Well the contest is officially over, (except for the last few mail-in entries that are coming in, which had to be postmarked by June 27th,) and we are so happy and excited about the responses we've received! We got more than ninety entries, and we are so so impressed with all of them!
You can expect to see a post announcing which design was the winner by July 15th, though possibly before that - maybe even next week!
You can also look forward to seeing a Flickr account go up with all the entries on it after the winner is announced!
Thank you ALL so very much, from all of us here at Free People.
It has been such a pleasure to have the contest and to interact with you all!
We love you!
Check out the new crafting community getting together at CraftStylish. Learn some new skills with the crafty tutorial and get inspired by the work of featured crafters, like these embroidery hoop bulletin boards called hoop.dee.doo.
There are tons of great projects on CraftStylish, some of your favorite bloggers are contributing, and I'm sure you'll discover some new ones too!
Meet Jaime, one of our managers at the Free People Store in Ardmore, PA!
Check out this cute video where Jaime shows us around the store a bit, and tells us about some of her favorite current items!
About Jaime How long have you worked for FP?
I've worked for Free People for 2 1/2 years! Your job and duties?
I am a manager; I get to work with some amazing girls! I open and close the store, help out with displays and merchandising, and create outfits for customers! Where did you start?
I started at the King of Prussia, PA store, as a sales associate. If you could have any job at Free People, what would it be?
I would love to be involved with the photo shoots or styling! What is your favorite current FP item?
The Festival Top, every color is pretty (my favorite is the eggplant) and it has really cool details! Do you have any pets?
I have two handsome French Bulldogs! One is black and white and the other is tan and black. Their names are Remi and Poggio. Remi always looks worried and Poggio never knows what is going on! What inspires you?
I am inspired by everyday things; I love illustrations from children's books and photography! What do you like to do when you are not at work?
On nice days, my friends and I will go to Rittenhouse Square in center-city Philadelphia and find cute dogs to pet. I also watch a lot of documentaries, and because of that I know a lot of random things. Do you have a favorite artist?
I love photographer GarryWinogrand and sculptor Alberto Giacometti. I'm also always very inspired by my boyfriend, who is a photographer! Who are your favorite designers? Betsey Johnson, Missoni, and Yigal Azrouel. I love bright colors and texture. Who is your favorite celebrity inspiration?
I don't really look at celebrities so much for fashion inspiration, but I saw the Sex and the City movie and I wanted every piece of clothing from it! What are some of your favorite books, movies, and music?
I just bought Don’t Bump the Glump by Shel Silverstein, the illustrations make me laugh! I listen a lot of music by David Bowie (ziggy stardust days), The Killers, and Radiohead. My favorite movie is Labyrinth (I've always loved Bowie's hair in that movie). Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Wynnewood, PA. It’s a cute suburb really close to the city of Philadelphia, I got the best of both worlds! What did you want to be as a child?
I seriously wanted to be a Zebra, I practiced Zebra noises and collected Zebra toys! When I found out that I couldn't be a Zebra, I decided I would be a fashion designer. What do you like best about where you live now?
I live in Philadelphia now, I love it because there is always something going on. I have many options for food, clothes, and fun! What superpower would you most like to have?
If I could have any superpower, I would want to travel at the speed of light so I could go to the beach everyday! What is your favorite article of clothing that you own right now?
The Cotton Breezy Beach Jacket, I haven't taken it off since I bought it!
Today was really fun! Thank you guys for choosing me! I included a picture of Remi, the worry wart of family!
Thanks!!
Jaime
We had a blast at the Ardmore store hanging out with Jaime, and we couldn't resist buying a few of the outfits that she put together for us! If you are ever in the Ardmore area, or even the Philadelphia area, you should pop in and have Jaime put together an outfit for you!
Also, be sure and check out Jaime's favorite Free People picks, and when in doubt, you can always read the customer reviews she has written! Just look for the username FPJaime806!
Thanks again Jaime! We had such fun!
Head on over to Poppy Talk and read the week's worth of guest postings from Cartolina Cards designer Fiona Richards. Fiona takes us on a blogging journey of her small artist community of Nelson BC. I loved seeing all of the beautiful scenery, buildings, art, craft and businesses flourishing in the remote town.
Our Senior Stylist and our Senior Graphic Designer went on a trip to Maine last week, and to our delight and amusement, they brought back a bunch of lobster hats!
Above are a couple pictures of us enjoying our hats! It made the morning a touch more fun and unusual!
I'm sure you've seen all of Ann Wood's pretty handmade birdies, but check out this cardboard castle she constructed for an ad job! And I'm loving her ships too! Check out her blog and leave her some love.
