CÉCILE FRICKER LEHANNEUR
Stronger together
Creator of the precious jewellery Cécil, Cécile founded Band Of Sisters, a community of committed women.
Combining femininity, modernity and sisterhood(music to our ears!) is the objective of Band Of Sisters (aka BOSS), a community of women who meet in joy and, above all, extreme benevolence. Its founder, Cécile Fricker Lehanneur, divides her time between her precious jewellery brand CÉCIL, and BOSS, which brings together creative and entrepreneurial women. Cécile sees things in a big way for this network which is developing at full speed. With great determination and generosity, she provokes meetings and mixes profiles so that the feminine always emerges stronger. At the same time, she is developing her brand with its poetic universe and ultra-finished products... In short, in the midst of all this, Cécile emptied her bag on the terrace of a Parisian café, in the company of Opale, the coolest dog on the planet...
Who are you? I am Cécile Fricker Lehanneur, I created CÉCIL jewellery in 2017, after a career as a fashion designer. I had this project in mind for a very long time because I have a real attachment to these objects that last a lifetime. I wanted to create precious jewellery. They are handmade in prestigious Parisian workshops specialising in fine jewellery. I make very few pieces, to maintain a certain exclusivity.
At the same time, the desire to found BOSS, a network of women, came to me very quickly. When I launched CÉCIL, I realised that I didn't like working alone. So, for my 40th birthday, I organised a big dinner and invited only women, both long-time friends and recent acquaintances. I wanted them all to meet each other, to mingle. It went so well that I never wanted it to stop! I launched BOSS at the same time, which has now been an association for a year. Today we are a team of 8 people and have over 100 members. Every month, we meet around a theme (business, beauty, charity...) during evenings, breakfasts and workshops. It's very busy, almost a full time job! But we all need it so much.
What bag(s) do you use on a daily basis? I have a very large collection of bags! But I use my Mansur Gavriel a lot, which my husband brought back from New York. It is both simple and has a large capacity. I love the colour of the vegetable-tanned leather and the bright blue of the inner lining. Its only problem is that it doesn't close. As a result, three or four times a day when I walk through the streets of Paris, people stop me to tell me to be careful. I found a solution by hooking the two handles with a ring to prevent it from being too open!
What do you carry in it? Always clutches and my bunch of keys! On the one hand, my Band Of Sisters pouch that we created in collaboration with Rive Droite. In this one, I put my papers, my 2 notebooks (1 for BOSS, 1 for the jewellery), my phone battery, pens... In the other pocket, I have a "beauty bazaar" with lipsticks, mascaras, my Crème de la Mer lip balm, and then very important: my Terracotta! Then I have a small Comme des Garçons wallet, which also doubles as a purse, and which contains my lucky charm, a Saint Lucia eye, found on the beach at my wedding in Corsica.
What items do you always carry with you in your bag (your essentials)? Always with me: my phone, my keys, and my little wallet.
How do you find your keys? So like everyone else I can't find them! I sometimes use the inner ring in my Mansur Gavriel bags, which is normally intended for the handle, to hang them on. But in the end, as all my stuff is compartmentalised in pockets, there are usually only my keys left at the bottom of the bag, so my search doesn't last very long.
An anecdote (a (mis)adventure with your bag...)? I have a bag I love. A Prada deer leather bag, with a beautiful print on the outside, designed by artist James Jean and a sublime pale pink lining on the inside. I looked for it when it came out in 2008, the year of my wedding, I wanted it badly, it was super rare and I managed to get it after a lot of hassle. I associate it completely with my wedding, which is why it is so dear to me!
What do you take with you on holiday? It depends on the place, but in general, in warm places, I have a basket with my bag in it.
How do you balance your professional and personal life in your bag? Everything is organized in pockets! So it's easy to transfer. I always have two bags. A big "work" bag to put my computer, my files and otherwise my little bag, a Céline trio to pick up my children at school for example. I also have lots of bags and I love to vary when I go out. My latest purchase is a sublime Bevza banana in red satin!
Your self-portrait a quote from Katharine Hepburn which I totally agree with"You can't just be talented .... You also have to become necessary to people, by working hard and well and bringing more than just your bones and your skin to the project. Don't just show up. Transform the work, yourself, and everybody around you. Be needed. Be interesting. Be something no else can be... and consistently".
CECILjewellery
The evening of 28 April 2020 Band of Sisters and La Women's House are organising together, on 28 April 2020, a delightful event at La Felicità, the restaurant of the Big Mama group in Station F, with many surprises on the programme. This evening aims to raise €500,000 for La Maison des Femmes.