Post by Lets_Eat_Paste on Aug 14, 2012 21:35:25 GMT -6
Character name: Gwendoline Olive Fontaine
Age: 35
Occupation: Pastry chef
AI: Helena Bonham-Carter
History: Gwendoline will probably tell you that she is the oldest sibling in the Fontaine house, but her twin brother, Gabriel, will surely set you straight. However, she is being honest when she proudly states that she is the only girl. The only children of film director Georges Fontaine and actress Genevieve Fontaine (who met when Genevieve was a bit part in a film for which Georges was a cameraman), Gwendoline and her brother were constantly exposed to creativity. When they were old enough to put their own clothes on, Gabriel and Gwendoline were allowed -- and encouraged-- to pick out their own outfits—from the closet, the store, or any other place they decided they could get clothes from. When they were old enough to cook for themselves, Gabriel and Gwendoline were given free reign of the kitchen. For the first few years of their lives, Gwendoline and Gabriel accompanied their parents to work (which took them all around France and even all around the world) but by the time they were eight, their parents decided their children could be left alone while they went to work on film sets. Genevieve’s mother would stay with Gwendoline and Gabriel to make sure they didn’t burn down the house, but Gabriel and Gwendoline were allowed to do anything else they wanted. The kids would even draw and colour on the walls of the house, and once, when George and Genevieve returned from filming in L.A., they found the entire living room painted burnt orange with an Aztec theme. Another time, the Fontaine parents received an angry letter from the children’s school: apparently, Gwendoline showed up for picture day in Gabriel’s tuxedo, Gabriel in one of Gwendoline’s dresses. Both refused to change. Neither of them were ever in any “serious” trouble; most of the things they did were only to get a laugh out of each other. Being often left to their own devices, their parents gone so frequently, the twins were closer to each than to anyone else in their family, and, because they were seen as “weird” by their peers, they were closer to each other than they were to anyone else they knew. Which is why, when Gwendoline found her passion in cooking, it was only a matter of time when Gabriel followed in suit (though he’ll swear he discovered it first).
When they were ten years old, their grandmother left them alone so she could visit an ill childhood friend in the hospital. She, of course, stocked the refrigerator with food and told the children they were on their own. The challenge was accepted and two days later, their grandmother returned to find the entire contents of the refrigerator emptied and transformed into an entire four-course meal. The meal was ghastly and contained a charred, but edible roasted chicken, mediocre vegetables with over-salted remoulade, Yorkshire pudding containing eggshells, and a fantastic potatoes au gratin that to this day neither Gwendoline nor Gabriel can seem to replicate. From this day on, the twins spent the majority of their time in the kitchen, perfecting their craft, amateur as it was.
Gwendoline applied for every prestigious culinary school in France, her brother at her side, Cordon Bleu sitting at the very top of her list. She could have sworn their dynamic duo was a shoe-in, but when she got into every school but the one of her dreams, she was devastated. Only Gabriel, who got into Cordon Bleu, really offered the right words of sympathy. But instead of settling for an equally good school, she rejected all of their offers and wrote to Cordon Bleu telling them what she did and demanding a spot in their student body. Miraculously, it worked, and she began attending school at her brother’s side. She found her niche rather quickly and thrived in the state of the art kitchens under the strict instruction of her professors. Gabriel, however, struggled, and two years in, dropped out to travel the continent, learning his craft that way. Though Gwendoline missed her brother and best friend, how could she begrudge him such an opportunity? She went on without him, but wrote him every day and called him often.
Upon graduating, she worked in restaurants here and there, but nothing was lasting. Often bored with sticking to the menu, she frequently experimented with desserts, adding this or that, substituting here and there, turning the prescribed recipe into her very own. After all, she did break into this business because she loved to create. She loved her job at L’Astrance, sending something entirely new and different than what was ordered out the doors of the kitchen. No one really seemed to mind—or rather notice—and she continued on with her ways. That was, until she sent out a cheesecake decorated with dark chocolate lace and crafted sugar spiders in place of an éclair which was to be received by a food critic. The critic threw a fit at the sight of the realistic-looking arachnids and demanded to see the creator of the dish. Out came Gwendoline in a rage. No one, not even a world-renowned critic, was going to be so cruel about her creation and get away with it. The two of them argued violently in the restaurant and the cheesecake went uneaten (“the real tragedy of the whole situation” Gwendoline notes). That was the last day she spent in L’Astrance. She hung up her apron and turned in her toque. Jobless and her reputation shredded after a very rude article from the critic in the paper, she had few options.
