My beloved grandma passed aways this November, an hour after our runway show at Fashion Days in Zurich.
She was 97 and left behind countless stories, many of which still make us laugh out loud. She had a wicked sense of humor and perfect comedic timing.
My grandma was a free spirit and impossible to win an argument with, she never backed down.
One of my biggest inspirations and influencers. When I was a kid I'd follow her advice (most of the time); some of it helpful such as "always hit back when a boy hits you"- during kindergarten wars. And some a bit more challenging: "always eat a bit of eggshell - it's good for your bones". My mum thought it was strange that I was suddenly eating almost the entire breakfast egg, shells and all. Talking of eggs; my grandma got me into eating raw eggs as a kid; you pin it with a needle and then suck it out. Sorry, I know this sounds kind of gross but I liked it. I thought my grandma was so cool, so I ate raw eggs just like rural Swiss kids during the 1920ies.
She'd play soccer with us in the garden, not one to worry that she might get dirty or dishevel her hair (she cut it herself all her life)
She cooked in a way only our grandmas can cook; meals that restore you from any misery, that make you feel loved and nourished and make you want to take a six hour nap.
She would gladly make me Roesti (Swiss Hash Browns) when I'd come home from a party on the last train as a teen- wanting to hear fun details from the night. She never wanted to go to bed. Always the last to leave the party, also the light of many a party in her lifetime and a high spirited entertainer. One of my favorite things to do with my grandma when I was a kid was writing poetry in rhymes. We did a lot of that, mostly really late at night.
She was the master of being happy with the little things in life; a piece of cheese eaten right off a knife, her daily glass of wine ("it's healthy!!"), a piece of chocolate in bed while making fun of the main characters in the movie we were watching on tv (volume all the way up!), having her dearest ones close, preferably in a small room, a brisk walk by the river, whistling and swinging her arms, and singing, singing made her so happy. I know all these old Swiss folk songs because my grandma sang them every time I saw her until the end. She grew up singing them with her ten siblings and those songs were her compass.
My grandma; the lover of passionate arguments, politics on both ends of the spectrum, furry slippers, lazy mornings, cherry pit pillows, her coffee mug, bacon and string beans, little treats hidden in her bag and picking bags full of chestnuts in the fall. We are carrying part of her creative, stubborn, singing spirit forward and sometimes I hear her crack one of her jokes at me and I miss her even more.
I got my jewelry obsession from my grandma, she trained me early...
With her four grandchildren :)