Painting The Town Red
Shoemaker Christian Louboutin, now entering beauty, shares his daily routine, favourite breakfasts and places. He does his best design work in the mornings.
A skilled shoemaker, Christian Louboutin is now entering the world of beauty. Following nail paints and lipsticks and perfumes, he throws himself into an assault on the senses. A meeting at his Parisian fiefdom of Rue Jean Jacques Rousseau after a morning jog on the quays over the Seine.
BY LÉA TRICHTER-PARIENTE PHOTOGRAPHS BY RAPHAËL GIANELLI-MERIANO
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Are you a morning person? Yes, that is when I design and when I am the most creative and productive.
Tell us about a typical day. I wake up early and spend an hour at the gym with my coach, from 6:50am to 7:50am, no running included in that workout. Then a light breakfast and I get to the office by 9:45am. I have lunch at 1:30pm, often at home, before I get back to work. At the end of the day I spend time with family, then I head out for dinner, even though, of late, I enjoy having them over at my new apartment.
What’s breakfast normally like? At home, a bowl of muesli with fruits or gluten free bread and, since I am from Brittany, salted butter. When I have time, I have a cup of Earl Grey tea, when I’m in a rush then coffee. In England, I love the salty breakfasts, especially crumpets. In Egypt, I enjoy the crepes with fig jam or just with honey, to which I add some lime, I put lime on everything.
What are your favourite places? Claus in Paris, the Claridge’s in London and in Los Angeles, the gardens of the Chateau Marmont Hotel, definitely not a room.
Do you travel a lot? Yes, apart from Italy, where I spend a lot of time at the factory, I often find myself in Portugal, my harbour of peace, also Egypt, India and the United States.
What are your hobbies? I love the cinema, gastronomy, and I have a passion for horticulture which I practice in Vendée and in Portugal. Whenever I’m visiting a city my priorities are the gardens and the architecture before the museums. I also love bargaining for things that I bring from all over which I stash in my warehouse. Everything is listed in a catalogue. I then place them in my boutiques or in a new house or offer them as gifts to those close to me, for a birthday for example.
Which women inspire you? Apart from their physique, women of character. I like women with a story, who have an independent side, who are survivors.
What is it that you appreciate about beauty? It is the power that beauty can give women and the idea of nature made by man. I am more moved by a garden than by nature itself. For me, the craft is not superficial. I am fascinated and have been immensely influenced, since my childhood, by the Music halls and Nefertiti – I wear a ring with her effigy.
How important is packaging for you? I believe, like Lacan, in the meaning of words; I am shocked to see, sometimes, such ugly containers for beauty products. I design all of my packaging, apart from the perfumes, for which I use the expertise of Thomas Heatherwick. I adore miniatures and working on small objects.
What are you enjoying the most when it comes to your new cosmetics adventure? The idea of starting from scratch again and the sensory imagination, very different from that with shoes.
Where do you see yourself in 20 years? I hope to be able to appreciate life, as I do now, and return to my home in Syria.
What do you dream of? I have a very old fantasy, to create little hotels. That would let me bring together everything that I love: textiles, architecture, gardens, hospitality, people and places.
Christian Louboutin Beauté, 8 Galerie Véro-Dodat, Paris 1er. www.christianlouboutin.com
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