when dreams of paris come true..twinkly stars....and a gift for you..

I am a believer that dreams do come true if you want them badly enough. That's the romantic in me....some would say it's not a practical way to think, that those kinds of thoughts can lead to disappointment and discouragement but I don't buy that. Dreams, desires, wishes... these are the things that keep us creating and moving forwards...these visions set us apart, they make us unique and they ensure we are always engaged with our ever changing world. I say follow your dreams with passion and determination...and that is what jewellery designer Cate Rubenstein did... 
Cate emailed me some months ago to introduce me to her designs...like all girls I love a jewel and the mere mention of that 5 letter word saw me clicking on her site pronto. Her Moonshined Designs are gorgeous and her philosophy on jewellery making resonated with me....Cate says, 

"Each piece is made by hand, using old-world European techniques and attention to detail, plus only the finest materials available - as I don't believe in wasting time or effort on half-measures that won't stick around. I am designing things to last, not trendy or cheap pieces, but design to be passed down, and cherished"

 Moonshined pieces are stunning, there are many that I covet like this, this and this and that my girls would adore, but more than that I was enchanted by Cate's dream of creating her jewellery, of expanding and finding buyers in Europe and ultimately being able to relocate to Paris...Cate and I continued chatting and recently she emailed me with exciting news...her dream was coming true and she was moving to Paris. I, lover-of-a-dream-come-true story immediately wanted to know more....

" It's a dream come true for me. I haven't really spoken about this much before, but the very first time I visited France when I was a very young girl, I said to myself, "One day I'm going to live here." and now, I finally am. There have been so many times it didn't seem life was going to let that happen... but I realized it's the promises we make ourselves that are sometimes the most important, so I never forgot and this was in the back of my mind. Every time I was in Europe for business (my prior career was International Film Marketing), I managed to sneak through France somehow, for even just a couple days.. Paris or the South, wherever... just could never get enough of the lifestyle, working to improve my language skills, and the tremendous beauty. I believe for visual people, there is no place better on earth than France.

When I launched my line, my secret hope was that somehow, against all odds, I would end up moving to Paris to design. A month after I launched, the line started getting attention in Europe... I was invited to shows over there as the only non-European... in a dream state, it seemed!... then did Paris Fashion Week in January, and that's when it really cemented. I had no idea if they would like my designs or not, but was shocked, thrilled and delighted beyond belief that buyers in France were interested in importing my line, only it costs so much to import from the states... it makes more sense to import ME! And of course, there is no greater compliment on earth than to have one's designs appreciated by the French, who are of course, world leaders in all things beautiful and charming. France seduced me a long time ago, and it's only now that I'm making it official. When I pick up my visa in a couple weeks that allows me French residency, it will be one of the happiest days of my life, and a  long-time dream come true. My designs are all inspired by travel, moments, and memories... and being in paris full time surrounded by so much beauty and history and culture, while being centrally located to so many other wonderful countries to visit, will provide boundless inspiration, creativity and love essential to good and consistent design. "

Cate has very generously offered me a pair of her beautiful sterling silver etoile earrings(they were part of the red carpet celebrity gifting for the Emmys in Hollywood) to give to my readers...and I promise I will give them away...as much as I would be tempted to keep them....they are for you. It seemed timely and just the right thing to celebrate Cate's move to Paris (I love nothing more than a story that involves jewels, France and dreams coming true) and the success of her Moonshined Designs with my 3 year blog-iversary...Three years has come and gone since I wrote my first post on French Essence and in many ways it feels like three minutes. I can't thank all of you enough for the brilliant comments and wonderful emails...Your wit, your savvy, your inspiration.. it is your energy and your interactions that have given this blog it's reason for being...

Please leave me a comment so I know you know, subscribe or follow French Essence if you would like to be in the drawing for these very pretty etoile earrings...if you are already a follower or a subscriber....then you need do nothing more, you will automatically be entered...I will announce the winner next week...Visit Cate's Moonshined Designs or link to her Facebook page to mention these divine baubles...

xv

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