We recently connected with Summer Lynn McDowell and have shared our conversation below.
Summer Lynn, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
I left a marriage in a country where I didn’t speak the language well, had no family nearby, no driver’s license, no money, no job, no personal bank account, and two young children to care for. I was starting over from scratch and needed to find a way to support us.
I left with almost nothing, just my personal belongings, some cherished gifts, and the boxes upon boxes of French textiles I had collected over the years. On the day I left, which was very hard and heavy, I still made sure to bring absolutely every last napkin and curtain! They were mine. I had chosen them with joy. They were the one thing I had built and gathered for myself and I wasn’t about to leave them behind. I didn’t know what would become of them, but I knew they were coming with me.
After seven years of living and collecting beautiful French textiles from all over the French countryside I decided to sell a few of my personal pieces just to make ends meet. To my surprise, they sold quickly! That lit a spark. I realised there was a real appreciation for French fabrics and that with my experience, knowledge, and access to one-of-a-kind treasures, this could become something more. This could become a business.
That’s how French Summers was born. My mission is to share pieces that carry soul, story, and style. This little business has given me the freedom to realize I can do something I love. Because I have passion. Because I’m creative. Because I deserve to build a life that reflects who I am and what matters most.
Summer Lynn, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I was a stay-at-home mom for 10 years, seven of them in France, and during that time I didn’t have access to my own income. I had to ask my ex-husband for permission to buy even the smallest things from Amazon to Sephora. I was helping and working for the good of our family, but there was no reward for me. There was no freedom unless he gave me money.
Sometimes, before a brocante or flea market, he would hand me a bit of cash, and I would always go straight for the textiles. Each time, he’d say, “Don’t you think you have enough curtains?” But deep down, I knew I didn’t. Those fabrics were more than just fabric. They were mine. They were the beginning of something I couldn’t name yet, but I could sense.
I’ve always been enamored with all things vintage. I love the style, the class, the quality. I’ve always leaned toward the old-fashioned. Pieces that are well-made, fabulous, and one of a kind. I had a booth in an antique store in Los Angeles nearly 20 years ago and later I helped run an antique business with my ex-husband here in France. But when I started exploring French brocantes, château estate sales, and village flea markets the collecting really began. I would find a curtain panel and imagine it in a grand old house doorway, or find a tablecloth and dream of it in a room I didn’t even have yet! Before I knew it, I had crates of fabric and linens all stacked and folded waiting for their moment.
Now, I run French Summers as a small business owner and creative entrepreneur. I’m building something from scratch in a foreign country on my own. Every piece I sell is sustainably sourced, beautifully photographed, and wrapped with love. I love adding handwritten notes or little French parfume sachets to my orders. I try to reuse packaging whenever I can. Most of my customers are in the U.S., and I take pride in making sure their packages arrive safely and with care.
What many people don’t see behind the scenes is how personal this work really is. After leaving my marriage, I really struggled with PTSD and anxiety and I found that this work has been deeply healing for me. I’m an artist at heart and styling and photographing these textiles has become a form of therapy for me. I once heard that the best way to calm anxiety is to create something. For me that’s absolutely true. When I’m in the process of staging, setting the light just right, arranging the fabric, I feel grounded. I feel present. Free. For years, I didn’t have that freedom. I was rushed, pressured, told to hurry. Now, I follow my own rhythm. I’m finally free to create at the pace and standard that feels right to me. And that freedom means everything.
It’s also something I get to share with my children. They help me measure and pack. Even my daughter has started decorating her bedroom with little still life’s. I think she’s inspired by watching me work.
My dream is to one day have a studio here in Avallon where I can shoot, wrap, and store my growing collection of vintage textiles. But for now, I’m just grateful to be building something meaningful from the ground up. Something that’s mine.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I’ll never forget the morning I took the 5:30 a.m. train from Avallon to Paris. I was headed to the U.S. Embassy to get documents notarized for my divorce. It was one of those heavy, emotional moments when you realize just how much you’ve had to do alone to start over. I arrived early and had a little time before my appointment so I went sourcing at a flea market and found the most beautiful vintage textiles. I was just thrilled that I was in Paris, alone, sourcing curtains for my shop and that I had found some treasures!
Afterward, I sat alone at a Parisian café with a warm croissant, a coffee, fresh orange juice and my bag of flea market finds at my feet. As I sat there, I received an email from the Greffe in France. I had officially been registered as a business owner.
If you’ve never lived in France, you might not understand the magnitude of that moment. The bureaucracy here is famously complex and to navigate it all as a foreign single mother and get approved, it was huge!
It marked a major pivot in my life: I was no longer just trying to survive, I was building something. I chose the name French Summers because I live in France, and Summer is my name. But more than that, it’s about creating something beautiful and light out of something difficult and dark. Finding my own way forward.
How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.
I’ve always loved e-commerce. The business my ex-husband and I had was an online antique shop here in France. Technically, my name was never on the société and I didn’t earn direct income from it, but I was absolutely a partner in it. I edited all the photos, built and maintained the website, managed our social media, and posted daily on Instagram and Pinterest. I helped source items from auctions, styled all the product displays, staged the shoots with flowers and props, and helped pack the orders. I learned so much during that time, and it gave me the confidence to know I could run something of my own.
That experience really taught me how to run an online business from the inside out. But we struggled with traffic to our website, and while my ex sold on eBay, I never liked the platform. It felt too impersonal, and there were often problems that made it frustrating to work with.
When I decided to go out on my own, I turned to Etsy. I read that most Etsy buyers are women, and I loved the idea of women supporting other women. The platform is also known for unique and meaningful finds. Pieces that feel curated and cared for, not just flipped for profit.
So far, Etsy has been a joy. My customers have been incredibly warm and appreciative, and it’s given me a sense of purpose and freedom I didn’t have before. I get so excited when I receive a notification sound on my phone that there’s been a sale. Yipee ! I’d love to eventually build out my own site again but for now, Etsy feels like the right home for French Summers.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://etsy.com/shop/frenchsummers
- Instagram: Instagram.com/French.Summers
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/summer-lynn-mcdowell-237a61361/
- Other: https://Pinterest.com/FrenchSummers_
Image Credits
Summer Lynn McDowell