{"id":1809,"date":"2020-11-28T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-28T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2021-09-03T19:27:37","modified_gmt":"2021-09-03T19:27:37","slug":"made-last-volume-1-paris-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/made-last-volume-1-paris-west\/","title":{"rendered":"Paris West"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Made to Last Volume 1<\/h2>\n\n\n

In Spanish, casa<\/em> means \u201chome\u201d in the literal sense\u2014four walls and a roof. But there\u2019s another word, one lacking a suitable English equivalent. You might have felt it the last time you came home after a long vacation (or, lately, after emerging from a day of meetings at your makeshift \u201chome office\u201d). It\u2019s not about drywall, brick, or plaster. It\u2019s the kick-off-your-shoes feeling of comfort when the weight of the day peels away. An embrace. A sensation. A feeling. That word for home is hogar.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

For Bria Bergman and Jessica Casper, co-founders of heritage design brand Paris West, evoking hogar<\/em> is a cornerstone of their craft. It\u2019s in every heavenly knitted good they make, and the Shinola Alpaca Throw<\/a> and Shinola Hotel Blankets<\/a> they create for us are no exception. Bria says, \u201cCustomers tell us our blankets are like a bubble bath: Slipping into something totally luxurious. It\u2019s about touch, a tactile experience. You get home, curl up, and breathe out.\u201d She adds with a laugh, \u201cAt the end of the day\u2014especially these days\u2014you need that.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Home is even built into the name. For Bria, it\u2019s a reminder of her Detroit roots; Paris West is derived from Detroit\u2019s historic nickname, the \u201cParis of the West.\u201d For both Bria and New York native Jess, the city is an inspiration and represents one of the core values of the company. \u201cIt speaks to the history and art of Detroit and evokes that era of quality goods being made in the United States,\u201d Jess explains. Paris West is proud to represent American-made quality, with two knitting floors in New York and Los Angeles. With their focus on manufacturing, reviving classic designs, and creating in the U.S., they were a natural fit for a partnership with Shinola.
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Bria and Jess launched Paris West in 2015 after working together in the fashion industry for years. They had travelled the globe for work, studying and perfecting the nuances of sustainable sourcing. The natural baby alpaca fiber they use for their designs comes from their experience in Latin America, collaborating with artisans and learning the culture and history behind the source material. The result is a product that is, as Jess puts it, exceptional. \u201cBria and I realize it starts from the beginning. It starts with sourcing. We want to make sure our products last and are durable\u2014that our customers will cherish them and hold on to them, gift them, pass them down.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That heirloom type quality is no small feat to achieve. Paris West\u2019s innovative method\u2014combining modern knitting technology with traditional, hand-finished techniques and natural materials\u2014was difficult to achieve. It\u2019s innovation by way of doing something the old way. \u201cIt took a lot of hands-on time. We kind of lived at the factory,\u201d Jess laughs. So why go through all the trouble to make something that lasts?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s not made to last, you\u2019re not going to hold onto it, and history is what makes things special. A product that\u2019s built to last is more interesting,\u201d says Jess. Bria adds, \u201cSomething that has history is a snapshot of time: When you look at that blanket, there\u2019s memories and feelings\u2014a piece of something. It keeps you connected.\u201d If that sounds a little bit like <\/span>hogar<\/em> to you, you\u2019re right.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bria explains, \u201cIf casa<\/em> is the structure or frame of a home, then hogar<\/em> is the feeling of home, the emotion and connection of home. And that\u2019s what we thought about when we started Paris West. The ethos is all about home and comfort and family. You wrap yourself in that feeling and embrace.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

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A blanket that feels like a hug is especially needed after the past year. Both Bria and Jess have faced unique challenges as business owners and moms of newborn babies during the pandemic (they delivered within a day of each other). \u201cIt really does take a village, so when you can\u2019t have the support of your community like you normally would, it\u2019s hard.\u201d Factories and borders closed for business; childcare and nannies did, too. But in the end, they view their challenges as a net positive: \u201cIt\u2019s an asset to go through these difficult things together. We tag team it. We\u2019re on the same page, going through the same thing, and can support each other.\u201d As we close out the year, Paris West is up and running, safely designing gifts that will last for generations to come.<\/span><\/p>\n

Winter is sneaking up. Many will be staying<\/em> home for the holidays this season; many might be missing out on family holiday traditions (as much as we\u2019d like to, to Grandmother\u2019s hogar<\/em> we cannot go). But spending the holidays wrapped in a warm, luxurious alpaca fiber blanket? That could make things a little more homey. Thanks to Paris West, that\u2019s a warm wish you can grant.<\/span><\/p>\n

This piece is part of a Holiday 2020 series highlighting some of our favorite products and the American makers who craft them. It\u2019s our tribute to enduring, heirloom-worthy goods\u2014and a look inside at what it takes to build things the long way. This year especially, we are grateful for every pair of hands that go to work crafting the goods we offer, with skill, thoughtfulness, and intention.<\/em><\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Made to Last Volume 1 In Spanish, casa means \u201chome\u201d in the literal sense\u2014four walls and a roof. But there\u2019s another word, one lacking a suitable English equivalent. You might have felt it the last time you came home after a long vacation (or, lately, after emerging from a day of meetings at your makeshift \u201chome office\u201d). […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":2850,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[119],"tags":[8,9,7,19],"yoast_head":"\nParis West - Our Stories<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn more about Paris West, the natural fit for a partnership with Shinola.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/made-last-volume-1-paris-west\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Paris West - Our Stories\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn more about Paris West, the natural fit for a partnership with Shinola.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/made-last-volume-1-paris-west\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Our Stories\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-11-28T05:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-09-03T19:27:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2021\/08\/pariswest_knittingmachine_bw.png?fm=png&ixlib=php-3.3.0\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"902\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Shinola Team\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/\",\"name\":\"Our Stories\",\"description\":\"A journal by Shinola dedicated to THE joy of craft\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/made-last-volume-1-paris-west\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2021\/08\/pariswest_knittingmachine_bw.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2021\/08\/pariswest_knittingmachine_bw.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":902,\"caption\":\"paris-west\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/made-last-volume-1-paris-west\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/made-last-volume-1-paris-west\/\",\"name\":\"Paris West - 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