These photos are so beautiful I can't even stand it! From a Japanese fashion label called writtenafterwards. Can you believe the last photo is the original piece of lace used to make the globe??
Very cool. I like them a lot. But have a look at what I didn't notice until later:
Wow! I love it! On the first two in particular, I definitely thought the prints were stripes and spots, not horses and skulls. It just goes to show you! If you'd like to see more of the Hawkins Trio Cami, click here!
Nea makes these "wall wear" cross stitch embroidery decorations, and has transformed the idea into a necklace as well! I love the metal details mixed in with the threads! Check out the nea etsy shop and the creativadoration blog for more info. (The blog is half in French and half English, but you can always enjoy the pictures!)
Aren't these frames so cool? Recently we got an email from Free People girl Chelsea Wilcox, who asked us if we might like to see some picture frames she made out of Free People catalogs. We did, and we loved them so much, we wanted to share them with you!
Here's a little note from Chelsea, who is pictured on the right in the top two photos:
"I'm 18 years old and an avid lover of Free People clothes! I recently made a bunch of frames decorated with snippets from the two most recent Free People magazines. I just cut out all the designs I liked into squares and rectangles from clothes and patterns that were within the magazine. Then I placed the cut-outs on a photo matte-board that had been cut to place a picture inside. You don't really have to use a matte-board, a hard piece of cardboard would work as well. And, you do not have to have the matte-board pre-cut, you could also glue your photo in the center and work around it--but having it pre-cut makes the photo a lot more evenly placed!"
I think this is such a cool idea. Thank you for sharing Chelsea!
Check out this older post for another cool way to craft with Free People catalogs!
Do you ever have the desire to drop or throw something, just to see what it would look like broken? Or just to hear that crashing noise? Kind of like that Bjork song where she throws bottles and cutlery off the side of the mountain, just to see them fall? Behold the Passive Aggressive Anger Release Machine, an interactive sculpture by Yarisal and Kublitz (check out an unrelated, but amusing video on the home page of their site).
Just enter your coins, and enjoy your mischief, guilt free.
I was perusing the Penguin & Fish blog and came across this awesome jewelry crafted by Joanna Rutter. I am especially taken by the little birdie ring. So cute! If you want to check out her etsy shop, click here!
I'm in love with this graffitied cupboard from Love Anna James! The artist works from Southeast London, focusing on transforming old furniture into beautiful art. This piece is titled Verona, inspired by Romeo and Juliet. Check out Love Anna James for more info and images.
Meet Agnes! She is the dog of one of our stylists, Lauren, and she has the pleasure of coming to work almost every day!
Name: Agnes
Nicknames: Wagnes, Waggles, Waggers, Angus, Aggy
Breed: Your guess is as good as mine!
Likes: Everyone in the whole world (not the best watch dog), being dragged on her back down the halls in our building, and skateboards.
Dislikes: Not much aside from being ignored.
Favorite friends: Her two boyfriends: Charlie (the golden retriever puppy from Urban) and Porter (the pointer puppy from Free People), Indy, Brownie, Pilgrim, Mackenzie, Lizzy, Pruitt, Erin and Elsa
How did you meet? My boyfriend and I were at the gym one night, and the SPCA was having an adoption event in the lobby. Agnes and another puppy were chasing each other around (they were both twelve weeks old) and we decided to adopt her. The following evening, we drove to the SPCA to pick her up, we didn't even have a leash! When we brought her back to our apt, she ran in circles for about 2 hours, it was amazing.
Anything else you want to share? If you are thinking about getting a dog…adopt one! There are so many wonderful puppies who need homes.
The other day I came across the Coastline Dress when I was browsing around our site, and now I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to get myself one as soon as I get paid. :-) I am so into the crochet bodice. Gorgeousness!
I hate going to the grocery store and putting my tomatoes in one plastic bag, avocado in another, and broccoli in yet another. I need to start bringing some reusable produce bags! You can buy the one pictured from lima bean home on etsy, make your own, or even use your Free People muslin shopping bags.
These cool scenes are from Terrain's first store! Terrain is a sister brand of Free People, as they are both affiliated with Urban Outfitters Inc.
Terrain features a lot of the things a garden nursery would feature, like an array of plants, flowers and trees, and landscaping services. It also has some stunning and eclectic furniture and decorations for the home. Besides all that you can find some really incredible skincare products and even books at Terrain!
The store is located in Glen Mills, PA, a town outside of Philadelphia. This weekend they are having a fun container gardening event, on Saturday at 10am and again at 2pm! Check them out if you are in the area!
