The meanders of the River Eure cry out for a box of watercolors to let loose the brush in an impressionist way, even if one is not very artistic. Two chairs on a wooden platform invite time to pass by while the light filters through the trees, transforming the environment. It is one of the many corners that rock the spirit in what was Catherine Deneuve's Norman refuge for 35 years, today converted into Domaine de Primard, a luxury hotel just under two hours from Paris.
The château is from the 18th century. With its 18 hectares of gardens and the landscaping of Jacques Wirtz, author of the Carrousel gardens of the Louvre and the Tuileries garden, it has plenty of storytelling: Henry II ordered it to be built for his lover, the influential Diana of Poitiers. Deneuve sold it in 2018 for almost four million euros.
The imprint of the unforgettable Belle de Jour still remains in some decorative touches, such as the office wallpaper but, above all, in the large rose garden with more than 250 varieties of roses that perfumes the environment. Having tea in the beautiful and sheltered greenhouse is one of the relaxing plans of this manageable, cozy and quiet hotel. There you can read one of the books that, well lit, tempt guests in the room. I got La Recherche de l'Absolu, by Honoré de Balzac, and Le silence et la colère, by Pierre Lamaitre. No complaints and desire to dust off my French.
The hotel has different culinary options, including the Michelin-starred Les Chemins restaurant, which draws from its excellent garden and local producers. Chef Romain Meder also succeeds with vegetarian options that highlight local products. There I tried, of course as dessert, the best camembert of my life, made on a nearby farm. With a walk around the hotel the extra calories go down with pleasure. And the palate will keep it forever in memory.
One imagines her opening wide the balcony that overlooks the rose garden to fill her lungs with subtly scented air. In the closet they would wait for one of her famous trench coats, the ones with which she showed that with a good coat, XXL black glasses and sensible high-heeled shoes – how much Roger Vivier owes her! – she could be the most elegant on the rue Saint. Honoré, the mecca of effortless Parisian luxury.
Some blouse with bow and transparencies from her eternal friend Saint Laurent and a couple of little black dresses, in case there were guests for dinner. Cashmere sweaters, of course. In many colors, but especially camel and black. Tabards and, perhaps, a leopard-print piece or two, in case she fancied feeling like the diva she always has been and will be.
Catherine Deneuve is one of those women who, like an inspired fairy, makes everything she wears stylish, appropriate to the environment and the situation. She has embroidered the fashion of the sixties, the seventies, the eighties, the nineties... All of them, really. Without her moving a hair from her copied toupee, demonstrating that well-chosen good things last over time and prevail over short-term capricious fashions.
In The Umbrellas of Cherbourg he was already adorable; In Belle de Jour, with Yves Saint Laurent costumes and Belle Vivier shoes, he became a phenomenon. He is 80 years old and we want his wardrobe (and hopefully a few bits of his style). “You have to try not to fight so much against time, you know?” He said a decade ago. The très chic in words.
