a tour of our new home

as you may know, our home offices are located in philadelphia’s navy yard, an old navy ship yard that is home to some really cool, old warehouse buildings that urban outfitters renovated to house our offices. building 15 has been our home for the last few years but next month we will be moving to the neighboring building 25, which is bigger – and has two floors as opposed to one!

on friday we were treated to a special tour of the new building (it is still under construction) and i snapped some photos to share with you all! i think we are all very excited for the move, especially after seeing the amazing new space- and the fact that it is right on the water makes me very happy :)

read on for more photos of our new home and to see the special treat waiting for us at the end…

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summer getaways – the beach

she loves the sand between her toes and salt water in her hair, and the sun brings a sparkle to her eye.  her style is easy and effortless- soft materials, solid colors and silhouettes that can be sexy when dressed up.  the most important thing is comfort because she never knows what the day will hold- it could end cuddled up in blankets by a beach bonfire or with a night on the town so versatility is key.  she’s all about the layers upon layers in the winter but she lives for spring, summer and splashing in the surf.

when thinking about sandy the lyrics to the beatles song “julia” always come to mind.

sandy’s summer getaway is the beach, whether that be a tropical destination like vieques in puerto rico or the california coast.  she always packs light- easy pieces that can be worn as beach cover-ups during the day and then dressed up if she goes out at night, and a warm sweater or jacket is a must for evenings when the breeze chills her sun burnt skin.  in her beach bag are definitely a few items from – what else? – our beach line; sunglasses and a big brimmed hat to shade her eyes, sandals and some accessories to throw on at night time.

1. portman top rimmed wayfarer; 2. straw and leather tassle tote; 3. modern haze printed bikini; 4. printed towel; 5. north beach wrap sandal; 6. siwy madeleine cutoffs; 7. giant brim straw hat; 8. ruffle sleeveless tunic; 9. ammonite cluster necklace; 10. fp pull on jean; 11. green almond druzy ring; 12. zulu dress; 13. black sands tunic; 14. centered pullover.

shop all our sandy items here!

christine gray

i can’t stop staring at this artwork by christine gray.  it’s colorful and trippy and brings to mind the atmosphere at a music festival – probably because the one with the tents and bonfire reminds me of burning man.

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Late Lights

i want to be in this last image jumping on the trampoline into fiery night skies…

about her artwork, christine says, “in my work i look at the cultural mythologies that misrepresent nature and our relationship to it. i remake landscapes according to these fictions through both objects and painting, thereby adding to and revealing the fallacy of these representations. the sculptural tableaux i make as models for my paintings are theatrical, temporary situations where the real and imagined collapse into a space outlined by contradictory boundaries. extraordinary outcomes are made feasible by the distortion of the everyday. my most recent body of work focuses on the american myth of the seeker, traveling alone through untouched landscapes in search of a revelatory experience of the divine.”

check out more of her awesome work here.

a brief guide to austin

not too long ago we held a twitter contest and the winner, named tanya, got a free people gift card.  when she went to the store to spend it she took some photos and i asked her some questions about living in austin – read on for a little guide to the live music capital, in tanya’s words!

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check out tanya’s blog here.

free people items pictured above (from left to right): convertible floral lace maxi skirt; cross my heart shift dress; geo shapeless dress; rodeo hat; floral scrunch skirt; eyelet boot; north beach wrap sandal; coachella boot.

pretty wild

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literally, it’s pretty wild!  scientists have recently discovered a rare type of bee that makes its nest out of flower petals in a method similar to papier-mâché! the result is so beautiful – i would love to see one in real life…but since that probably won’t happen maybe i’ll collect some petals and try to recreate my own little papier-mâché project.  who knew bees could be such talented artists?! :)

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magical mystery tour

a couple of weeks ago, our  regional visual manager for the west coast and our director of stores met up with the northwest district manager to take a little tour of the free people stores in washington, oregon and northern california.  lucky for us, they sent over some great photos from their trip!

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i love the shots from the airplane, so cool!

first friday in philadelphia

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i have a love/hate relationship with first fridays in philly.  i live in old city…so when i leave my place to go out on the first friday of the month i have to wade through the sea of people blocking the sidewalks, and every place i go is packed.  but once it gets nice out, i find myself warming up- literally – to the idea.  the streets of old city come alive with all types of creative folk who line the sidewalks with their art, craft and music.  i’ll wander around perusing the treasures, stopping every once in a while to talk with sellers, all the while soaking in the energy that is first friday in philadelphia.

here are some photos from yesterday evening…

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and i ran into some fp girls!