Joey Wołosz: Could you share details about your background and explain what led you to this artistic pursuit?

Leanne Sindell: My father was an inventor and machine-tool designer, and my mother was a teacher. As a small child, I wrote stories and illustrated them. My mother was an excellent seamstress, and until I was in high school, she made most of my clothes. I grew up in a small town in the Pacific Northwest, so not exactly a hotbed of fashion. I devoured the fashion magazines of the time and watched as many old films as my parents would allow. I had a flood of ideas and often couldn’t “turn it off,” having to turn the lights on multiple times to capture the beautiful images before falling asleep at night.

My parents were deeply religious and told me that God didn’t approve of me being in the fashion business. I knew in my heart that one day I would go to design school, and ultimately, I was able to realize my dream. As an adult, I succeeded in the financial world, but design school was always in the back of my mind. I diligently worked to build my portfolio. When the financial firm I worked for at the time went to Paris for a conference, I secretly set up an interview with Studio Berçot, a top fashion design school that French designer Jean-Charles Castelbjac had introduced me to years earlier. After reviewing my portfolio, I was immediately accepted. I landed in Paris to start school eight months later. 

JW: What is Finalina’s origin story?

LS: I came up with the name Finalina decades ago. It’s a blend of Swedish and Italian for “fine lines.”  I designed the final logo in 2004 when I fashioned the initials of my married name and created a face by adding lips and a blue dot for an eye.

Like most artists I know, I’m a highly visual person. My memory is filmic and auditory. I get inspiration from photography, art, films, music, people on the street, history, and sciences like botany and physics, which I incorporate into my designs. Whether I’m drawing women or babies, it always feels as though they emerge on their own. 

The Christmas cards are a year-long process based on key elements; a poem, a piece of music, a bird and or animal, as well as the global zeitgeist. Each year, there’s a theme, which could be based on an ancient myth or a person. We see a lot of birds in our backyard. Sometimes, they “tell” me their names. It sounds crazy, but maybe it’s not.

In 2022, that person was Alexander von Humboldt, the German polymath, naturalist, explorer, and philosopher, whom I read about in The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf. The red chile plant was the holiday “tree,” inspired by von Humbold’s travels in South America. 

I’d only seen the Crested Polish Chicken in photos, so when I visited your and Jeff’s home and saw your gorgeous chickens, I knew Josie had to be on the card. It was also a nod to you and Jeff and your wonderful hospitality. In 2019, my husband and I stayed in Beacon, NY, on our way to a wedding in upstate New York. We went to the DIA Museum, where I saw the beautiful geometric paintings of Dorothea Rockburne. Her paintings inspired the coat in the 2022 holiday card. The hot air balloons that we see crossing the sky in front of our home are a nod to the beautiful life here in the Napa Valley. 

Some years, it feels like it’s just not coming together: however, I have learned to trust the process that it will work out, and so far, it always has. 

JW: Can you describe what your ideal day looks like?

LS: An ideal day starts with a competitive game of tennis with my wonderful husband, Gerald. This would be followed by a visit to one of the Sarmentine Bakeries for their delicious pastries and, rarely seen outside of Bordeaux, the Sarmentine baguette. We’d then drive out to the ocean, then make our way north, up the coast, and wind around the back roads of Sonoma County till we get to Healdsburg for dinner and maybe stay over at one of the local inns.

JW: Who is your preferred artist, musician, or creator, and why do they inspire you?

LS: At the moment, Akram Khan. Everything the English dancer and choreographer does is inspirational because his dancers create beauty by moving in ways I’ve never imagined were possible. 

JW: How did you first develop an interest in wine and food?

LS: I cooked and baked a lot as a young person; however, it wasn’t until I was a young adult, living and traveling in Europe, that I was introduced to great food and wine. Years ago, my husband, Gerald, introduced me to French Burgundies, and together we’ve discovered Sonoma Coast Pinot Noirs and became fascinated by indigenous grapes and their terroirs.

JW: Excluding family and friends, if you could have an extended meal with any two individuals, who would you choose, and what would you prepare for them? 

LS: David Deutsch, physicist and the father of quantum computing, because I am passionate about the mysteries of quantum computing and how that will affect our world in the not-so-distant future. I’d also invite, from the 18th Century, the brothers Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt, because they were extraordinary people, a naturalist/explorer and linguist/philosopher respectively. That’s three, I know, but I couldn’t invite Alexander and not Wilhelm too!

I’d serve coq au vin with Dauphinoise potatoes, haricot verts with toasted almonds, and for dessert, individual pavlovas with passion fruit curd and fresh blueberries. And, of course, a Gentleman Farmer Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir! 

JW: What are some of the other creative activities you enjoy? 

LS: I write poetry and enjoy singing, studying languages, cooking, and baking.

JW: Do you have a personal motto that guides you?

LS: Sisu. Sisu is a Finnish concept that can be roughly translated as strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity. It’s not momentary courage but the ability to sustain that courage. You might call it backbone, spunk, stamina, or grit.