Yesterday we did an employee profile on Sara, our Web Production Assistant, and found out that one of her hobbies is cooking! So today, Sara has shared with us one of her favorite recipes, which aside from being easy to try on your own, is sure to hit the spot if you like chicken!
Roasted Chicken with Lemon and Thyme
You Will Need:
1 Roasting Chicken (5-6 lbs)
Salt
Black Pepper
1 large bunch of fresh thyme (some for inside the chicken, some will get tossed with the veggies)
1 lemon (cut in half)
A few cloves of garlic (chopped)
2 tablespoons of butter (melted)
Olive Oil
Vegetables - 1 large yellow onion, 1 bulb of fennel cut into wedges, 4 carrots cut into 2 inch pieces
You can also add various veggies to your taste! Some suggestions include squash, zucchini, broccoli - any veggies you like, as they will all roast in the bottom of the pan.
To Begin:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove the chicken giblets.
Rinse the chicken inside and out and pat dry.
Salt and pepper the inside of the chicken.
Stuff the chicken with a bunch of thyme, the lemon cut in half, and all the chopped garlic.
Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper.
Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
Place the onions, carrots, and fennel and veggies in a roasting pan.
Toss with salt, pepper, some sprigs of thyme, and olive oil.
Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top.
Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.
Remove the chicken and vegetables to a plate and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes.
Slice the chicken onto a platter and serve it with the vegetables.
So tasty and easy to make!
Here is a picture of the finished product from the last time Sara made this dish, for her mother!
A thanks to Susie Bubble for discovering Demode: fashion for bravehearts. Check out the video for their guerrilla fashion show in Stockholm, and their site for some fashion creativity from Sweden. I love the parasols! Are you a braveheart?
Please tell us about your job and duties:
I work on the Free People website, updating it with new product. I also work with the images on the site, and copy on the product pages.
How long have you worked for Free People?
I started March 2008, 3 months.
What do you like best about working for Free People?
I love working with the great merchandise! It is exciting to see what is going to come out next and fun being at a company that has unique products. Also all the great people I get to work with!
Your favorite current Free People item?
The Crosshatch Printed Dress! It is so cute for summer and the print is really eye catching! It is a good piece to layer in creative ways as well.
Do you have a pet?
Yes! I have a cat named Rosie. She is looks like a tiger and has grey and black stripes. She is very fun and has lots of attitude! Some of her favorite things are cheese, hanging out in the bathtub and looking at birds out the window.
What inspires you?
I think traveling and being outdoors are some of the most inspiring things. Traveling always opens my mind to new things and different kinds of people. I love being outside too, enjoying a nice day and watching thunderstorms in the summer time.
What do you enjoy doing when you're not at work?
I like going to yoga and cooking. I love watching the Food Network and the Discovery Channel. I go to concerts as much as I can, and spending time with my friends going to the beach or on trips. I also really love going shopping!
Have you a favorite artist?
I don’t know if I have a favorite but I really love art in general. My favorite kinds are contemporary and modern art.
Is there a current trend you wish would go away?
Well, I’m not sure if this is a trend, but I really hate Crocs. They can be cute on little kids but besides that I think they are awful!
Is there a current trend you wish would stay forever?
Right now I really like wearing summer scarves, which is something I haven’t done much in the past. I also love longer length tops and tunics over skinny jeans. I think dark wash jeans are great too because they are so flattering!
What are your favorite books? Movies? Websites? Music?
My favorite books are 1984 and A Place Called Freedom by Ken Follett.
Right now I am reading The Time Traveler’s Wife, which is really interesting so far.
Movies I have always loved are Empire Records and Spaceballs, which always makes me laugh no matter how many times I have seen it.
I also love gossip websites, like People.com and celebrity gossip blogs.
The music I have been listening to right now includes the new Coldplay album Viva la Vida, and the new Weezer too!
Where did you grow up? Love it or hate it?
I grew up in Verona, New Jersey, which is in North Jersey. It is a suburb of New York and a very small town. I love it there, but I am happier to be living in Philly on my own! Though I do like going home to spend time with my family and friends.
What did you want to be as a child?
I actually wanted to be an author! I would write stories in 4th grade that were a few pages long, and think about when I would grow up and write big novels. The funny thing is I was the worst speller in the class!
What superpower would you most like to have?
Well, sometimes I wish I could read people's minds but that could also be a really bad thing! So I would have to say being able to teleport where ever I wanted to go; it would make traveling a lot easier!
Where are your favorite places to hang out?
