Photos from First Friday!

As promised, here are some photos from our fp girls’ art opening on Friday night at Reward, called “A Distant Land To Roam.” Inspired by western prairies and Native American motifs, the show featured intricate wall hangings, drawings, collages, fabric animals, and other small goods. It was beautiful!

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The beautiful artists :) On the left is our New Romantics Mesh Poncho!

The show will be up at Reward until December 30th so if you live in the Philly area be sure to check it out :)

Free People Holiday Giveaway!



Tis the season… for giving! We’re celebrating the holidays with a special giveaway for YOU – our amazing readers and fans :) Each Friday in December I will select a winner at random who will receive a special Free People goodie bag!

Each goodie bag includes: the fp one beaded bandeau, a necklace, bracelet, ring, fabric wallet, coin purse, set of barrettes, a display item and some special little trinkets!

Head on over to our Facebook Page to enter.  Happy Holidays!

xoxo

FP

Trend direction from our seniors

Our December book has just dropped and fashion trends have twisted from a high-spirited, festive way of dressing to a much cleaner, cooler 80’s and 90’s vibe.

We’re pretty excited about the styling going into the New Year. we’re feeling cool and boy-like with an edge…a soft attitude that isn’t too overpowering.

 For you to get a clearer understanding of our trend direction we asked three of our seniors to define what they are chasing after this month!

Sophie

“I’m absolutely dying over our easy throw-on, slouchy sweaters. Super cool but laid back patterns and texture that go with anything and will see you through to spring…”

 the shot I love best in the book is the black and white fairisle sweater with denim cut offs against the wall with the braid… that shot is like heaven for me”

 

 Cotton Fairisle pullover Amoudi stripe pullover denim cutoff short palazzo pant

 

Kristal

“My favorite trend of the Dec book is the whole late 80’s/ early90’s Babe vibe it has. The Crop muscle knit paired with the extreme flare is outrageous and the shortie-short shorts and high slits are out of sight.. The Hair is soooo good for this look too! Everyone has a care-free total babe in them somewhere!”

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Sheer button down shirt Classic denim jacket o town muscle tee extreme textured knit flare

Ana

“I’m very excited about the variety of bottoms in the January catalog. From high-waisted shorts to long and full pants, there is a great look for everyone. I personally plan on adding the denim and vegan leather shorts to my wardrobe and am excited knowing about all the other versions we have in the works”

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washed vegan leather short cropped vegan leather jacket Printed palazzo pant

Style File: Assistant Stylist

This week’s Style File is one of our adorable styling assistants. All day long she runs around the web studio making sure that looks get shot, that they look good, and that the process moves along in an organized smooth manner. It’s tough work, but she’s always cheery and relaxed. Having moved here from Austin, TX (jealous? I think so), maybe it’s her southern roots that spark this kind of attitude.

Her style on the other hand, does not remind me Austin. It’s much more sophisticated – tailored even – though, it, like her personality, has a touch of kookiness. It’s a pea coat and lady-like dress paired with…knee highs? You half expect it to be prim and proper from head-to-toe, but then she confuses you like that. It’s great! She doesn’t take herself too seriously but she has great taste in sophisticated pieces. Check it out…

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The perfect breezy day outfit with the Jenoah Floppy Brim Hat!

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The Mesh Dot Ankle Sock peeks out.

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The Free People Multi Stripe Pullover

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Blogger Diary: Home Sweet Home

This weekend I suffered from nostalgia, thoughts of home over consumed me and made me quite homesick heavy; it’s always this time of year that I feel this way maybe it’s the dark nights or the grey dreary weather that brings England into my mind… who knows. I spent my days this weekend thinking about Sunday Roasts, long strolls around Notting Hill, and lazy days inside a cozy pub chatting with friends. Here are some snap shots that helped me get through the feeling this weekend. Even though I get like this from time to time, America is where I am and I’m going to give it my all. You only live once, right?

 America and British love!

A perfect pub Sunday Roast

The pastel homes in Notting Hill

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my golden cocker spaniel

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Comfort Food Risotto with Shitakes and Asparagus

When I haven’t been to the grocery store in, awhile this risotto is something I’ll whip up for dinner. I usually have the ingredients laying around (maybe not the vegetables, but I’ll do some sort of variation), and it’s simple to make. My grandmother taught me the secret trick of stirring in some cream cheese. You don’t even have to use too much, but it makes the risotto so deliciously creamy. I also tend to use brown rice just because it’s healthier, and I find the effect to be just as desirable. This dish warms up any cold day and can help cure a funky mood. It’s one of my ultimate comfort foods – my less guilty version of mac n’ cheese. Let me know if it’s just as good for you :).

Ingredients:

2 Cups of Long-Grain Brown Rice

1 Lb Asparagus

1 Large Sweet Onion

¼ Lb Shitake Mushrooms

4 Cups of Vegetable Stock

½ Cup Parmesan Cheese

3 Tbsp Cream Cheese

1 Tbsp Truffle Oil

S & P to taste

Directions

Chop onion, asparagus, and mushrooms. I like to leave the onion pieces as larger wedges for a dish like this.

