Occasion dresses: Lets get dressed up!

It’s that time of year where you put on the prettiest of dresses. You want to feel extra special and bedazzle the nights away. The words of Eric Clapton’s “you look wonderful tonight” dance around in the air and for a cherished moment you become a beautiful attraction.

We spent some time getting into this spirit in our studio the other day, and guess what? we did not want to take these magical creations off!

leighanne wears: Kristal’s limited edition dress, cropped biker jacket, perfect platform

Denise wears: Giannas limited edition dress (sold out), tirbal triangle collar, boheme platform boot

occassion dressesSusie wears: ana’s beaded party dress, pearl beaded beanie, floral vine ankle sock, retro classic sneaker

amandaAmanda wears: ana’s limited edition ballet dreams dress, embellished vegan leather jacket, sgt pepper ankle boot, zina stone headpiece

Details: Shine On You Crazy Diamond

We love adding a little touch of sparkle to an outfit – the fp one sequin jacket is perfect!

Our faux fur jacket from last year.

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Cool DIY bracelets.

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Show Pony Dress detail.

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Feather earrings.

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Amazing belt!

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Studded denim vest.

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Sneak peek at some sparkling Vintage Loves!

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Toby got his sparkle on too.

The holidays are a great excuse to add some shine to your outfit :)

Step Inside Free People Aspen

We opened a new store in Aspen, CO on Friday and it is beautiful! The store is decorated with our new holiday displays, so it fits right in with its wintery setting! It’s like a snow globe on the inside and out :) Here are some photos of the magical new store…

Our beautiful new store front! And check this out, here it is back in the day:

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Before and after :)

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“Sequining” the display bike! And how cute are the sweater pedals?!?

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Stay tuned for a tutorial on the awesome wrapping paper!

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The FP Spun Sequin Knit Shorts are so beautiful – and I love how they look on the right paired with the red opaque tights, plaid shirt and cropped fairisle pullover!

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More great outfitting ideas! On the left, the Sequin Bodycon and Fairisle Triangle Scarf; On the right, the Miles of Lace Dress with the Plaid Buttondown with Gingham over top.

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Beautiful accessory display! One of our FP girls made the little tags for higher price-point bags and accessories using Aspen postcards! I love this idea for holiday gifts – check out a tutorial here ;)

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So pretty :) Welcome to the family, Aspen!

From Our Store Girls: The Perfect Gifts

It’s the season for giving gifts, and we just launched our Holiday Boutiques last week full of great gift ideas. It can be a little overwhelming when it comes to picking out the perfect present, so we decided to ask our store ladies across the country what would be on their wishlist this year!

Haley, Farmington CT: Socks!

“I just bought both colors of the broken arrow soft socks! And i know once my sisters see them they’ll want them too, so I think they are the perfect gift/stocking stuffer!”

(I have to agree, I am wearing these socks today and they are the BEST.)

Brandi, Shrewsbury NJ: Bralettes

“Our bralettes are the best FP gift for the holiday season – they are the perfect add-on to any outfit for a pop of print or a dash of sparkle!”

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Brooke, Tyson’s Corner VA: Multi Stripe Pullover, Lace Buttondown, Feather Hair Clip

“I love the idea of these three pieces as a gift together – each item is really unique and versatile or can be worn on its own; the pullover sweater with a pair of denim shorts and tights, the lace buttondown with a beautiful black skirt and the feather clip on any day of the week. But the beautiful thing is that if someone wanted to put a look together as a gift all of these items would look amazing put together.”

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Raven, Atlanta GA: The Ruffle Legging

“The ruffle leggings are fun, funky and sexy! I think every lady should rock a pair of these.”

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Morgan, Portland OR: Stockings for your stockings!

Socks are a great way to help your loved ones stay cozy this holiday season! Socks are one of life’s often over-looked luxuries that many don’t often splurge on for themselves.  Such an easy way to feel pampered and spoiled! Plus, sizing is usually not an issue :) ”

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Niree, Hollywood CA:

“In the top photo I’m wearing our Faux Sheepskin Earmuffs and gloves – they are the best stocking stuffers and make great gifts, especially as it gets colder!

The second photo are my top gift giving picks! They include the Voile and Lace Slip, Floral Kimono, the MUST HAVE Miles of Lace Dress, the amazing Crafty Cuff Thermal in mustard, Legwarmers, Feather Hair Clips, the Chain Double Wrap Belt and an amazing Scarf. You can’t go wrong with any of these items!!!”

For more great gift ideas check out our new section online of our favorite items, handpicked by fp girls :)

Awesome New Site Feature!

Do you ever find yourself browsing around our website, and you find something you really love but you want to know if it’s available at your local free people store? Well now you can find out!!!

We wanted to draw your attention to this really great new feature on freepeople.com – you can check store availability of items right on our website:

Just click the button in the top right-hand corner…

Click “find this in our stores”…enter your zipcode…

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And, voila! A list of stores and the quantity available will come right up.

Happy Shopping! :)

Style File: Merchandising Intern

Fresh out of college, our merchandising intern here at the office has sleek, cool-girl style. She pulls looks together with the ease of an off-duty model – rarely sporting color, and rocking a repertoire of easy tees, skinny jeans, ankle boots, and leather. Tattoos pepper her body with an added edge that’s subtle, but present. Behind all that seriousness is a sweet girl ready to ask you how your weekend was and share a funny story behind the pieces she’s wearing. Seeing her outfit each day was an excitement – I hope it you all think so too!

The Free People Pretty Suede Ankle Boot :)

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Free People Philadelphia!

