the other is looking in on you

i was so excited to discover some new collages by brandi strickland the other day…i love her work! she uses mixed media, paint, ink, colored pencil and other materials to create these incredible collages that are like little worlds full of stories. these are from her latest series, “the other is looking in on you.”

brandi-strickland

brandi-strickland

brandi-strickland

brandi-strickland

brandi-strickland

brandi-strickland

brandi-strickland

more here.

from brooklyn: free pups!

It’s always such a treat to see the pups of Home Office that the girls of Free People Brooklyn thought we’d introduce some of our local customers! All dogs are welcomed with shakes, treats, water, and love :)

Carlo!

Lalo! (He’s recovering quite nicely)

Oscar!
Oscar

Sprout!
Sprout

Marley!
Marley

Waffle!
Waffle
Waffle loved our mannequin outfit so much he collapsed in front of it :)

Huahua (as in Chihuahua)  and mom!
Huahua

Lemon (with Huahua in background  – they’re best friends!)
Lemon

Last but not least, Chewy!
Chewy

so cute! i love all their names…especially waffle :) thanks for sharing ladies!

Sunkissed in the office

Yesterday was such a lovely day. the temperature had dropped a little from last week’s heat wave, and there was a cool breeze in the air making us all dreamy. Light crochet piece wear, great cover ups and fun jeans were perfect for the ideal weather.

While our buyer and lingerie designer wore the perfect cover-ups – a chiffon button up shirt tunic and a one shoulder dress.

It was sure a day dreaming day at the office yesterday!

Julia and I at our desks

our buyer and lingerie designer

Untitled-4

thursday poll – edition 138

“sweet as can be, she shows off her inner romance with pretty neutrals and feminine lace styles. dreamy sheer fabrics and off the shoulder shapes embrace her soft, sexy demeanor on the haziest summer days.”

i may be a “lou” girl but i still love our pretty in pink trend on our website right now- the shots are so beautiful and calming! which of these items from the collection is your favorite?

the denim corset bodycon slip:

the mesh & tiers skirt:

free-people-pretty-in-pink

the smocked seamless crop top:

free-people-pretty-in-pink

the focus on center blouse:

free-people-pretty-in-pink

or the nightcap lace bodycon dress:

free-people-pretty-in-pink


“Pack light for a weekend getaway”

Summer is a time when the weekend comes you just want to drift away for some fun and adventure whether it’s to a cosmopolitan city to explore or just to hang out on the beach.

I love to pack light but it takes a lot of experimentation to make the most of the items you’ve packed to create looks that will last the duration of your weekend away.

Here’s a little video to inspire you starring one of our designers here at the office, we used the eyelet seamless romper as a foundation to our outfit building looks.

seamless eyelet romper, concho sandal, riviera hat, moonlight breeze tunic, crochet skirtarrow straw beach tote, devas pattern belt

call of the wild: behind the scenes

behind the scenes pics from our june e-catalog shoot here at the navy yard in philly! as i’ve told you, day one we shot with martha hunt in our web studio, with her boyfriend as hair stylist. it was such a fun day- he was doing the coolest stuff with her hair, and martha is always a blast to be around – we love her!

our senior photographer showed us this cool camera trick – tape a piece of cardboard over your camera lens with the tiniest little pinhole in the middle:

free-people-call-of-the-wild3

the result is this cool ghostly effect:

free-people-call-of-the-wild4

free-people-call-of-the-wild5

free-people-call-of-the-wild6

free-people-call-of-the-wild7

day two we worked with andreea diaconu and shot outdoors in the wilderness of the navy yard :) there is a lot of abandoned land down here that used to be used for military barracks and such, so we went to one of the fields and had a pretty entertaining time fending off deer ticks and tending to a few cuts and bruises… andreea was a trooper and looked beautiful as she danced amidst the grass.

free-people-call-of-the-wild8

free-people-call-of-the-wild9

free-people-call-of-the-wild11

free-pepople-call-of-the-wild12

free-people-call-of-the-wild13

group huddle around the computer to review shots :)

free-people-call-of-the-wild13

free-people-call-of-the-wild15

free-people-call-of-the-wild16

free-people-call-of-the-wild17

free-people-call-of-the-wild18

free-people-call-of-the-wild19

view the e-catalog online here!

behind the scenes of our vintage loves shoot!

have you guys seen our new vintage loves vignette, aphrodite? the collection contains some exquisite dresses by designers like oscar de la renta, mary mcfadden, koos van den akker and guy laroche, in delicate fabrics and shades of ivory, cream and taupe.  i think a lot of these would make amaaaazing wedding dresses! we shot the vignette a couple of months back here at our home office and i snapped some behind the scenes photos for you.

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

detail of the oscar de la renta dress.

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

the stunning rope detail on the mary mcfadden gown – sure to make its wearer feel like the greek goddess of beauty ;)

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

our lovely web merchandiser was the model in the shoot!

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

back detail of the vintage early lace dress.

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

checking the test shot…

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

remember gus? he was here lending a paw :)

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

i love these snake belts in the collection!

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

free-people-vintage-loves-aphrodite

shop the collection online here.

designer we love: talon nyc

emily hirsch was raised on a vineyard in the anderson valley where she grew up surrounded by the rich, earthy scents of northern california – mossy forests, redwood trees, fermenting grapes, warm earth and sea fog to name a few. she says, “i love how a smell can transport you to the time and place you first smelled it.”

now based in brooklyn, emily is a jewelry designer who started talon nyc. combining a love of vintage inspired jewelry and the aromas of her childhood, she designed the beautiful amulette necklaces that we are carrying at free people.

