MAURICE MON AMOUR

Hello my little cats! 

I'm in great shape, so great I'm listening to Mariah Carey at the office!All i want for christmas it's youuuuuuuuu"... The Christmas spirit is starting to run through my veins like hot chocolate, so I'm out for more than a month! Anyway, that was for the surrounding musical ambience! I'm back today with a crazy experience: witnessing the birth of your very own pair of shoes, which I'll have to tell you about from the beginning. I'm warning you that I'm going to be quite chatty... 

 

It all started a few months ago, when my friend Maeva fromException... But if you know... My love buddies with whom we had organized the two-year anniversary of Make My Lemonade. Maeva called me in June, to suggest that I spend a day in Cholet at the Maurice Manufacture factory, one of the brands sold on the L'Exception website, and make my own pair of shoes with other bloggers. I can't hide the fact that I'm not an absolute fan of this kind of group operation, but shoes are still my thing and I love the l'Exception team. But I hesitate. 

 

And then, two days later, I receive an e-mail from my friend Mai de Superbytimaiwho says "let's go?" 3 words, 5 letters. I sign, and then I discover that the other girls are none other than Delphine, Stéphanie, Isabelle, Maëlis, KateWhat love... I'm so excited, I can't wait for October...

 

Life goes by, one project follows another and I forget a little. To tell you the truth, because I have a life too, I suggested to my sister that I host my nieces at my place in Paris, like any self-respecting aunt... And then I realized that the girls' dates overlapped with this day's, so great, and you know what? I brought them with me and I think I've earned my stripes as the coolest aunt of October. And that's class...

 

Back to the heart of the matter, I'm pretty good at making personal digressions, but all that to say that it was an incredible experience that I almost didn't have the chance to share with you. After getting up at the crack of dawn, I headed for Montparnasse with my chips under my arm to catch the train to Cholet. I couldn't finish my night, too excited about what was about to happen... seeing a pair of shoes come to life before my very eyes. I don't think we fully appreciate all the work that goes into the making of a pair of shoes... We consume shoes like any other T-shirt... But it's incredible to see the number of steps involved, the know-how and the technique applied to create the pair that's at your feet under your desk. 

 

 

The idea was to choose between three models from their collection: moccasins, richelieu or ankle boots. I arrived with a fixed idea, to make golf shoes... You know sometimes, sort of fixed ideas, of course you know, you're women, but I wanted golf bangs. Ingrid, Maurice Manufacture's designer, was delighted with the news, but told me it wasn't called golf fringe, but a Mexican tab. I love the idea even more! I'd go for a double Mexican tab in glitter! Of course...

 

 

We then set off on an adventure to the factory's leather workshop, to choose the materials and colors of our future shoes. Unsurprisingly, I chose the richelieu, and in the face of this torrent of materials and colors, I freaked out. And as I've already told you, I'm not really comfortable with colors, so I decided to go for a classic choice. Ahahah a classic choice (for me), who loves shiny shoes. So this pair of shoes will be a mix of all the silver leathers I could find in the skinshop. I'm envious of Mai, who went absolutely crazy with her pair. sublime.

 

 

So we spent the rest of the day chasing our pairs of shoes, seeing them come to life before our astonished eyes, making hundreds of pictures, having infectious laughs, setting nails like real pros, customizing our shoeboxes and drinking gallons of hot tea to keep warm. All in all, a magical day just the way I like them.

 

 

 And as a bonus, because I'm so nice to make you salivate over the project, you'll also be able to acquire these shoes for playing golf on the moon...And yes, they're all made to order by the Maurice Manufacture teams, using the finest materials and made-in-France know-how, for the sum of 209 euros. Okay, not everyone can afford them, but the Spanish and Swedes have given us a bad time of it, but I can tell you right now that I'm in real space slippers, which is rarely the case when I'm treading the asphalt in my New Look heels.

 

 

I'd like to make a little aside about L'Exception which, if you don't already know, is an e-shop that sells only products by French designers, encouraging and promoting savoir faire made in France. L'Exception has recently set up shop in the 10th arrondissement, rue Bichat, and would like to organize workshops, ephemeral sales, parties and other events in their space. And to make it all possible, they need help and money. So you're thinking, Lisa, she's nice, she wants to sell to us! her shoes and on top of that, she's asking us for money for her buddies. But no, you can do both. Let me explain, for every euro donated to their kittyyou'll get the same amount in vouchers from them. How clever! So if you want to buy one of our crazy pairs of shoes, or just find a few Christmas presents, think of them! In short, I'm a fan, and full of love. Because I've seen a lot of operations come and go, but some as cool as this one deserve to be highlighted. Bravo and thank you L'Exception.

 

In short, I hope you enjoyed this behind-the-scenes look at a shoe factory. As for me, I'm still in shock, and every time I look at my little maurices, I smile, firstly, because I find them too beautiful, too crazy, and then I think of that day, of those people so attentive and generous. Sharing at every level... 

 

 

Thanks to Phillipe, Ingrid, "B", Maeva and Régis for this completely special moment. I'm off to buy Mai's pair ... And you, tell me what's your favourite! favorite pair? See you tomorrow for more DIY, recipes and decoration - yes, all at the same time!