We are so excited to have one of our favorite bands performing at our 5th Avenue store for Fashion’s Night Out on Thursday! Let’s get to know them a little bit better… Read More
Fashion’s Night Out: Meet the Band, Adam and Dave’s Bloodline
FNO 2011: Getting Creative with Free People in NYC
our fashion night out event is happening this thursday! everyday leading up to the event we will be featuring one of our girls from here in our home office and why they love NYC! Come join us for a fashion bonanza!
go here for more details: free people’s fashion night out
Describe New York City in 4 words…
Lustful, sharp, unpredictable, aggressive
What are you predicting for Fall Fashion?
A preppy cool, is what I’m chasing for fall – lots of tweeds, cool denim and brogues. I’m loving the thought of Annie Hall mixed with a sweet Francoise Hardy. Velvet in jewel tones are on my mind worn with rugged knits.
Who is your style muse?
I admire many people’s style; my muse is someone who has a fusion of great vision, a beautiful mind and innovation. If they have all three then they’ve got me good.
A favorite place in NY?
A great coffee shop in NY always makes my day. I tend to nestle there for a couple of hours people watching and what not – The Smile, 26 Bond Street New York
is perfect for that!
One Free People item you will be taking into fall…
Designer Jewelry by ACB
All it took was one read through Annie Costello Brown’s bio and I was intrigued…very intrigued.
This month’s featured jewelry artist, she is the designer behind ACB – a line of hand-made pieces in materials including leather, bronze castings, vintage chains, natural shells and semi-precious stones. Her creativity and design sensibilities originated in her childhood, growing up in the Sausalito houseboat community of the 1970s and 80s. This was a community of artists, musicians and crafters who established their own sort of counterculture in the Northern California bay, and nurtured her own resourcefulness and creativity.
The community still exists, but went through a period of intense struggle in the late 70s and 80s called the “House Boat Wars” that was between the houseboat community and wealthy developers that wanted them out. This no doubt was also influential on Annie Costello Brown’s upbringing and the work that she would one day create.
This history kept playing in my mind as I looked at the ACB pieces we are carrying – the eclipse necklace, with its combination of leather, chains and beads, the texture and blue beading of the cyanea necklace and the fierce looking linea blades necklace. I can see the influence of the Sausalito seas and unique architectural elements in the necklaces featured in our September catalog. The collection has something for everyone, ranging from bold statement pieces to delicate casual elegance, all with an underlying intrigue that speaks of turmoil, triumph and fierce individuality.
And just for you, here’s a little peek inside the ACB studio!
view all jewelry by ACB.
houseboat image source.
Happy Labor Day
Even though summer isn’t technically over yet, Labor Day always seems to mark the end of it. I get terribly sad this time of year…summer is my favorite, and I never want it to end. I’m holding onto our endless summer concept and trying not to let it go just yet.
Click on images for sources – last few by Dylan Forsberg, I love his photos!
Monday Quote
“You know that place between sleep and awake, the place where you can still remember dreaming? That’s where I’ll always love you. That’s where I’ll be waiting.”
– J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan
Breakfast of Champions
I’ve been waking up really early, and rather than lay there tossing and turning trying to fall back asleep, I’ve decided to put my mornings to good use. Like a crazy person I’ve been getting up and putting in early morning workouts. It’s great to get it out of the way, but it definitely leaves you wanting a good recharge with breakfast. As a solution, I’ve put together a great post-workout morning meal that is full of healthy energy and protein. The combination of nuts, seeds, and fruit helps rebuild those muscles, and gets you set to conquer the day.
Ingredients:
2 Slices of Flax Seed Bread
½ Banana
Almond Butter
Honey
Flax Seeds
Directions:
Spread almond butter on one slice of bread
Cut banana lengthwise into three slices and lay them on top of the almond butter.
Place both halves into a toaster oven (or regular oven) until both slices of bread are toasted.
Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with flax seeds
Place seconds slice on top, cut in half, and eat!
Saturday DO
DO: learn a new game
Games are a great thing to have in one’s artillery. On my recent trip to Hong Kong I realized why.
