Jessica Fort lives in Callian, a charming medieval village in the Var hinterland in Provence, France, with her partner, Jonathan, and their daughters, Cara and Maya. As a Callian resident since birth, Jessica’s family home is close to the house she grew up in.
Provençal charm
“I wouldn’t change where we live for anything in the world,” she says. “The climate is mild, and village life is so peaceful. Everyone knows each other. My daughters attend the same school I attended as a child. We like everything here: the traditions, the climate, the architecture, the gastronomy, and the environment. We have the lake, the river, the mountain, and then the Mediterranean, which is 20 minutes away.”
Located between Cannes and St Tropez, Jessica and her family have been living in their current home, nestled in the heart of the village, for the past six years.
Making a house a home
“It’s an old building, and what I like the most is the front door, one of the oldest in the village,” says Jessica. “When we bought this house, it was habitable, but the layout was very poorly done, and the materials were dated. We changed almost everything.”
Their current kitchen was formerly a bedroom with a shower room, their bedroom was the dining room, Cara’s room was the kitchen, and they created Maya’s bedroom from what used to be a tiny office. Their living room and bathroom didn’t exist until they refigured the floor plan.
“As with our previous renovations, we carried out all the work ourselves, including the masonry, electricity, plumbing, painting, carpentry, absolutely everything,” she says. “The work lasted a year. I was pregnant with Maya during it and gave birth two months after we moved in.”
Second hand treasures
Jessica’s home has a softly bucolic feeling that’s light-filled and natural, owing to its earthy hues and an unfussy approach that melds flea market finds with soft linen fabrics and plenty of wicker baskets. Jessica describes it as ‘authentic with a Mediterranean spirit’.
“I like old things, whether it’s materials or decoration,” she says. “I don’t have anything new except our sofa and kitchen furniture. I always prefer secondhand objects with a story, and I have been a fan of Sunday flea markets since I was little.”
Jessica has a penchant for sourcing old cabinets, sideboards and oil paintings on canvas. “If I had to choose my favourite item, I would say it’s the wardrobe in Maya’s bedroom, which is the first piece of furniture that I found and renovated even before the start of the work.”
The couple also made one of their tables using recycled materials from the worktop in the old kitchen. The girls’ beds were handmade, and the hidden door between Maya’s room and her parents’ bedroom was previously part of the girls’ dressing room.
Taking things slowly
“We are very proud of everything we have achieved in our various renovations,” says Jessica. “We learned a lot, patience in particular. The main thing is to take your time and make the right choices by focusing on the quality of the materials. Doing everything quickly could turn against us a few years later, forcing us to redo everything, whether it’s the plumbing or tiling, but this applies to almost everything.”
“You have to soak up the place, the room with its light, before you can imagine the arrangement of furniture and the decoration. You should not rush, but take the time to find the right shade for a wall, the right materials and the right furniture.”