But her unemployment wasn’t the only thing nagging at her; her parents had seen the world, her brother had seen the continent, and all Gwendoline had seen was the inside of Parisian kitchen after Parisian kitchen. She, too, wanted the adventure the rest of her family was getting, but buying a plane ticket with her lack of income was hardly an option. That’s when she saw an ad in the paper; a family in Austria was in need of a personal chef. Ingo and Abigail Blau, wealthy business owners entertained frequently and needed a personal chef to take the place of their last one who just got married. They agreed to pay for Gwendoline’s flight if she could be there in twelve days. Though still worried her creative days were at a professional end, she accepted and became a live-in chef for the affluent couple. They paid her well and treated her like a daughter. They applauded her eccentric tastes and encouraged that to flow over into her work. While there, she learned about the German language and Austrian life and fell in love with the city of Vienna. But it wasn’t just Vienna she fell in love with.
Several months into working for the Blaus, their 31 year-old son Torben came for a ‘visit’ (which was prompted by his going broke and unemployment). Gwendoline sympathized with him; she at one time had been broke and would have, if it hadn’t of been for Ingo and Abigail, moved in with her own parents. Many of Gwendoline’s days had been spent alone while Abigail and Ingo were away in meetings until Torben came home. With him there, Gwendoline cooked for him and learned he was a painter—freelance—and had no opposition to sugar spiders. He was just as eccentric as she was, just as creative and odd. They became immediate best friends and often went on obscure outings. They once started a war in Josefsplatz Square with bananas for guns and convinced many tourists to join them. Another time, they dressed as their favourite film characters and had a picnic in the middle of the sidewalk. But even with all of their excursions, and despite Gwendoline’s attraction to Torben, they remained “just friends”. That was, until Abigail and Ingo went to Milan for three weeks. Gwendoline was asked to create a grandiose dessert for a prospective Italian business partner. Gwendoline had hoped to use the three weeks to design a cake and order some ingredients from France, but life had other plans. Needless to say, with her and Torben alone in the huge Blau house, many adventures unfolded, but Gwendoline couldn’t get over her attraction to him.
One late afternoon, while Gwendoline experimented with different frosting designs, Torben came into the kitchen. Gwendoline ignored him mostly, trying to focus more on her work than on him. It was a difficult task and Gwendoline thought she was doing a good job. It wasn’t until they ended up kissing that she realized just how distracting he really was. The next week they spent together was a torrid love affair, something they kept hidden from Torben’s parents. They dated (after Gwendoline asked) for a year, but didn’t tell Torben’s parents until they caught them making out in Gwendoline’s pantry. Abigail and Ingo didn’t object, having adored Gwendoline from the day they hired her.
But her and Torben’s relationship hit a rocky spot when Gwendoline, homesick, applied for a job a La Tour D’Argent in Paris. Torben didn’t want her to leave, and neither wanted to risk a long-distance relationship. When Gwendoline got the position (a low paying job as a cake decorator), they broke up amicably.
Missing her second family and Torben, she returned to Paris where she reunited with her brother who was married with a child. Upon her arrival in Paris, she caught up with Gabriel and his wife Cristina, and met their infant daughter Sophie, who Gwendoline became exceptionally fond of.
With her abundant savings collected from her high-paying salary while in employment under the Blau’s, she moved into a nice apartment and began work. She went back to her old ways of experimentation, decorating cakes in outlandish and creative ways. When her boss found out, he called her into his office. Fearing another pink slip, she readied herself by prematurely taking off her apron. But instead, her boss told her he was really pleased with her imagination, initiative, and willingness to take risks (“The mark of a real chef” he said). He promoted her head pastry chef. Several months in this position, Torben called her and told he was coming to Paris to try and work. Gwendoline gladly gave him a place to stay and they resumed their relationship. For five years they lived together, Gwendoline bringing in most of the income until Torben was commissioned to paint a commemoration mural of the lives lost in the 2003 European heat wave. The beautifully grotesque mural garnered him not only a large sum of money, but also the recognition needed to get him his next job, which was unfortunately across town. The two of them moved and now live somewhere between Gwendoline’s workplace and Torben’s. The two of them are still together, and though not married, Torben often refers to Gwendoline as his ‘wife’.
With Gabriel newly divorced and jobless, Gwendoline pulled some strings to get him a job at La Tour with her. It’s a menial job, but if anyone has the skill to work their way quickly up the ranks, it’s Gabriel. Besides, he needed a job to keep his daughter, and if there’s anyone Gwendoline would want working with her, it’s Gabriel. Oh, and did she mention he’s also living with her?
