Francesca Ruffini has no worries about staying at home. For her time alone is a quality that creates around oneself positive energy, which attracts others.
This is reflected in the collection of her brand F.R.S For Restless Sleepers which since this season also has a home collection.
Her homes are legendary whether it is the family’s house (she is married to Moncler CEO Remo Ruffini) by the lake Como, the area known for its silk production she also uses for her collection, or the chalet in the Swiss Alpes. Being comfortable at home is part of her personality and the brands DNA, that made many women go with their Pyjamas to the next dinner party . We had a chat.
IRMA: In times like today I think a home and everything about it becomes more than ever valuable. How does your latest collection fits in to that value ?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: I think that nothing has changed since my first collection, it is part of the DNA of F.R.S For Restless Sleepers. The brand came into life thinking precisely of those items, which people normally wear only at home. Here, within the intimacy of the home, it can happen that people find themselves alone and on their own. Caring about themselves, they seek a type of clothing, which does not need to settle for a compromise in terms of comfort, but, at the same time, gives them the feeling of being beautiful, even though no one sees them.
IRMA: How did you successfully made the shift from a Niche label to a „Need to Have“ – piece in a business wardrobe?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: Rather than pursuing a real strategy, I think I have participated at an unintentional change of the scale of needs. In the fashion world everything runs so fast, at an almost uncontrollable speed. Items, that today appear to be some sort of must have, tomorrow may seem as something that is already seen and thus outmoded. I have always stayed at the border of this world, thinking of items that overcome these moments and remain in the wardrobe, for their function and use, their versatility and because one likes them. I now understand that consumers are going in a direction where purchases are more functional and less likely to seem obsolete in short time.
IRMA: All your creations express a certain joie de vivre, how close does your collection reflect your own way of living?You once quoted: „ React with energy to what’s happening today“. How important is good energy in your life and how do you maintain it every day?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: Life, in all of its forms, is a wonderful gift. I am a person appreciating what surrounds me and perceiving positivity also where it is not visible. Some say that I live in my own world and even if this is true, it does not mean to be in some form of isolation. On the contrary, it creates around oneself positive energy, which attracts others and involves almost contagiously its transmission.
I love nature, travelling, reading and am a tireless observer and dreamer. All of this is reflected in my collections, because I just do things that I really like and, bit by bit, unveiling all of my passions – this is how I keep my energy switched on!
IRMA: You started with a home collection this year, what is your focus, in creating a home?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: My idea, is that everyone can create a home with spaces, which are special and mirror the personality of each one.
The world of prints lends itself to being translated into home interiors in multiple forms, such as wallpaper, carpet, upholstery for sofas and beds, curtains, bed sheets, blankets, cushions… I could go on with a very long list. I consider it more a “bespoke” project, where to interact directly with the final costumer.
IRMA: When I come home from my studio, I always change my cloths. Wearing one of your silk coats or pyjamas is like an embracing, how do you come up with the ideas about comfort women really need these days?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: This is a gesture I always did too, since I was a girl. It is also a way of caring for yourself and of doing something only for you. To pass time at home, not because you choose to, but because of a necessity dictated by extraordinary events, means recreating an environment around oneself, which makes you feel good with yourself. It is important what you are wearing in that moment and this is how I came up with the idea, because if it is like this, then you can step out in your pyjama without prejudices, you like it, you are comfortable, as well as elegant!
IRMA: In the next weeks we will stay mostly at home, do you have an advice to make the most out of so much unexpected quality time?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: Often I heard people complaining that they do not have enough time, now I hear as much people complain that they have too much and do not know how to occupy it.
I am fortunate because I love reading, but also to learn doing new things. With the tutorials, which nowadays you can find on internet, I indulge and let loose. In any case, it is very important to find again beauty in the small things, in everyday life, in simplicity, in the quality of time, which one dedicates to the others. We always give things for granted and now it is important to take a step back, to take time to think, to reflect and to balance again the weight of the real values of life, the “essential” ones.
IRMA: Is there a classic movie scene, where you sigh and wonder, why women don’t wear sleep wear like that anymore?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: Yes, it is the movie “The Fountainhead”.
IRMA: What is your favourite ritual before going to sleep?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: Before going to sleep I take a bath if possible, I find it very relaxing.
IRMA: What book is on your nightstand at the moment?
FRANCESCA RUFFINI: There are two: the first is from Orhan Pamuk “A Strangeness in My Mind”, the second is from Byung-Chul Han “Psychopolitics”.