Firstly, getting there and back involves an extremely…long…voyage… After a while, you’ve finished the book you brought, you get sick of the movies and you’re left to your own devices. Luckily, the man next to me (we had been chatting back and forth) asked if I wanted to play a game. It was a simple word game – fun – and a godsent gift to make the time pass. After we got sick of one game we moved on to a new one, and before we knew it the plane was landing at our destination. Without our library of games, I don’t know how I would have stayed sane.
My second recent experience which taught me the power of games happened while I was out at night with two Chinese individuals – neither of which knew more than two words of English. We ended up playing a Chinese game that involved two cups, four die, and your hands – no words necessary. After that I taught them the old American hand slapping game that everyone used to play as a kid. They thought it was hysterical, and loved it. The exchange of games was fun and allowed me to connect with two people that I would otherwise have had no way to communicate with.
So I’ve come to appreciate the simple life pleasure that games provide. They introduce people, make memories, bring friends together, and help pass time. It’s always fun to learn a new a game, so try to pick up a new one. You’ll have it in your repetoire to pullout the next time you’re bored or in need. Whoever you’re playing with might be very grateful…
Style File: NYC Showroom Wholesale Sales Manager for Specialty Stores
This week’s style-file girl is one of our employees from the NYC showroom. She’s the fun loving girl behind wholesale sales to specialty stores which means that any time you see our brand in a specialty store, she helped get it there! Here’s a bit about her life and the style she lives it with…
Friday Fun: Ruby the Breakdancing Chihuahua
This dog cracks me up! She belongs to our creative design assistant and she is probably the tiniest dog I’ve ever seen – pictures really don’t do it justice. She’s a cutie and she loves to breakdance! Check it out :)
Free People Rocks NYC for Fashion’s Night Out!
It’s that time of year…
When fashion takes over New York City, bringing in packs of fashion writers and editors, designers, models and their impeccable off-duty style, and photographers there to capture all the Fashion Week action. We’re thrilled to be a part of all the Fashion’s Night Out excitement this year – our Soho and Fifth Ave locations will be staying open late with music, drinks by Kanon Vodka and Vita Coco Coconut Water, and events that you won’t want to miss!
Here’s the rundown:
At our Soho store, enjoy live acoustic music by singer/songwriter Jeremy Current from 8-9pm!
At our 5th Avenue store, take part in a bracelet DIY with our friends from Honestly…WTF at 7pm.
Afterwards, from 8-9PM, enjoy live music from one of our favorite bands, Adam and Dave’s Bloodline!
Also, our Creative Director and Art Director will be showing up at both boutiques to meet all of YOU! Be sure to catch up with them and say hi :)
You can RSVP for this event at the Facebook event page.
Hope to see you there!
xoxo
Office Style: Store Managers
This week the office has been very full! All of our store managers have come into town for workshops and meetings that are going on at the home office. As they rotate throughout the building you can’t help but notice the beautiful fashions they showed up in. Many have on Free People pieces, and it’s so fun to see how they interpret the items for themselves. True to Free People spirit, there’s a lot of flowing bohemian looks, gypsy-like patterns, and intricate crochet/lace. It’s not often that we get to have these ladies around, so we snapped their style while we could. Enjoy!
LOVE this combo of the sheer paisleys maxi dress, turquoise warrior necklace and sgt pepper suede ankle boots.
The summer layers maxi skirt and a pretty sweet bag!
The beautiful fp spun crochet maxi.
The scalloped lace crop top and a cute printed skirt.
The voile and lace slip and maxi cardigan from a couple of years back that I own and still love very much!
The cannaregio mesh top and red flares = perfection!
A Free People Rendezvous in Chicago!
Did you know that Chicago was recently rated one of the best cities to be a single lady? That got us thinking… what will our most devoted single (and coupled for that matter) ladies wear on their dates?
To celebrate our newest Free People store opening in Chicago, we decided to bring out our Art Director/Lead Stylist who is responsible for so many of the amazing Free People looks – and she will style you ladies for your next date night!
We hope you’ll join us, share some snacks provided by Southport Grocery & Cafe, and celebrate our new store opening!
The event will take place Tuesday, September 6th 6-9PM
at our new Chicago store, 3447 N Southport Ave, Chicago IL
Doors officially open on September 7th, so you will also get a first peek at the newest collection and have the chance to shop early!
And, please feel free to bring a guest, just let us know if you can attend and how many will be with you :) You can RSVP on our Facebook event page.
Looking forward to meeting all of you!
xo Free People