Recently, after a long vacation on which I did lots of meditating, I felt the call to go deeper and share my passions and journey more with you. From now on, please join me for more intimate conversations on this journal. My greatest hope has always been to share what I have learned on my journey with others, so, here we go.

Let's start with the term "Japanese beauty", which has been a bit of a buzzword lately and will become more of one in the future. When I think of the term “Japanese beauty,” I’m not usually referring to beauty products as one may think. I am referring to something so much deeper and more meaningful. I am referring to the culture that I fell in love with years ago—a culture that continues to inspire me and influence my life on a daily basis.

To me, Japanese beauty is about art, literature, tea ceremony, craftsmanship, architecture, fabric, the tranquility of a Zen temple, the reserved calm of a rock garden, the beautifully planned presentation of food, the rustic randomness of Japanese pottery... this list could go on and on and I promise to share more of these beautiful treasures with you in the future.

Put simply, the beauty of Japan, the Japanese arts, and the tranquility they encapsulate, has changed my life. I first became interested in Japan after reading Geisha by Liza Dalby, a book I highly recommend. Years later, while I was working as a real estate agent in New York, luck, hard work, and destiny brought me to Japan where my life changed forever.

“The one thing I have learned on my journey is that there is no magic bullet for a calm life....”

Since then I have incorporated bits of Japan into my life: bathing rituals are my rock and helped me regain my balance at a time when I needed it most. From there I began studying the Japanese healing art of Reiki which has become a life-changing spiritual practice. I dabbled in tea ceremony and Japanese calligraphy classes, I began to dive deeper into the Japanese diet and cooking wholesome yet simple meals based on Japan’s time-honored superfoods such as miso and ume plum. My passion for Japan continues to grow and expand. I have recently found a new love of Heian-era literature which is the perfect escape from our modern social media-driven world. All of these things are wonderful, but when I glance back to five years ago and look at my life now, I can tell you this: the one thing I have learned on my journey is that there is no magic bullet for a calm life, it is about creating a lifestyle that is infused with traditional wisdom and it is also about doing the work.

Stopping to take a bath is a form of meditation, tea ceremony is a form of moving meditation—any form of being in the moment will challenge us at our core. When you let go of distractions and just try to “be” without judgment—this is where real transformation takes place.

So, please join me on my journey as I challenge myself to open up and tell my story of self-healing and discovery. I hope that what I begin to share with you will bring a bit of calm to your day and encourage you to set an intention to live life as beautifully as possible.

Warmest wishes,

Françoise