A Lovely Miracle - 140 Rue du Bac in Paris

French designer Meresine creates unique and sweetly enchanting jewelry pieces for a fun fashion effect. However, each of the three themes that her charmed collections come in, have a slight deeper story behind them.

Her Miraculous collection begins with a story in the late 1830 on the street of Rue du Bac in Paris. For the traveler who does not know what's behind door 140 of the Rue du Bac, the steady stream of pilgrims from around the world must seem very mysterious. Often, hundreds of visitors enter the building and emerge minutes later with a smile and sometimes with eyes reddened by tears. This is where the Virgin appeared.

On 27 November 1830, the Blessed Virgin appeared to St. Catherine Laboure. As a young peasant girl who had just joined the Daughters of Charity, was praying in the chapel. Suddenly she saw a woman, "dressed in a gown of white silk dawn. St. Catherine then heard a voice telling her: "Have a medal struck upon this model, people who wear it will receive great graces, the graces will be abundant for those who wear it with confidence."

Suddenly, it seemed to St. Catherine the table turned and she saw on the reverse of it the letter M surmounted by a small cross and under the M, the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

Two years later, the medal was struck with the approval of Bishop Quelen, Archbishop of Paris. Its spread was accompanied by many healings and conversions ringing. The apparitions ceased in 1830, but by 1876 one billion of the medallions had been sold! Catherine Laboure was beatified in 1947.

Today, the chapel known as the Miraculous Medal has been considerably enlarged and enriched.

To get a better view of Meresine's Miracle Drop Earrings, check them out on our site here.

Artists in Marrakech

We recently just returned from a little work trip that included stays in Marrakech, Barcelona, the South of France and Los Angeles. Our time in each place was unique and memorable, just as one would expect it. But more over, we feel so fortunate having the opportunity to not just visit these places, but to actually immerse ourselves in each respective culture. Having very close contacts in each city and the ability to avoid the tourist map/hotel life, enabled us to make true connections with each place.

It was in Marrakech that we began our visit. We were sad to have just missed the Yves Saint Laurent exhibit which ended the day before we arrived, as we heard it was spectacular. But we did make it in time for another exhibition of local artisans in the area. A friend of ours, Hicham El Madi, was displaying some of his recent furniture and home accessory designs, along with a young artist who uses old tires to create artistic recycled sculptures.

The young artist working with old tires additionally started working with our friend to decorate some of his furniture line. We loved the marriage of the two. We have both his rhino and elephant that are entirely made of recycled tires, and a mirror that has also been made from the rubber wheels.

We have also for a long time admired the quirkiness of Icham's teapots! Morocco's famous mint tea is delicious and often served many times throughout the day. The teapots are deeply integrated into every day life, yet we love this teapot even if simply showcased as art!

We were saddened to hear of the recent bombing in Marrakech, and hate that violence plagues the world. We really find the people of Marrakesh to be centered, open and friendly and feel that their traditional artisan skills are very worthy of modern worldly celebration.

Loomed Treasures

We love falling in love with undiscovered french designers, and we love it even more when we find designs that utilize traditional artisan practices, but with a special fresh twist. Our new Nihal collection, magically combines leather, wool, taffeta and organza using a traditional method of Moroccan weaving that creates a shimmery and durable fabric. The results are stunning bags, clutches and home accessories, like this large fringe bag!