It’s finally happening!!! We are SO excited to be opening a store in our hometown of Philly! The store will open in January and we are currently looking for an Assistant Store Manager & Assistant Visual Manager. Our fp girls put together this really cute video to give potential applicants some insight into a day in the life of an fp store manager!

Check out the video, and for more info about the position and/or to apply click here.

We are also currently looking for a Santa Barbara Store Manager and all positions in Birmingham, Alabama (coming soon)!

Blogger’s Diary – The sweet scent of Fall

This weekend I enjoyed the feeling of Fall, the leaves have turned all fiery here in Philly. The rustic leaves brings a vintage feel, a feeling of age and decay that I’m drawn to; throughout my life I’ve loved the juxtaposition of the beautiful and the ugly finding old buildings and seeing the beauty in them. This nostalgic feeling comes flowing into me during fall – the trees decay ready to transform into something beautiful come spring. I kinda love that.

After a scrumptious brunch at one of my favorite restaurants here in Philly “Parc” that recalls the chic brasseries of Paris and a long walk in my vintage French military boots I returned home and got be-dazzled by party hats for these coming festive months – DIY soon perhaps!

Happy Monday all!!

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Free People Through the Decades: The 1970s

The 1970s has always been a decade that fascinates me – it was such an interesting time of change. So many life-altering events took place in the late sixties, that the 70s seemed like a period when people were a little “dazed and confused”, turning to new types of music, film, or travel as a form of escapism. Many writers and musicians traveled to Morocco, where we shot this decade of our holiday catalog – seeking a change of scenery and inspiration. Others turned up in droves at Studio 54, to enjoy the disco music craze and dance the night away. Fashion was all about personal expression – from sequins and flowing dresses to floppy hats and bell-bottoms to the menswear look made famous by Annie Hall.

Pictured, clockwise from top left:
Led Zeppelin, one of the biggest bands of the 1970s
Diane Keaton as Annie Hall
Musician and 70s fashion icon Carly Simon
Mick Jagger and his first wife Bianca Jagger, who was a fashion icon in the 70s and fixture at Studio 54
Fleetwood Mac, who released one of the biggest albums of the 70s, Rumours, in 1977
A shot from our holiday catalog, by David Bellemere
Almost Famous captures the music scene in the 70s based on Cameron Crowe’s experience touring with some of the decade’s biggest bands, including the Allman Brothers, Lynard Skynard and Led Zeppelin.
Iconic photo of Talitha Getty in Morocco by Patrick Lichfield.

Stay tuned for some amazing behind the scenes photos, and check out the full holiday catalog.

Healthy Baking 101

Although I love to cook, when it comes to baking I’m something of an amateur. Growing up my parents always kept a kitchen stocked with healthy options, and if I whipped up a sheet of cookies for no reason they often went uneaten (except by me). As I got older and more health conscious, I realized that I probably shouldn’t be devouring these cookies either. So, in an effort to maintain a clean diet, I kind of fell off the baking band wagon and became more of a cook.

Nowadays, we have so many more options for healthy baking. Right here in Philly there is a café that serves up my favorite “nuffins” made with yogurt, olive oil, and splenda. It got me to thinking about baking in an all new way, and I decided to give it a stab again. Up until now, this has involved following other people’s recipes, but this past weekend I attempted making whole-wheat pumpkin cupcakes with yogurt as an experiment. I took photos, and was planning to post on them today, but sadly, they came out entirely too moist, and sort of fell in on themselves.

The week got hectic, and I couldn’t make it to the store to pick up ingredients for another recipe, so as a result, I thought I’d take you all along the learning curve with me. In attempts to get the recipe right, I’ve been doing some research on healthy baking substitutes that I’ve heard about. Here’s what I’ve learned so far and can’t wait to try out. Once I get the cupcakes just right, I’ll be sure to share them with you all & if any of you have tips – please share!

Applesauce

Substituting applesauce is one way to cut down on fat in baking. Using it keeps the finished product moist, but it really only works for oil-based baked goods (i.e. breads, muffins, and some cakes) not recipes calling for butter.  When you substitute applesauce, it’s even more important to work the batter gently, and as little as possible. Most sources recommend a 1:1 swap (1 cup of applesauce in a recipe calling for 1 cup of oil). Measure it out in a liquid measuring cup, and use unsweetened applesauce.

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Yogurt

Yogurt is another great way to cut fat and calories, but maintain a tender, moist consistency in baked goods. This one can be used in both butter and oil-based recipes. In those calling for butter, replace half of the butter with half as much yogurt (1/4cup yogurt & 1/2cup butter in a recipe calling for 1 cup butter). For oil or shortening, replaice half of the oil with ¾ the amount of yogurt (1/4 cup + 2tbsp of yogurt with ½ cup oil in a recipe calling for 1 cup of oil).

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Whole Wheat Flour

This is where it can get a bit tricky. From what I’ve read, you want to find whole-wheat pastry flour which is generally lighter than the all-purpose kind. You usually still have to include white flour when making this switch. Sometimes you can use 100% whole wheat, but that’s where experimenting comes in. From what I’ve read, going entirely whole-wheat works great with banana bread. Breads in general can take more, as it tends to make the product heavier which is okay with bread. When baking pastries you’ll want to stick to a 50/50 rule (substituting half the amount of all-purpose white flour with whole-wheat flour).

click on images for sources

Vanitas

“An artistic collaboration with stylist Kathi Kauder and photographer Sabrina Theissen. For these collages Ashkan Honarvar used Vanitas symbols in a search for the equilibrium between life and death. The woman depicted features different animal eyes – remnants of the instincts that guide people under extreme circumstances.”

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Incredible.

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