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That is, save for earlier this year when I realized that one of my regular sources for espadrilles had changed purveyors and were now offering goods that were made in Bangladesh. Of course, this made me wince for several reasons. But then I thought of a little shop that had opened in the rue Jouvene last year. 

Jute. I had first heard about them from my then neighbor, the charming Alex of La Cuisine du Comptoir, who was sporting a smart pair in a suede midnight blue. 

But every time that I passed by the tiny boutique, I either didn’t have the cash (for they don’t take credit cards) or it was swarmed with customers.

All too soon, I could recognize their certain style on the best dressed young things around town. 

As winter rolled in, I regretted deeply not having bought a pair for myself. Would the store reopen in the spring?

Happily, Ian and Elena, the Britannic-Spanish couple behind the company were back with the arrival of the almond blossoms and I knew that my time had come to invest wisely. After all, I wear them every single day, weather permitting!

It was Ian who was in the boutique and he graciously explained to Remi and I the different sewing techniques and use of materials. As soon as I tried on one of their desert boots in tan suede, I knew that this was a whole other kit-n-caboodle than the stiff rascals that can be bought on market day. For my second pair, Remi pushed me towards a lime green slipper cut. That each pair is handmade was obvious in that the first that I tried weren’t right and yet the second were perfect. Ian explained that each of the small team of sewers that work for them in Spain have a slightly different stitch, hence the variable. I loved imagining someone not so very far away was taking such care to keep one tradition a part of our everyday living history. And a walking one too. How far will my Jute espadrilles take me? Only time will tell. And certainly, before then, I will be back for more…

Jute

Magasin des Espadrilles

rue Jouvene near the corner of rue Tour du Fabre

13200 Arles

www.jute-arles.com 

Their website will be operational in September and yes, they speak English. 

Until then, feel free to contact ju********@gm***.com

Prices: roughly between 25€ for a basic canvas pair to 50€ for suede and 60€ for the amazing toile print above.

The images that surround us and swirl about our feet sink in whether we realize it or not.

Here in this new tiny village, there has been quite a bit of problems with the water supply. Imagine our surprise and utter dismay at the end of unpacking boxes to find that the gold at the end of the rainbow – in this case, the much anticipated shower on the path to cleanliness – has dissolved into a cloudy gray wash. Oh, dear. Their old pipes, tired after so many years of tapping deep into the water table. Our old pipes, worn thin by the rush. 

The local water company is working on it with dramatic updates, bottles of Crystalline distributed daily for each resident and the fire hydrants left open all night so as to clear out the end of the bad.

Lately, I have had one thought in my head, recurring, “I need to let the silt sink to the bottom.” This summer and heat have taken their toll on top of years punctuated with uncertainty. And yet, suddenly I find myself immersed in quiet and realize that I am beginning to see clearly. But not quite yet. I wander from room to room, forgetting the reason that had put me in motion, I am forgetful, often unable to concentrate my thoughts enough to write and yet am delighted to be…happy. 

I am right where I want to be.

Like the underground thick and deep, the murky in me will quell and then it is on and upward we go.

EDIT: I try to be clear in my writing but this seems like it is another example of murkiness as the key word to me in this post is “happy”. And I am, we are, supremely so. Being here is amazing. Things may not be perfect but as I write here often, that isn’t really the point now, is it? With my Best from Provence, Heather

Have a great rest of your weekend…

So, how exactly does one move a house packed to the brim with heavy and occasionally very fragile objects from the second floor apartment in the middle of busy Arles to a home in a tiny village in Provence?

Why with style, of course.

Well, at least that is the path that we chose as we were wise enough to hire Daniel Roux and his amazing team to take care of everything for us. And I do mean everything – including obtaining the city permits to block off a well-trodden street in the center of town (chosen to occur on a Monday when most of the surrounding shops are closed) to thoughtfully providing a pile of croissants for the start of the second day. Long before le jour J, he had come to our house to make a thorough estimation of what we have (as well as for the price), all the better to be utterly prepared. Remi then picked up the many, many boxes – provided free of charge – and we did our part of the work.

One of the things that makes Daniel’s services incontournable in Provence is the use of an extendable porte-meubles which is raised, fire-man style, on the outside of the building. Once in place, all of the items to be moved, from bulky canapés (or Remi’s gallery printer – yikes!) to our antique mirrors are put on a platform and down they go quick as an elevator…

…where they arrive at street level and are packed into the truck. Trust me, this is so much better than trying to pass through crumbling and winding Provençal staircases that can date from the Renaissance!

And in truth, three trucks were required for our family of…two…over sixty meters cubed in all. Holy cow do we have a lot of stuff – thousands of slides from Remi’s archives, irreplaceable tchotchkes brought back from our travels and ah-hem perhaps a few random pairs of shoes belonging to yours truly. Why three trucks? One massive big wheeler simply won’t fit in the streets in Yee Olde Provence, something that Daniel had verified in advance with Google maps.

While the last of the furniture and boxes were heading South, he packed up our artworks in boxes built for the purpose (that one of the major local museums uses their services frequently speaks volumes). They also had special containers on hand to transport glassware as well. “Did anything get broken?” his Father, 82, asked me afterwards. As he had founded the family company, he wanted to make sure that his well-crafted reputation was still intact. “Mais bien sur que non!” I replied. 

After all, this is no monkey business.

Was it odd to see the house that we had so lovingly restored stripped down to the bare bones?

It was. 

But Remi and I knew that we were moving on, literally, to better things. Overnight, our things slept in the trucks that were parked safe and sound at Roux Déménagement.

Day Two was the obvious aftermath of Day One – up, up and away, a film rolled in reverse. The boxes that we had labelled were deftly delivered to their corresponding rooms. As we had blocked out our floor plans in advance, the furniture was perfectly in place by day’s end with nary a complaint, even when we realized that the washing machine wouldn’t fit where it was supposed to and had to be moved – again – to a lower floor!

Because that is the thing – the entire crew is not only unbelievably hard-working (not exactly a common characteristic in Provence) but they are delightful. At the end of the day, Eric and Didier – both of whom have Popeye strength and have been working in the field for nearly fifteen years each – were joking, laughing and whistling nameless tunes despite the sodden heat. 

There was definitely a bit of music in the air, especially as Daniel’s son, Olivier, was the fourth man of the team for our move. Not only is he the third generation to partake in what is back-breaking and very precise work, he also happens to be a talented musician, whose fantastic band, Starliners, is in the process of recording their second album with Universal. Pardon? Yep, a budding rock star who also helps his Dad from time to time. Very feet on the ground and very much in the family aesthetic. 

From the first Starliners album – that is Olivier on the far left:

Remi and I were invited to join everyone for the lunch break on the second day. We gathered around a table under the plane trees at our new local café and shared a bit of wine and a healthy dose of conversation. They rested, we relaxed. It was just the right moment needed before the final push and it was one in a stream of wise decisions that marked our two days. As the guys prepared to pull away in their emptied trucks, I felt incredibly grateful. Bisous were delivered all around. Will you believe me when I say that the move ended up being…fun? Perhaps not, but I know that not only was it a smashing success, we met a fine family with whom we will hopefully remain…friends.

Daniel Roux

Moving & Storage

250 route d’Eyguières

13200 Arles

Tel.: 33 (0)4 90 96 04 55

http://www.demenagementsroux.fr/

This is the second time that we have used Daniel’s services and obviously I can’t recommend them highly enough to anyone moving within Provence. They also offer the possibility of a secure storage facility and yes, English is spoken.