The Weekly French Mango Digest #4

On missing France in the Summer, fear of failing, designing a Home Decor Style Quiz and a spotlight on Eclectic home decor.

Jul 03, 2024

Featured image by the gorgeous @home_of_blossom

Do you sometimes feel like anxiety takes hold of you, but you have no idea why or where it's coming from? I've been feeling a bit anxious recently and I'm not too sure what's causing it.

I feel like I am flailing or failing, or both actually. I had been doing so well in the last 6 months. I even felt like I had turned a corner. I was exercising again, studying, building something that meant so much. That still means so much.

I probably just need a break and accept that sometime life needs to simply slow down. Breaks are not for losers, it's the total opposite in fact. But breaks scare me, I feel like if I stop for a little while, I most probably will stop for too long and what about the plans and the dreams?

Isn't what summer is for? It seems pretty acceptable that after years of conditioning, comes summer, your body and mind give you signal that now is the time to come up for air and smell the roses.

But then for me summer is also the time when homesickness gets me the most.

Every single year, since 2001 when I left France, I have missed my home country a lot the minute we enter the summer. This year is no different.

I think something materialises in the air, my senses catch it, and suddenly I am thrown into this deep need to be there.

I dream of sipping coffee outside in the early hours of the morning, watching the mesmerising mist in the distance. I love it so much. Do you know it promises a hot and sunny day? I want to go on long strolls to the market, which smells of fresh produce, roast chicken, and homemade paella. It's so loud that when you return home, happy with bags full, and push the door closed, you exhale, hungry and content.

I want to bite into juicy peaches, sweet melons, and figs, and stay out late under fairy lights.

I'm a city girl through and through. I grew up in the heart of the city but most of my summers were spent at my grandparents' in the countryside so when the heat turns up and the days lengthen, all the happy memories come flooding back.

Staying outside with the neighbourhood kids until dark, the village fairs, and the fireworks.

One of my fondest memories is of evening walks, listening to life happening inside the homes of people through their open windows when the air is fresher.

The clinking of plates and cutlery mixed with the sound of the evening news and muffled voices. I don't know why, but this has always been a very comforting sound.

The change of pace, the hours spent at the swimming pool, and the freedom we never really experienced during the school year.

And then, as summer would wind down, the excitement and expectation for the new school year would begin.

New shoes, new school supplies, new autumn gear were on the horizon, and after weeks spent either in a swimming suit or shorts, the idea of wearing new jumpers and trousers and seeing your school friends was super exciting. I remember reading the September edition of teen magazines in August, keen to check out what the autumn fashion had in store for us.

I guess this has never left me, and I still experience the same feelings over and over, year after year.

I know that right now all the signals point towards a time for taking a breather but soon I will feel ready to start again, so maybe I should just focus on letting go…

★ In other news

Part of my Interior Design studies involves learning in-depth about home decor styles through the years, their origins, and current trends.

Recently, between modules, I have been delving into this with voracious passion.

I have started making progress on a quiz I am designing to help you discover your personal home decor style if you are struggling to figure out what makes you tick in home decor.

I don't believe you need to adopt just one style, but knowing your personal preferences makes it easier to focus on what you could add to your interior to live in a home that feels right for you.

I am excited about this project and hope to share it with you in the next couple of months. The technology to design the quiz is giving me headaches, to be honest, and I have spent more time on it than I would have liked. However, I hope it will be worth it in the end.

Much love,

Peggy x

★ This week, spotlight on Eclectic Home Decor

There are so many home interior designs styles to choose from.

What if you couldn’t decide? What if you would love to keep your grandmother’s farmhouse buffet but wanted it to co-exist with your mid century modern swivel chair? What about the collection of beautiful art pieces you have accumulated over the years? Where do they fit in all this?

Enter eclectic home decor, a design style that’s like a canvas waiting for your personal touch.

To keep reading click on the link below.

Read the blog