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Pour truffle oil into a large pot and allow it to heat up. After two minutes or so, throw in your onion wedges to sauté. As soon as they begin to appear translucent, add in your mushrooms and asparagus to.

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Once the vegetables appear cooked (you can test them with a fork), lower the flame and pour in your vegetable stock. Then add rice and stir.

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Cover and let cook until the liquid has evaporated. Stir in parmesan cheese, cream cheese, salt and pepper.

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Let the risotto sit for about 5 minutes. Then stir again and serve.

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Tree, Line

“This is an ongoing series of constructed photographs rooted in the forest. These works, carried out in Surrey, Hampshire and Wales,involve site specific interventions in the landscape, ‘wrapping’ trees with white material to construct a visual relationship between tree, not-tree and the line of horizon according to the camera’s viewpoint.”

ZanderOlsen

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Work by Zander Olsen.

I love stuff like this… these are brilliant!

Saturday DO

DO: acknowledge it

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The past few days I found myself in a bit of a funk. I felt out of it and I was getting down on myself for feeling out of it. I’m typically a pretty upbeat happy person, so when I get like this, it’s really unsettling. My mind quickly shoots to, how am I going to make this better? I find myself acknowledging what is wrong – what it is that I don’t like about myself, and how I’m going to work to fix it. I come up with plans in my head: certain practices or consistent efforts that I think will combat my troubling flaws.

In retrospect, I realized how important it is to make note at times like this. We all have faults, and sometimes it’s good to mindfully recognize what they are. You can assess how you feel about them – if they’re something that really bothers you and something that you want to change. It’s about acknowledgement. Actively acknowledging how you feel and what’s making you upset. Without it, you can’t change.

On the flip side – it’s also important to acknowledge the things that make you happy. Take note of what those things are, and work to incorporate them into your life as much as possible. It sounds easy – but sometimes it’s really hard to know what you want and what you don’t.

Either way, happy or sad, it’s productive to acknowledge how you’re feeling and why.

Store Style: Intimately FP

As I mentioned the other day, we can’t get enough of our new intimates.  We love them for lounging around the house, but we also love wearing them out – adding little touches of velvet and sparkle that are perfect this time of year.  We decided to ask our California FP girls to give us some styling inspiration on how they would wear their intimates all year round!

One of our favorites this holiday season is the beaded bandeau – it looks adorable peeking out under a plaid buttondown, worn with a lace maxi skirt!

This is such a cute layered look: the sequin cami worn with the lovebug striped thermal, victorian angel cardigan, tall socks and boots.

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The dotted lace tee looks lovely with the pleated wideleg pant and a vest.

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A delicate slip and sequin cami look perfect under the gorgeous long chiffon bed jacket, topped off with a headpiece.

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I love this romantic outfit! The velvet extreme flares and new romantics chiffon capelet with the printed velvet bralette underneath.

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Get festive for the holidays in the voile and lace slip worn over dainty shorts with knee high socks and the fairisle maxi cardigan when it gets chilly!

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Perfect for a night out: the medallion seamless slip worn with a slip in a contrasting color underneath, the joe lace up boot (the new black/brown color is gorgeous), statement necklace and headpiece!

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Here’s a great idea – wear a long sleeved layering tee under a cropped bralette! Add the reversible fur vest and pile on the rings and necklaces for this cool layered look.

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Layering tops like the floral burnout henley are also great for taking your favorite summer tank into fall and winter!

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Add a little sparkle to a tomboy look of destroyed denim and the open lace sleeve top with the sequin cami.

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The long chiffon bed jacket looks amazing over the beaded bandeau and cutoffs with cute little ankle boots!

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And lastly, we have the sequin cami paired with the adorable high waisted textured shorts and fairisle maxi cardigan. Love!

Cool New Site Feature: Q&A

I’m sure this happens to you guys a lot: as you’re shopping online, you find an item you really love but you want to know how it fits, or get recommendations on how to style it. We now have a really cool feature on freepeople.com that allows customers to post their questions, and other customers (or fp employees) can answer the questions right there on the site!

Just click on the “ask a question” box and you can enter your question, or if there are already questions it will look like this:

Click the link and a box will open with a space to type in your question, or to see what other people have asked.

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Such a great and simple way to get advice straight from your fellow customers!

Happy Shopping :)

Happy Friday!

What’s everyone doing this weekend? I wanted to tell you about an amazing art show taking place in Philadelphia so if you live in the area listen up!

Two of our fp girls have teamed up to put on a show at Reward in Old City, Philadelphia, called “A Distant Land to Roam.” The opening is tonight and several of us fp girls will be there. I can’t wait – to say these girls are talented is an understatement! Here’s a little sneak peek:

So amazing – I’m going to take some photos at the show to share with you guys!

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On Saturday morning I’m heading to New York City! On Saturday I plan on spending some time in my favorite part of the city, Brooklyn, and doing some vintage shopping and maybe hitting up an art show. I’m staying at the Bowery House – I’m excited to check this place out, it’s a great option for anyone on a budget, and looks super cool.

Then on Sunday I’m heading to the Upper East Side for the event at Free People 3rd Ave, where I’ll be running a DIY ornament station from 12-5pm! If you’re in the area come hang out!!

For more info on the event and to RSVP click here.