Hey there 👋 I’m Mathilde. Every week I explore the intersection of consumerism, myth, satisfaction, desire, joy and pride. Not specifically in that order. To brag at your next dinner, Objet is the french word for 'object' and should be pronounced 'OB-JEH'. You're welcome.
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Hello hello!
As you know, every week, I am paying a small tribute to an existing object that I live with, by writing down its story.
#6 Denim Shorts You Wait For
I had been looking for the pair of shorts for a couple of years. One I could bike, work and eat out with. One that has true pockets, too. Robust, beautiful - and yes: the right length. Until April last year, I desperately felt these were my only options 👇
I know. And so, I had stopped looking.
And then, our community. During a call, Camille recommends me the podcast of a friend, Chloe, that questions sustainable fashion and brands. On a rainy afternoon, I randomly pick an interview. On several occasions, Elise the interviewee praises a brand I’ve never heard of, so mechanically I open a tab and check their website: boom. That story I’ve just heard + their tone & taste : they got me. The following month, they’d be launching their first denim shorts in preorder, so I sign up to be alerted.
Since forever: wasting time and money on shitty shorts
March 5th: call with Camille
April 13th: listen to podcast and sign up
June 5th: preorder’s open 💵
July 6th: inauguration 🥂🥳
Four months. But what a thrill. Finally, a pair that tick my boxes*. This, is how I want to build a wardrobe. With Wait and Joy. Haven’t regretted it a single time.
Until this experience, I wasn’t so much considering preorder, since having to wait was more of an obstacle. I changed my mind. Thank you ladies! 👩🏻🎤
* Look (I must feel good wearing it) | Durability (it must last) | Uniqueness (one batch and gone) | Ethos (made on demand, lower impact)
… and now you know, I just ordered a pair of jeans - its trousers sister - from this brand, and I am very, very excited to see it coming... in six weeks!
What preorder does to your brain? I am really starting to enjoy as a way to purchase objects. It generates almost exclusively positive feelings, before, during and after the process. See it as a Pay Now Buy Later movement thing. So I am going to explore this topic in a coming essay. If you have experiences you’d like to share with me, do so!
About Objet.
Objet is a mobile app that helps you build your collection of possessions, so that you can train the skill of knowing what you want and need. Objet is also a community of people who want to be at peace with what they have.
Thanks for the generous feedback on this new format of newsletter. Please, keep doing so! We are integrating these joyful play -extended stories/anecdotes of your favorite objects- onto the app. Want to join & play with us? Hit the reply button!
“The point about the handbag was that it was and is external to the body, and has to be carried. This increases female dependence and limits freedom of action. Moreover, whereas pockets are distributed about the person with a view to differentiated purposes, so that a man knows where everything is and can find it instantly, a bag is exactly that, a thing into which every needful article is indiscriminately thrown, so that much time is wasted in searching, quite apart from the risk of mislaying the bag itself.”
