Autumn & Winter preview: Stars from her Fingertips

if the Twelve Princesses had never been caught,

spending every night dancing through the soles of their silk slippers and sleeping ‘til noon the next day...

if Odette had stayed the princess of the swans,

running through the dewy forest every night, picking primroses and counting the stars...

if Briar Rose had slept for eternity,

dreaming of the glittering cosmos as wild roses grew ‘round her body....

The Madonna Inn

I've wanted to make this blog post for a while now, but how does one say anything about the Madonna Inn that hasn't already been said?

(Plus, my photos just don't do it justice!)

Coming across a Madonna Inn sign on a drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco in April sparked something inside me. Thinking, "I know I've seen that name before," lead to a quick Google search, which lead to, "OHMYGODwehavetostoptherepleasepleasecanweplease?"

My roadtrip partner was one of my best friends and just as down-for-anything as I am, so she was happy to stop for lunch.  Honestly though, I don't think that even knowing me and my aesthetic for six years could have prepared her for this.

We walked into the dining room and both of us kinda flipped out.

The very abridged story of the Madonna Inn goes like this:

Alex Madonna, a wealthy construction entrepreneur, asks his wife to decorate his new hotel, this happens, and he thinks it's great.

(Total dreamboat, right?)

Each room is totally different:

These three have glitter walls and therefore are my favorites:

Pink kitsch is one of my favorite things in the entire world, so of course I love the Madonna Inn, from the baby-pink streetlights in the parking lot to the pink straw in my glass of water.

But I really love that it's so adored by people all over the world--not just lovers of kitsch, but lovers of the fact that something so unique, opulent and outlandish exists.

Room photos via Madonna Inn's official website. All other photos ©she and reverie.

she and reverie features: one dress, twenty-four hours (springtime)

Spring is here! The scent of flowering cherry trees fills the air, the waves crashing along the shores of Manhattan sound cool and inviting, and the weather is perfect for a few weeks.  An easy skirt-turned-dress is one of the best things to wear on days like these, so we've put together a few ideas on how to wear our exclusive Mermaid Skirt for 24 hours, from morning to night.

Click here to view more 1 in 24 posts.

Link therapy for April showers

For your body: our Venice Cardigan, lightweight but cozy in the perfect shade of pale blue & the most buttery silk jersey. (Cut like your boyfriend's, but better.) click

For your eyes: the doe-eyed art of Macoto Takahashi on Tumblr, one of our favorite illustrators for years and years. click

For your ears: "Strumpet" by Lois, a.k.a. Lois Maffeo, a key proponent of the Pacific Northwest's indie pop movement who seems to have unknowingly written the she and reverie theme song 20 years ago. click

For your tongue: A beautiful variation on your favorite childhood treat: handmade saffron rock candy, perfect for melting in cup of fine black tea. click

For your nose: Kept by MCMC Fragrances.  Red roses and black tea with clove, leather, and amber, "turning the notion of a kept woman on its head." click

For your soul: Spend an afternoon reading one of Andrew Lang's Fairy Books, filled with traditional fairy tales from all over the world and beautiful woodcut illustrations from the late 1800s. click

California Pink

Los Angeles

Santa Monica

San Luis Obispo

South of San Francisco

Oakland

San Francisco

San Francisco

Donner Lake

The inspiration behind Darling of the Sea

"Becky, I wanna borrow your boyfriend
I wanna kiss him long and slow
so why don't you just let him go?"
 

Last Spring, having just returned from my first trip to Los Angeles with the humidity of the NYC summer still weeks away, I was sketching for she and reverie's next capsule collection.  I was hoping to combine two of my favorite things--romantic rococo-era art and 1950s kitsch--but everything I sketched just felt so flat.  I had gone through three different print concepts in the week before, and while they were all cute, none of them were exactly what I wanted to move forward with.

At home, I sat at my candy pink desk with a glass of lemonade and a new pastel-rainbow manicure, listening to a playlist of The Soviettes, Sleater-Kinney & All Girl Summer Fun Band. Frustrated by sunk work and wanting to just-make-whatever-the-hell-I-wanted, I decided, "F❤ck it, I'm drawing mermaid princess clothes."

The result of my creative insolence, Darling of the Sea, subconsciously combined that first initial concept of Fragonard-meets-kitsch with the beachy feeling of a mermaid princess on land, running free in pastel rainbow hues, breaking hearts and breaking waves, a Coney Island princess.

For perfect warm weekends in a tie-front bralette and cut-offs, riding your cruiser down the boardwalk and laughing with your friends, spirits freed by the summer sun and a spiked lemonade.

For a hot weekday evening at home, sitting in front of the fan in a hand-dyed sundress, ice cubes clinking in your glass of water that can't seem to get cold enough.

Lounge pieces that can be worn all summer long: to the cafe in the morning, over your bikini at the shore, dancing on the rooftop later that night.

We shot the campaign for Darling of the Sea on Coney Island last summer, a talented team of women bringing our mermaid girl to life.  This was months before the effects of Superstorm Sandy even seemed possible; when the weather is that beautiful, it's easy to feel invincible.

After the storm, we decided to donate 10% from all sales of Darling of the Sea to Coney Island USA to help them rebuild.  So when you purchase from this collection, not only do you get beautiful garments made in NYC's garment district from a female-owned small business, you are also helping restore America's Playground for the 2013 season.

You can see more visual inspiration for this collection on our Darling of the Sea Tumblr tag, and purchase our capsule collection on our online boutique very soon.

Source: one and seven by Cristina Viscu for she and reverie, three from the designer's instagram, others unknown.

For the end of January...

Dreary days call for your favorite things...

For your body: our very-cozy Saltwater Tank Dress in pearly-white, edges bound in pure silk. click
For your eyes: prints by illustrator Caitlin Shearer, beautiful as always. click
For your ears: a Mirah remix. click
For your tongue: our favorite Green Cherry tea. click
For your nose: "Don't Get Me Wrong, Baby..." a fragrance by Etat Libre d'Orange. click
For your soul: "The Age of Feminine Drawing", an illustration book by Gingko Press. click