Lovers of Leisure
Jenna Holmes
Photography by Anna Pihan
A creative conversation with entrepreneur and author of ‘With Love, Chaos and Rigatoni’ Jenna Holmes also known as P Mami or Pasta Mama. She lives between Sydney and Melbourne, Australia with her border collie, Sprout. Filled with energy from the early hours, she loves to spend her leisure time chasing the Mediterranean sun and cooking for the people she loves.
“I like to have nick-nacks and things around my home, and travel is the perfect way to collect the mementos that remind you of past fun times.”
Hi PMami! Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Ciao!! My name is Jenna but people call me PMami or Pasta Mama. I live in Sydney at the moment, I moved from Melbourne where I was for 7 years beforehand and I grew up in Toowoomba, Queensland! I am half Persian and half Australian, my Mum is a Persian immigrant (and power queen) and my Dad is similar to Daryl Kerrigan from The Castle - just a solid Aussie hard-working bloke. I spend most of my time either running my creative company (P Mami Industries), chasing the sun, swimming in the sea, or cooking for people that I love. It’s all about the simple pleasures of life.
How you spend your leisure time?
As someone who genuinely struggles to locate my ‘off’ switch (which could be linked to the hyperactivity side of my ADHD), I really have to be strong in making time to do leisurely things or even just ‘nothing.’ I used to think that doing activities with no purpose other than the point of recharging was such a waste of time until I burnt myself out numerous times because I ignored the importance of doing leisurely activities. For me now it's a daily morning practice to either take my long black through the park with my dog or down to the beach with my favourite book. It resets my entire central nervous system.
“NYC!! I am not a city gal but I tell you what - the things I could do in New York for a day. It's my favourite city on the planet, I just feel alive when I am there.”
In what way is leisure time important for your creativity?
Only recently I went on my first holiday where I did absolutely no work, which is a first for me over the last 12 years of traveling - I have always had something on the go or been working on something which meant I couldn’t really relax properly enough to see the effect of leisure on creativity. This year I took a bunch of pastel oil crayons and a notebook to the Mediterranean and spent my days literally doing nothing but throwing pebbles and doodling. In that time I was able to form some of my strongest ideas and thoughts - which I knew was a byproduct of being fully creative and idyll with my time.
Sunrise, midday, or sunset?
SUNRISE!! I am an early bird because I have a border collie but also because I have always just woken up bright and fast since I was a kid. By midday, I am normally starting to tire and then afternoons are a plateau of energy. I love the morning (especially seeing the sunrise over the ocean) because it feels more open than any part of the day as if you don’t know what is coming over the next few hours, good or bad, and it doesn’t matter because tomorrow, it starts all over again. That brings me a lot of peace.
Was there a project that was inspired by your leisure time?
Mainly my second business, Pasta Mama, which essentially is all about living and cultivating an Epicurean lifestyle. Epicurus is a Greek philosopher who believed that simple pleasures are abundant and cost us next to nothing if we are able to recognize and lean into the wonderful things surrounding us i.e. a swim on a hot day, a shared meal with a friend, a good tune on a Sunday afternoon. I built Pasta Mama as a vessel to show people that you can eat really simple and delicious food if you focus on the right company at the table and incredible seasonal produce.
Your favorite hotel stay?
I don’t really stay at hotels too much because I love to stay at B&Bs where I can have a kitchen and more of an apartment-style living situation. However, I did splurge with a friend in Ischia at Botania Relais and it was truly truly magnificent. I would absolutely recommend anyone to experience it, and I also will absolutely be back again.
“There is something deep in me that continues to call me back (to Greece and Italy) no matter what, I find myself there every year.”
What’s your favorite leisurely destination and why?
Without a doubt Greece and Italy, I always seem to just head back there time and time again. There is something deep in me that continues to call me back no matter what, I find myself there every year. It’s really the people, beaches, food, and culture that stirs something in me, especially Sardinia in Italy and Samos in Greece. But…you can read all about my Mediterranean escapades and places to see in my book :)
If you could spend a day with anyone, who would it be?
This may sound egotistical but I would say myself! I feel like my brain has so many ideas and I love to fall down the rabbit hole of my thoughts and creative ideas on my own, just with some fun music in the background and no time pressure to be anywhere. My creativity feels very sacred to me so whilst I love to share it with the world, the creation of it is a very personal thing that grows best when I can just do my thing….alone.
If you could only travel to one type of destination for the rest of your life, what would you choose?
Beaches, beaches, beaches, beaches! I’d buy a house in Sardinia before I would buy one in Australia.
Most treasured souvenir?
Each year I always bring back some form of ceramics, and half always return smashed so when will I learn???? This year I brought back some ceramic vases from Skopelos and then some ceramic plates from the Mani Peninsula in Greece. I like to have nick-nacks and things around my home, and travel is the perfect way to collect the mementos that remind you of past fun times.
If you could teleport to any place in the world right now and stay for 1 day, where would you go and what would you do?
NYC!! I am not a city gal but I tell you what - the things I could do in New York for a day. It's my favourite city on the planet, I just feel alive when I am there.
Have you ever traveled to a place that completely exceeded your expectations?
I expected Puglia to be wonderful but I don’t think I expected it to be as great as it was. There are so many regions of that area that have their own sub-culture and cuisines that sometimes I felt like I was entering a different Italian world just by driving down the coast for a few more hours. It's way more relaxed as it's more spread out and not as Sardine-packed as the Amalfi Coast is, which I love. It was a great lesson in exploration and venturing out as each day brought a new experience.
Are you a solo traveler or …
I normally do a mixture of both, but I really do adore solo travel as I honestly enjoy my own company so much - it’s slightly concerning. With trips, I normally will do a week or two alone and then catch up with friends for a week in between. I am very very picky with whom I travel with though so it can’t be everyone.
If you could have any superpower while traveling, what would it be?
A bank account that refills every night with what you spent so you arrive home with exactly what you left with. Or maybe….you just never return home!
“My creativity feels very sacred to me, the creation of it is a very personal thing that grows best when I can just do my thing….alone.”
What is magique for you?
Experiencing something special to a region or culture, like eating a special food dish or seeing a particular beach, and feeling deep in my bones why it's been named ‘special’. Like when I first swam in the Gulf of Orosei in Sardinia, I nearly had a heart attack from swooning over the water and the crystal rock beaches as I thought something like this could never exist, and there I was flapping about in the water with my best pal.
What does photography mean for you?
LIFE! It's how I capture the beautiful things in my days that otherwise might seem minor or minute, but somehow they allow me to see how incredibly fantastic and full my life is - even when I have shit days. My first ever creative pursuit was film photography at school and I remember so clearly seeing that a) I loved it and b) I was good at it because I loved it and up until that point, had never understood what it meant to be ‘overcome’ by something. I would spend my weekends and afternoons after school taking photos or writing all my ideas out. It’s been the central part of growing my businesses as I have been able to share what I create and what I do, through my photography.
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