Provençal art and handicraft : what to bring back in your suitcases?

Provence is a particularly rich land with regard to handicrafts, both gourmet and artistic. Plan to travel with light baggages on the way out, so that you can bring as many memories as possible when you return !

The first thing that you really have to bring from your stay in Aix-en-Provence: the famous calissons, true symbols of the city. For more information about these little sweets, you can consult our article " provençale Gastronomy ".

In the gastronomy department, you can also bring in your suitcases a little sun with aromatic herbs, olive oils and local wines. Explosion of flavors guaranteed!

But Provence has also mastered the art of traditional soap. Marseille soap and Provençal soaps: their reputation has made the tour of the earth. If you want to remember Provence while opening your cupboards, also think of small bouquets or small packets of dried lavender. And do not forget that Grasse is the cradle of perfume: it is here that the greatest "noses" have formed.

As for decoration, Provençal ceramics will nicely enhance your home: cicadas, earthenware, pottery ... Make your tableware sing!

Did you know ? In 1686, the minister of Louis XIV decided to ban the import, manufacture and the port of "Indiennes", these colored fabrics brought back from the counters of India in the seventeenth century, by the port of Marseille. After Madame de Sevigne, who had stayed in Provence, all the beauties of the court had in fact fallen in with these fabrics, which made a strong competition with French manufactures, and especially with the silks of Lyons. How can one make an object more attractive? By forbidding it, of course ... The measure of Louvois thus had the opposite effect of that expected: the smuggling of fabrics was put in place. Thus was born the Provencal fabric, this cotton adorned with brightly colored motifs, which was able to brighten the saddest of tables. Many shops offer in Aix-en-Provence: make your choice!