I like going to New Deck Tavern with my friends because it is a ten minute walk away and they have the best cheese fries! Also, The Bubble House is near there, and I like getting bubble tea and going for lunch. There is also a café down the street from my apartment called the Green Line Café and I love to go there on the weekends for iced coffees!
Lastly, here's a picture of Rosie to brighten your day!
I discovered ruby's lounge animal heads on etsy's featured seller. Jennifer Khoshbin hand crafts these beautiful animal heads from resin and graphic wallpapers. See the whole series of Handmade Wilderness-The Paper Deer Head Project on her etsy shop and read the feature interview while it lasts!
A big thanks to The Vintage Society for supporting our design a bag contest! Check out the vintage society for pretty vintage designs, Society Girl of the Week, and instant outfits. They also have a nice collection of videos. This one is their instant outfit feature come to life...
You may recall these from a post I did a couple of weeks ago:
They were on the wall in the Free People Home Office lobby, and I really enjoyed them and how they looked.
But today when I came into work, there was something new and equally cool in the lobby!
Wow! I couldn't wait to share these sequined floral canvases with you.
Check out this week's Decor It Yourself episode, the Backyard Overhaul. They have lots of good ideas to turn your backyard into a beauty, even if your yard is just a concrete wasteland.
It is my great pleasure to announce the Free People Design-A-Bag Contest!
Using the colors green & blue, create a design that will be screen-printed on our medium cloth bags, used at all Free People stores and trade shows!
Aside from having their design used, the winner will receive a $200 gift card that may be used at any Free People store or online, as well as 10 cloth bags with your design on it for you and your friends!
A Few Guidelines:
-Use no more than 3 colors in your design, and try to stick to cool colors. Green and blue are what we are looking for most.
-The bags are made from sheer voile fabric in a natural color that will have the design screen-printed on it. Because of this, please keep in mind that it is difficult to have any colors that look water-colory or less saturated. It’s more of an all-or-nothing deal, where the color is there, or it isn’t.
-Please avoid things like landscapes or other things that wouldn’t look good upside down– the design needs to be versatile and look as good upside down as rightside up.
-Please don’t worry about putting the Free People logo or your name on the design. Our cloth bag team will add the Free People logo and a small “designed by Winner Person for Free People” to the winning design.
-The bags will be in use for Spring 2009, starting in January. Try and make your designs kind of Spring-esque!
-The ideal size for designs is 11inches by 16inches. If you are turning in your entry by email, make sure it is scanned at 200 dpi, or a higher resolution.
-All e-mail entries must be received by Friday June 27th, 2008 and all regular mail entries must be postmarked by Friday June 27th, 2008 and received by Friday July 5th, 2008.
-Be sure to include your name, address, and phone number with your entry! One entry per person, please!
Email your entries to:
freepeoplecontest@gmail.com
Mail your entries to:
ATTN: Pruitt Shutt
5000 South Broad Street Bldg#15
Philadelphia, PA 19112
A friendly reminder: Regardless of which way you enter the contest, be sure to read the Official Rules, as by entering the contest you will be deemed to have agreed to be bound by them.
Below, find a couple pictures of past bags for inspiration!
Best of luck to all that choose to enter!
xo
Check out these photos from Italian Vogue featuring some fuzzy felines! I love that blue tile bathroom too. See the rest over on Cat Party or find a copy of Italian Vogue.
Meow.
What is your favorite type of music?
Anything rap!
Have you anything else to add?
This was fun! Thank you!
Here is a picture of my daughter Makenzie (left) and her cousin Madeline- Future Free People girls, shopping in our Arlington store!
Many of you have at some point in your lives come across worry dolls, which originate for the most part in Guatemala. A person who worries too much to sleep tells their worries to the doll and then places it under their pillow. The doll worries for the person and the person awakens rested and worry-free.
But what you may not have seen is a cute and amusing worry doll that is specific to ones particular worries, in this case, weight worries. Our wovens design assistant found this at the Cincinnati museum of art. I think the extra string around the middle is really cute!
You've heard of guerrilla marketing; how about about guerrilla gardening? Richard Reynolds wants to teach you all about it in his new book. His motto: fight the filth with forks and flowers.
Check out the interview from The New York Times and watch a video where Reynolds teaches you how to make a seed bomb.
Many of you are probably already familiar with the work of photographer Henry Clarke, but I have been enjoying these photographs so much lately I wanted to share them with you! Born in 1918, Mr. Clarke worked under contract for French, American, and British Vogue from 1950 through the late 70's, and is well known for his beautiful photographs of haute-couture. The pictures I've shown here are all from the 1950's, a decade which he captured like no one else! He passed away in 1996, and left his archives to the Musee de la Mode et du Costume in Paris.