Age: 35
Occupation: Pastry chef
AI: Helena Bonham-Carter
History: Gwendoline will probably tell you that she is the oldest sibling in the Fontaine house, but her twin brother, Gabriel, will surely set you straight. However, she is being honest when she proudly states that she is the only girl. The only children of film director Georges Fontaine and actress Genevieve Fontaine (who met when Genevieve was a bit part in a film for which Georges was a cameraman), Gwendoline and her brother were constantly exposed to creativity. When they were old enough to put their own clothes on, Gabriel and Gwendoline were allowed -- and encouraged-- to pick out their own outfits—from the closet, the store, or any other place they decided they could get clothes from. When they were old enough to cook for themselves, Gabriel and Gwendoline were given free reign of the kitchen. For the first few years of their lives, Gwendoline and Gabriel accompanied their parents to work (which took them all around France and even all around the world) but by the time they were eight, their parents decided their children could be left alone while they went to work on film sets. Genevieve’s mother would stay with Gwendoline and Gabriel to make sure they didn’t burn down the house, but Gabriel and Gwendoline were allowed to do anything else they wanted. The kids would even draw and colour on the walls of the house, and once, when George and Genevieve returned from filming in L.A., they found the entire living room painted burnt orange with an Aztec theme. Another time, the Fontaine parents received an angry letter from the children’s school: apparently, Gwendoline showed up for picture day in Gabriel’s tuxedo, Gabriel in one of Gwendoline’s dresses. Both refused to change. Neither of them were ever in any “serious” trouble; most of the things they did were only to get a laugh out of each other. Being often left to their own devices, their parents gone so frequently, the twins were closer to each than to anyone else in their family, and, because they were seen as “weird” by their peers, they were closer to each other than they were to anyone else they knew. Which is why, when Gwendoline found her passion in cooking, it was only a matter of time when Gabriel followed in suit (though he’ll swear he discovered it first).
When they were ten years old, their grandmother left them alone so she could visit an ill childhood friend in the hospital. She, of course, stocked the refrigerator with food and told the children they were on their own. The challenge was accepted and two days later, their grandmother returned to find the entire contents of the refrigerator emptied and transformed into an entire four-course meal. The meal was ghastly and contained a charred, but edible roasted chicken, mediocre vegetables with over-salted remoulade, Yorkshire pudding containing eggshells, and a fantastic potatoes au gratin that to this day neither Gwendoline nor Gabriel can seem to replicate. From this day on, the twins spent the majority of their time in the kitchen, perfecting their craft, amateur as it was.
Gwendoline applied for every prestigious culinary school in France, her brother at her side, Cordon Bleu sitting at the very top of her list. She could have sworn their dynamic duo was a shoe-in, but when she got into every school but the one of her dreams, she was devastated. Only Gabriel, who got into Cordon Bleu, really offered the right words of sympathy. But instead of settling for an equally good school, she rejected all of their offers and wrote to Cordon Bleu telling them what she did and demanding a spot in their student body. Miraculously, it worked, and she began attending school at her brother’s side. She found her niche rather quickly and thrived in the state of the art kitchens under the strict instruction of her professors. Gabriel, however, struggled, and two years in, dropped out to travel the continent, learning his craft that way. Though Gwendoline missed her brother and best friend, how could she begrudge him such an opportunity? She went on without him, but wrote him every day and called him often.
Upon graduating, she worked in restaurants here and there, but nothing was lasting. Often bored with sticking to the menu, she frequently experimented with desserts, adding this or that, substituting here and there, turning the prescribed recipe into her very own. After all, she did break into this business because she loved to create. She loved her job at L’Astrance, sending something entirely new and different than what was ordered out the doors of the kitchen. No one really seemed to mind—or rather notice—and she continued on with her ways. That was, until she sent out a cheesecake decorated with dark chocolate lace and crafted sugar spiders in place of an éclair which was to be received by a food critic. The critic threw a fit at the sight of the realistic-looking arachnids and demanded to see the creator of the dish. Out came Gwendoline in a rage. No one, not even a world-renowned critic, was going to be so cruel about her creation and get away with it. The two of them argued violently in the restaurant and the cheesecake went uneaten (“the real tragedy of the whole situation” Gwendoline notes). That was the last day she spent in L’Astrance. She hung up her apron and turned in her toque. Jobless and her reputation shredded after a very rude article from the critic in the paper, she had few options.