“fragrance has been worn in beautiful adornments since ancient times, to ward off evil, intoxicate lovers, enhance mood, and interact with the spirits.”

the amulettes are made entirely of recycled materials and hand cast in bronze, silver and glass. when filled with a scent and warmed by the body, they release subtle aromas that escape through the cork stopper, drifting up to the wearer throughout the day. the cork can be removed and used to dab the scent behind the ears, on the neck, or wherever is desired.

emily carefully blends essential oils to create the scents held inside the amulettes, and has made three custom scents. the signature is described as “an intoxicating aroma of tobacco leaf and newly opened orange blossom. it makes us think of sitting in our grandfathers’ old, worn in leather chair in a dimly lit, cozy room, surrounded by books, a scotch and a small branch pulled from the apple tree blooming outside.”

read on for an interview with emily and stay tuned for a guest post she wrote for the blog about a recent road trip she took with family band and warpaint!

talon3

Can you tell me a little bit about the process of making the scents that go inside the amulettes?

The biggest trick to making scents is experimenting with as many combinations as possible. When I made Avalon, I knew I wanted to use Jasmine, as it’s one of my favorite floral scents. So I started with just Jasmine, and then would add one more thing to it. Then the next day I would go back and smell each combination. You have to also smell the scent on your skin as it is usually pretty different.

I would pick my favorites and then decide what they needed next. If it was too sweet smelling, I would add earthier, muskier or grassier scents next to balance the sweetness.  You also have to throw out preconceived notions about what will mix well together because it’s often the unexpected combinations that work best.

Once I have the final blends, I will start wearing the scent when I go out and see how it evolves throughout the night and how I feel wearing it.

How would you describe your personal style?

Sexy 70s! (Which happens to also be a nickname J.) I am very inspired by the 1970s, musically and stylistically. I buy a lot of vintage clothing and like to layer vintage and new pieces to create a look that isn’t over stylized in one era but has a definite 70s slant combined with a natural 60s vibe.

What do you like to do when you’re not working?

When I’m not working I love spending time with friends, eating tasty food and drinking good wine! My husband, Scott, is a great cook, so most evenings he is cooking something we picked up at the farmer’s market and we are listening to records and having wine. We also have a cat named Arrow who I spend a lot of time spoiling.

What’s your favorite city or place?

I grew up in California, so the whole state is very nostalgic for me. But my favorite place is Ojai, where my mom lives. I try to get there at least once a year and love taking bike rides through the orange grooves with views of the Topa Topa mountains.

My favorite city is New York! We have lived in New York for about four years and I’ve never felt more creative than I do here.

What music are you listening to right now?

I am pretty much stuck in the 70s with some guilty pleasure 80s music thrown in for good measure. My staples include Fleetwood Mac, Rod Stewart (early stuff) and the Faces, Bob Dylan, George Harrison, David Bowie…

Favorite book?

As a kid it was the Secret Garden because I was always looking to find secret hiding places in the woods. As a college student, probably Love in the Time of Cholera because I lived in Costa Rica and fell in love with Latin culture and magical realism.

How did your road trip with the Family Band and Warpaint come about?

My husband has toured in various bands many times during our relationship, so when his band, Family Band, went on tour with Warpaint I asked if I could come to see what touring is all about. I went on the leg through the South because I have never been, and have this very romantic view of that part of the country. We went to Durham, Asheville, Nashville, Athens, New Orleans, Houston and Austin. I loved the humid rich tropical magic of the South.

What’s next for talon? Anything you can tell us about what you’re currently working on?

I launched Talon with just the amulette necklace, but for fall, I want to release a full line of jewelry. I’m obsessed with braids and twists, so I’m incorporating that pattern into a bunch of different pieces. I’m also going to have some castings and will be releasing the amulette in some vintage glass colors. I’m sure I will work on a new scent as well!

check out the amulettes online here!

bonnaroo photo diary

IMG_7292

5829998182_3b946d972b_b

IMG_7296

IMG_7310

IMG_7300

IMG_7308

IMG_7313

IMG_7334

IMG_7320

100_0610

IMG_7336

IMG_7312

IMG_7425

IMG_7314

IMG_7342

IMG_7366

IMG_7398

IMG_7379

5829276512_63562010aa_b

IMG_7414

IMG_7416

IMG_7386

somethin’ filled up
my heart with nothin’,
someone told me not to cry.

but now that I’m older,
my heart’s colder,
and i can see that it’s a lie.

children wake up,
hold your mistake up,
before they turn the summer into dust.

if the children don’t grow up,
our bodies get bigger but our hearts get torn up.
we’re just a million little god’s causin’ rain storms turnin’ every good thing to rust.

i guess we’ll just have to adjust.

with my lighnin’ bolts a glowin’
i can see where I am goin.’

– arcade fire

We’re hooked on Instagram!

Free People now has an Instagram account where we share our visual thoughts and daily activities in pictures.

We’re all addicted to this smart phone app and can’t stop capturing all the cute little things that happen in our office.

If you have a smart-phone, follow our visual journey — our username is “freepeople” — if not we will give you a weekly update of beautiful snap shots taken throughout the week;

from our home pets to our favorite restaurants, pretty mood boards and on location look book post card shots. We invite you into out postcard world!