Check out this video Coolhunting did profiling Philly artist Alex Da Corte. I love his ability to transform common objects into a something of meaning and the work often has a playfulness. Like press-on acrylic nails for example: they're already pretty fun, but he's used them to express the scales of a snake. Or beer pong as art? And it's sparkly!
Thank you ALL so much for voting on which page in the May catalog you'd most like to see as a poster! We've never had so many comments, and we were so happy and interested to hear which ones YOU liked best! We are going ahead and closing down the voting now, so that we can get to work on creating the posters!
Pages 12 and 20 were the clear favorites, so we figured we would try and see if we can make posters of both pages!
We will be sure to include the art running along the side of page 12 (or actually 13) and also to keep page 20 simple, as it is already. I will also be sure to post more information about the poster or posters and how to get them as soon as I get it. For now just know that the posters are definitely in the works, and you will be able to get one soon!
You can also look for another chance to vote on which page to make into a poster after the next catalog drops! Stay tuned!
Thank you again to all who voted!
How amazing are these merit badges for adults? I would much prefer a handcrafted merit badge to celebrate an achievement than, say, a greeting card (I'm talking the hallmark variety). Lee Meszaros of goodEGG Industries is creating these badges lovingly silkscreened, painted, and embroidered on cotton by hand.
I think my favorites are "getting back on the horse" "being a dirtbag" and "having meat on your bones." What are your favorites??
We found this awesome collection of pictures on Color Wars. I think it is such a cool idea, and I really find this kind of stuff interesting, progressions and watching people grow and change etc... Plus it's just fun!
You can bet I am looking around for an old picture of myself so I can participate! If you want to participate too, click here for information on how! If you want to see the awesome and huge collection of submissions you can check those out here!
I love this painting by Joy Feasley. Doesn't she look like she's dressed in FP? Those are definitely our woolly mittens. The painting is called Midnight Sun. You can see Joy's work in Philadelphia beginning this Friday. Here's a bit from the press release:
"Locks Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of new paintings by Joy Feasley. The exhibition will be on view June 6 through July 12, 2008. There will be a reception for the artist on Friday, June 6, 2008, from 5:30 to 7:30pm.
For this exhibition, Feasley has continued to create the work for which she is known - paintings that integrate landscape, abstraction, pattern and decoration, folk art and figurative imagery. Feasley uses a bold and flat color palate to help define her intimately-scaled paintings. Her paintings suggests the landscape experienced outide cities - remote forests and mountaintops. The works also retain a sense of place, at times referencing the Hudson River School, and on occasion reflecting actual locations such her home in Philadelphia, or scenic California, where she often takes residency to paint."
Sculptors Dan Havel and Dean Ruck created this trippy and incredible tunnel in a house that was on the way to being demolished. You can read about more about it and see more pics at Designverb.
Suffice it to say I am obsessed with our V Neck Embellished Belt Top!
I did a bit of investigating and found that the pretty little shapely shell is the creation of our knit designer Melissa. The awesome embroidered belt was produced by Kris, who we recently featured in an employee profile. She found a printed vintage dress, and cut off a strip of it and sewed it over top of a belt. After that, she carefully sewed over the print to create the embroidery, and presto - the prototype for the belt was born!
I confess, I am somewhat hesitant to post the following video, for a few reasons. It's not the highest quality video we've taken here at Free People, and also, I don't want to be too self-promoting. However, I have had much encouragement from everyone at the home office to post it up, as everyone here finds it pretty hilarious - and it is kind of funny...
So here it is, me, very nervously getting myself ready for my interview at Free People trying to get the internship I have now. Cutting up one of the shirts I made and putting some finishing touches on it is my big sister Doub.
Check out these awesome shadow puppet cards our wovens design assistant Jessica got from Optical Toys, which specializes in pre- and proto-cinematic toys, paper toys, and simply cool old-time toys. I checked out their site and saw a lot of interesting finds! These particular cards were reflected from the original cards made in 1890, and show you how to make different shadow animals!
Georgie is the dog of Doub, who is the Senior Designer for knits and pants and the Creative Director.
Name: Georgie
Nicknames: gorgeous georges, georgie georgie puddin in pie
Breed: frenchie
Likes: to secretly go to web shoot shh! don't tell anyone
Dislikes: the rule about no dogs at web shoots
Favorite friends: Stella her big sis of course and the web team
How did you meet? we met on the internet
Anything else you want to share? georgie likes to do imitations of Yoda. She is very talented and is considering a voiceover career since her web shoot modeling career ended quite abruptly.
