Rachel Ashwell has reopened a store in Los Angeles, in fact it is in the same location where she first opened Shabby Chic twenty years ago. I remember when Shabby Chic was the new "it" store in New York City; was it ever fun to go to Greene Street and plop down on that furniture! Unfortunately at that time one of the sofas or chairs would have consumed an entire room in our poor-starving-investment-banking-anaylst digs.
Anyway, I like very much that Rachel has stuck to her "look" over the years, which of course was a new take on classic English slipcovered furniture, but done in an oversized scale. She added lots of crystal chandeliers and Victoriana and softness: the tags for each piece of furniture used to be pinned on with a faded silk flower.
French Basketeer is still a very young company; 17 months now. But I am sticking to my "look" too and hope to not get into anything that is too "wierd" on the basket front. I thought it was interesting too that Rachel's new logo says "Timeless" and "Authentic". Hmm that sounds familiar: "Authentic French market baskets....now French Basketeer brings this timeless chic to the United States." That makes me feel good! There is a good reason people like, buy and keep their authentic & timeless pieces!
I am also of course constantly looking at the examples of other female entrepreneurs; Rachel was brought into over-expansion mode with a new group of partners a few years ago, and now has come back to her roots. Based on her blog, Rachel seems to have kept everything in perspective and has kept a great attitude, now plowing herself into the new stores and lines. Of course I dream of having a store one day; look at Rachel's lovely storefront. Thank you, Rachel, for motivating and inspiring me!
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