But her unemployment wasn’t the only thing nagging at her; her parents had seen the world, her brother had seen the continent, and all Gwendoline had seen was the inside of Parisian kitchen after Parisian kitchen. She, too, wanted the adventure the rest of her family was getting, but buying a plane ticket with her lack of income was hardly an option. That’s when she saw an ad in the paper; a family in Austria was in need of a personal chef. Ingo and Abigail Blau, wealthy business owners entertained frequently and needed a personal chef to take the place of their last one who just got married. They agreed to pay for Gwendoline’s flight if she could be there in twelve days. Though still worried her creative days were at a professional end, she accepted and became a live-in chef for the affluent couple. They paid her well and treated her like a daughter. They applauded her eccentric tastes and encouraged that to flow over into her work. While there, she learned about the German language and Austrian life and fell in love with the city of Vienna. But it wasn’t just Vienna she fell in love with.
Several months into working for the Blaus, their 31 year-old son Torben came for a ‘visit’ (which was prompted by his going broke and unemployment). Gwendoline sympathized with him; she at one time had been broke and would have, if it hadn’t of been for Ingo and Abigail, moved in with her own parents. Many of Gwendoline’s days had been spent alone while Abigail and Ingo were away in meetings until Torben came home. With him there, Gwendoline cooked for him and learned he was a painter—freelance—and had no opposition to sugar spiders. He was just as eccentric as she was, just as creative and odd. They became immediate best friends and often went on obscure outings. They once started a war in Josefsplatz Square with bananas for guns and convinced many tourists to join them. Another time, they dressed as their favourite film characters and had a picnic in the middle of the sidewalk. But even with all of their excursions, and despite Gwendoline’s attraction to Torben, they remained “just friends”. That was, until Abigail and Ingo went to Milan for three weeks. Gwendoline was asked to create a grandiose dessert for a prospective Italian business partner. Gwendoline had hoped to use the three weeks to design a cake and order some ingredients from France, but life had other plans. Needless to say, with her and Torben alone in the huge Blau house, many adventures unfolded, but Gwendoline couldn’t get over her attraction to him.
One late afternoon, while Gwendoline experimented with different frosting designs, Torben came into the kitchen. Gwendoline ignored him mostly, trying to focus more on her work than on him. It was a difficult task and Gwendoline thought she was doing a good job. It wasn’t until they ended up kissing that she realized just how distracting he really was. The next week they spent together was a torrid love affair, something they kept hidden from Torben’s parents. They dated (after Gwendoline asked) for a year, but didn’t tell Torben’s parents until they caught them making out in Gwendoline’s pantry. Abigail and Ingo didn’t object, having adored Gwendoline from the day they hired her.
But her and Torben’s relationship hit a rocky spot when Gwendoline, homesick, applied for a job a La Tour D’Argent in Paris. Torben didn’t want her to leave, and neither wanted to risk a long-distance relationship. When Gwendoline got the position (a low paying job as a cake decorator), they broke up amicably.
Missing her second family and Torben, she returned to Paris where she reunited with her brother who was married with a child. Upon her arrival in Paris, she caught up with Gabriel and his wife Cristina, and met their infant daughter Sophie, who Gwendoline became exceptionally fond of.
With her abundant savings collected from her high-paying salary while in employment under the Blau’s, she moved into a nice apartment and began work. She went back to her old ways of experimentation, decorating cakes in outlandish and creative ways. When her boss found out, he called her into his office. Fearing another pink slip, she readied herself by prematurely taking off her apron. But instead, her boss told her he was really pleased with her imagination, initiative, and willingness to take risks (“The mark of a real chef” he said). He promoted her head pastry chef. Several months in this position, Torben called her and told he was coming to Paris to try and work. Gwendoline gladly gave him a place to stay and they resumed their relationship. For five years they lived together, Gwendoline bringing in most of the income until Torben was commissioned to paint a commemoration mural of the lives lost in the 2003 European heat wave. The beautifully grotesque mural garnered him not only a large sum of money, but also the recognition needed to get him his next job, which was unfortunately across town. The two of them moved and now live somewhere between Gwendoline’s workplace and Torben’s. The two of them are still together, and though not married, Torben often refers to Gwendoline as his ‘wife’.
With Gabriel newly divorced and jobless, Gwendoline pulled some strings to get him a job at La Tour with her. It’s a menial job, but if anyone has the skill to work their way quickly up the ranks, it’s Gabriel. Besides, he needed a job to keep his daughter, and if there’s anyone Gwendoline would want working with her, it’s Gabriel. Oh, and did she mention he’s also living with her?
