The story of Un chat dans ma botte
A beautiful artisanal adventure
Made in France
A cat in my boot was born in 2017, founded by Élodie Souillard.
It was while thinking of her grandfather that Élodie had the idea for engraved napkin rings: he often showed her his, given to her at birth in the early 20th century.
“When in the summer we met with my cousins in my grandparents’ family home, we all found our napkin rings. At each birth, a napkin ring was added to the collection. Brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law who joined the family also got theirs! »
They were a symbol of family belonging and a traditional landmark in the pleasant holiday routine.
Before time, they were also ecological : with them, we did not put paper towel or paper napkin, everyone had his own cloth napkin.
So when her son was born, Élodie spontaneously bought him a wooden napkin ring with his name engraved on it.
A touch of chic that reinvents this cult object
The problem with traditional napkin rings? Their lack of aesthetics and possibility of personalization tended to make them old-fashioned... Élodie therefore decided to launch a innovative custom engraving concept, which mixes:
- The excellence of ancient traditions, such as birth gifts;
- The art of living at large family tables;
- And a touch of modernity!
She begins by making various attempts on new and old rounds, but striking the punches did not give the expected result.
She then looks for materials in order to make the napkin rings herself.. Élodie then realizes that her approach is completely new: “Nobody did that in France or abroad! There were engraved napkin rings, but they were all engraved using more traditional methods with engraving pens.”
"When you're burning, you can't go back and 'erase.' You cannot erase, there is no “second chance”, the engraving must be perfect immediately. »
“At that time, I was the only one in France to offer golden circles to be personalized with punched engravings. It didn't exist..."
Very quickly, in 2018, she was contacted by a wedding planner to create and engrave napkin rings with the names of the guests with the initials of the bride and groom inside the ring. During this magnificent wedding, several personalities are present. Elodie even has to engrave the first name of a former James Bond girl, Michelle Yeoh! She feels so nervous that she has to do it 3 times...
Orders then start pouring in, and Elodie is almost exclusively dedicated to that. Inspired, she then works the brass with various tools, creates many different models...
In particular, she launches its flagship product: the hand-hammered brass napkin ring. The hammering accentuates the shine, and the craftsmanship brings that rough side and that extra soul that objects crafted with know-how have.
Restaurants are also starting to take an interest in her creations, and in 2021, Élodie engraves the napkin rings of the starred restaurant. The feather garden, of David Gallienne, the winner of Top chef 2020.
About Élodie Souillard, the founder
Élodie Souillard has always had an artistic streak.
It must be said that she fell into the pot of creativity when she was little! With an artist mother who put art and culture at the forefront of her upbringing.
With, always, a commitment to environmental protection. At home, everything was an excuse to tinker and recycle.
“My eco-friendly mother refused to buy Christmas trees so as not to destroy the forests! We also grew tomatoes and strawberries on our Parisian balcony. There was a golden rule: reuse or transform objects instead of throwing them away. »
A professional career at the service of creation
Élodie studied art at Atelier Hourdé, worked in an advertising agency and in digital. Her passion for crafts caught up with her, and in 2017, she founded Un chat dans ma botte, and released her very first creations the same year.