SONIA IN 24
7AM As soon as I am up, I will brush my hair. I eat breakfast first: tea and brown bread, and sometimes a fresh fruit juice such as orange or grapefruit. I write notes on the previous day in my notebook, and then I shower. I use only very high-quality products custom-made for me in Évian-les-Bains. There is no brand; they are all by a specialist who has stopped making them but makes an exception for me. I receive them every month in my mailbox. After my shower I drink a big glass of tea while inspecting the flowers in the flat and changing their water. My first conversation of the day is with my daughter, Nathalie. I call her every morning; it is a ritual. I love the telephone – my iPhone 5S is my only gadget. I don’t read e-mails because I hate them. I try to stay away from all that technology, which I find amazing, but it’s not for me. I protect myself from all that. Getting dressed takes me about 20 minutes. Every day I wear the same suit, a long jersey or a crepe coat with wide short pants. The colour goes from black to dark brown. Only the jewels change. My accessories are all in a big basket, and I make up my mind according to the mood of the day. In general, a classic strand of pearls and les faux diamants [rhinestones] have a nice effect. Currently on my fingers I am wearing rubies from Marie-Hélène de Taillac over my rubies from Tiffany’s – très chic!
10.30AM I give the drawings I’ve done in the morning to my assistant. I don’t have meetings. People call me and ask if they can come and visit me in my apartment. I say yes, and sometimes I say no. It depends on the day. I talk face-to-face about the world, the fashion, the kids, the news, the future.
12.30PM I eat lunch rather early. I love Japanese. On Sundays I usually have lunch with my granddaughters and sisters. I drink thé de Chine from Mariage Frères all day long, 10 glasses at least. I work out every day with my personal trainer, who used to be a soloist at the Opéra de Paris. But the best thing is to walk, which I do every day at the Jardin du Luxembourg right after lunch for an hour.
2.30PM My daughter knows what I like and does most of the shopping for me. I love bags, shoes, accessories, books. My favourite bookstores are L’Écume des Pages on St.-Germain-des-Prés and Rizzoli in New York. I am currently rereading Madame Bovary.
6PM I read the press and relax. I look at Women’s Wear Daily and all the fashion magazines, all the political newspapers, The New York Times, Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro, and a lot of magazines about art auctions and galleries. I also listen to music. I love opera! And I love antique silver objects; I own quite a lot of them. My biggest indulgences are dark chocolate from Pierre Hermé, les soufflés au fromage from Cigale Récamier, le gâteau au fromage from Jean-Paul Hévin (sublime), and going to le salon de thé Angelina. I just can’t live without chocolate – I have between two and six pieces every day.
8PM I usually have a light dinner that always ends with dark chocolate. My favourite cocktail is a Bellini from Harry’s Bar in Venice. My son, Jean-Philippe, comes to have dinner with me twice a week. I see my daughter, my assistant, and the news on TV every day! I love to stay home watching a good TV programme, or if I go out, a quick dinner tête-à-tête.
10PM My facialist comes to visit every night to do a long cleaning and face massage.
12AM My bedroom is dark-lacquered navy blue from top to bottom. There are books everywhere and a big-screen TV and pictures of my family. Normally, I will go to sleep sometime around midnight.
LOLA IN 24
7AM Like my grandmother, I wake up early. I’m always happy in the morning, so I get up easily. The first thing I do is put on music. I listen to things I can sing – French musicians like Françoise Hardy or Dalida. Before, I was a shower girl, but I just moved into a place on the Bowery in New York with a huge bathtub. I take a bath every morning and sometimes at night. I love shower gels from Molton Brown and Laura Mercier. She has all those scrubs and sugary things. One day it was horrible; I went to a meeting, and I had just used the Laura Mercier, and my boss was like, “Why does it smell like cotton candy in here?” I don’t put make-up on in the morning, only at night when I go out. In the day I feel like it’s cheating. I leave in my workout outfit, something I would never do in Paris. You will never see a Frenchwoman on the street in yoga pants.
7.45AM I don’t eat breakfast, but I grab a mocha at Bowery Coffee. I’m back on coffee! I used to rely on four coffees a day, but I’ve cut down a lot. When I came back I was like, why did I live without that? It’s just so good.
8AM I do Gyrotonic; I learned about it when I was dancing with Martha Graham. I think it’s much better than Pilates. Then I take a quick shower. Getting dressed afterward is fast, about 10 minutes – I usually think about what I’m going to wear before bed. I wear a lot of Sonia Rykiel, but I mix it with things I’ve found at Browns. My dad and his family own it, so I’m very lucky. I mix and match with Valentino shoes and a Saint Laurent jacket or a Proenza Schouler sweater or something from Lanvin. I always wear earrings and rings. I don’t wear necklaces or bracelets. I love my collection of vintage pearl earrings and new ones from Deszo by Sara Beltrán and Marie-Hélène de Taillac. I have about 10 pairs and 40 rings – my grandmother gives me a lot of her old ones.
9AM I take a taxi to work and catch up on my e-mail. I try not to look at it before that. My first conversation of the day is with my family in Paris; we’re all super close. Sometimes I bring a book with me, but I always end up Instagramming instead. I finally finished Karine Tuil’s L’Invention De Nos Vies, one of my favourite books this year.
9.30AM I read everything – WWD, The New York Times, New York, The Daily, Le Monde. I need to know what’s going on in France so I can keep up with my women. I receive maybe 200 e-mails a day. I screen them with my assistants, and then we make our plans for the day. We have a great atmosphere at the office. I try to have nobody wear make-up. I think it’s cute – so French.
12PM I usually have lunch out with editors or friends. Bergdorf Goodman is right in front of the office, so I go there often. It’s dangerous because sometimes I’ll end up shopping. Nobu is nearby as well. I also go to Amaranth or Candle Cafe. I don’t like salad; I like fish and vegetables or steak.
1.30PM I have five or six meetings a day, discussing our plans and strategy and the preparations for the shows.
7PM I go to an event or dinner almost every night. I keep heels at my desk to dress up my outfit. I love to eat at Omen, the Cleveland, Café Select, Mercer Kitchen, and Sant Ambroeus. They just opened one in SoHo. In Paris, I go to Café de Flore – it’s the place to go. I see my boyfriend and my best friend every night. She lives really close by, so sometimes we’ll meet for dinner or a drink. I go out six nights a week; I won’t stay home unless I’m forced to. I don’t go out Sundays, but if I can I go to the movies because I hate watching TV. I think it’s depressing.
11PM To relax, I read or get massages or have hot chocolate. I have a massage guy who comes to my place once a week. Then I’ll take a bath with essential oils and more Laura Mercier products.
12AM My bedroom is really nice – it has floor-to-ceiling windows. My bed faces a window, and I have a great view of the Bowery. I have white sheets from a French brand called Descamps and some sweet pink-striped ones we did for Sonia Rykiel. I like to eat chocolate right before bed. My mother sends boxes from La Maison du Chocolat, and I’ll have it at random times, like the middle of the night. My boyfriend thinks it’s a bad habit, so I try not to wake him up.
