really wanted to say was "If you are bored with "nice", you are the problem". I wish I could go back and say that, what a missed opportunity to waste my time (yet again) on a clueless man. Maybe next time.
Needless to say, I always love and appreciate so much when I meet people who defy these bad stereotypes. It's so refreshing to meet someone that is creative and talented but also kind and thoughtful. All of this to say - you should meet Camila Sarpi. I met her about 12 years ago: I had just moved back to Brazil after having gone through a divorce, and I was trying to restart my life with a new job, near my family, and with old and new friends. I was working for Tiffany & Co. so I was even more very curious about jewelry, so I was happy to meet her. I loved her jewelry because they were beautiful and eclectic: some of them were more spiritual and emotional, and others were architectural and modern. And she was low key, zero ego, and so, so nice. And definitely not boring! 🏆
When I started Matriark, she was one of the first designers to join us, and I will always be thankful for her trust and support. I caught up with her via Zoom, and it was fun talking to her face to face again, even if far away (Camila lives in Sao Paulo, where I was born).
Check out her lovely pieces like the Lygia Earrings, the Rose Quartz Necklace, the Concha Necklace and the Flora Earrings. also our chat above. You will see that in the middle of our convo she had to take a break to check in with her daughter - all was well and we were able to continue after the break, but that was a sweet reminder of what we are all going through in times of quarantine. Working parents deserve to have a glass (or 2) of tequila doing Zoom meetings, just saying. 😊
Every piece of jewelry at Matriark is handmade by Camila, and 10% of our sales goes to the Southampton Hospital Foundation and the East Hampton Meals on Wheels. Plus you get to support this amazing Brazilian designer, and to add unique jewelry to your collection - as Iris Apfel once said, jewelry is the most transformational thing you can wear after all.
Oh and before I forget: I also included the most hilarious fashion memes for a few laughs below. Because we need all the help we can get. Talk soon Matriarks, we will get through this.
xx
Patricia
Leave a comment