The Inspiration
Our women’s stylist, Gayle, spotted this intricate handwoven jacket (it’s
traditionally worn as part of laborers’ uniforms) at the famous Casa de Artes
market in La Antigua, Guatemala, while shooting our June ’10 Style Guide.
“The colors and the sense of detail blew me away,” says Gayle. “It’s so
unstudied but so beautiful.”

The (New) Interpretation
When our design team spotted Gayle wearing her find around the office, they quite
literally demanded the shirt off her back. Using the boxy popover silhouette and
wide-brim collar as inspiration, they created a luxurious new spin on the style in
sumptuous silk shot through with neon-pink thread. As Gayle puts it: “It’s a little
less marketplace, a little more Madison Avenue.”

To shop this J.Crew Collection popover, click here.

Photographs by Bryan Derballa

Shop our Stubbs & Wootton for J.Crew styles here, and
explore our entire collection of loafers here.

MEET DAVID
David Moltz of D.S. & Durga moves fast. Within 10 minutes of entering the small
500-square-foot Gowanus, Brooklyn, studio—stocked to the gills with oils, essences
and alcohols (you walk out of there feeling like you’re floating)—we had already
crossed into the second- or third-date round of questioning. We’d sniffed a fragrance
he had designed after his ’85 Mercedes Diesel (“You gotta smell this! It smells like
my car: saffron-tanned leather, diesel gasoline”), discussed his sweater (“It’s
J.Crew”) and made fools of ourselves on camera for an ongoing video series he
shoots on his Mac (it features him and anyone who visits the studio). Plus, we
listened to his massive collection of classical vinyl. In short, David is fun and
fanatical about scents—the ideal choice for our men’s designer, Frank, to partner
with on an exclusive fragrance.

HOW IT WENT DOWN…
David
“Frank came to me with the idea about this day he had in Big Sur. He talked about
waking up early in the morning and taking a walk, smelling all the wild herbs, sage,
eucalyptus…and those scents mingling with the ocean and the kelp.”

Frank
“The California coast is kind of sacred to me, and it has been an inspiration for us in
several men’s collections here at J.Crew. It’s undisturbed, understated… It’s raw in
a way, and you kind of have to search for the beauty in it.”  

David
“We had this idea about the guys who settled that area—Big Sur, Point Lobos, Point
Reyes. They were rangers…real rugged dudes…but strangely refined. And when
they shaved in the mornings, they’d go out to gather local ingredients and plants to
add to alcohol and use as a shaving tonic. That’s what we envisioned this
smelling like.”  

Frank
“The air is rich out there—and it stays with you. I can smell it now [laughs].”  

David
“I researched this area so much that I actually wanted to continue altering the final
product, keep working. But Frank loved it so much he said, ‘No, this is it.”

Photography by Bryan Derballa

Our collaboration with D.S. & Durga, Homesteader’s Cologne Water, is available in
stores and online now.

How did the idea for Soludos come about? 
I grew up wearing espadrilles as a kid, spending summers along the Spanish coast.
The simple rope-soled traditional espadrille was hard to find when I moved to New
York. I knew it would be perfect for the city lifestyle, so I looked to bring a bit of
the Mediterranean to New York while adding interesting prints to a classic shape. 

Now that you’ve settled in New York, what’s one of your favorite spots?
Tacombi at Fonda Nolita in Soho is right around the corner from me and it is like
walking into a summer wonderland escape even on the most frigid winter days. You
can get fresh agua de piña and fish tacos served out of a vintage VW with lights
strung from the ceiling…It feels like an authentic pop-up beach barbecue from a
town on the Mexican coast.

You’re headed out to Coachella next week, how long have you been going?
This will be my fourth year, but each year has a different lineup and vibe, so it
continues to surprise everyone, including me. It’s become a nice annual ritual to
welcome the warm weather and the start of spring.

What act are you most looking forward to seeing? 
Phoenix on the main stage will have the crowd dancing in the desert to their new
album. (Last time they played Madison Square Garden, Daft Punk
made a cameo, so anything is possible.) 

NICK’S COACHELLA PLAYLIST:
—
“Elephant” by Tame Impala
—
“Sun” by Two Door Cinema Club
—
“Entertainment” by Phoenix
—
“Keep You” by Wild Belle
—
“Girls and Boys” by Blur
—
“Genesis” by Grimes
—
“All of Me” by Tanlines 
—

Shop our selection of Soludos here and shop all of Nick Brown’s
Coachella essentials here.

Photographs by Bryan Derballa

Photography by Shawn Brackbill.
 
Shop our entire assortment of Ebbets Field for J.Crew ball caps here.  

Our V-neck pocket tee is made of 100% pure linen and offered in everything from
classic white (Jenna’s favorite) to neon kiwi.
It’s available online here.

Your signature dessert…
I love making icebox cakes! They are the easiest things in the world. You just need
wafers (homemade or not) that are light and can soak up lots of whipped cream so
that they take on a cakelike texture. You also need organic whipping cream that you
beat yourself. The cakes look beautiful and complicated with all the layers,
but really you can’t mess them up!

Favorite outfit to cook in…
Honestly? My undies! It gets hot in the kitchen! And I wear this white linen, lacy
old-fashioned apron over it that my dear friend brought me from Hong Kong. If
that’s not safe to print, then say I cook in my blue J.Crew drawstring skinny
sweatpants and a tank top. They are easy to clean, but they look nice enough
to keep on when guests arrive.

We love the turntables in your living room off the kitchen (they were a gift
from her husband, Tom, who thought she should take DJ classes).
What’s usually playing on them?
All of my cheesy pop music! My husband hates it (I think he secretly loves it), so I
play it while I’m cooking because he’s usually too excited for dinner to complain.

We hear you’re known for throwing themed dinner parties on your terrace in
the summer. Any themed parties in the works?
Mexican is always a great summer theme, especially if you can get your hands on a
fun frozen-margarita machine. For my birthday this year, I’m having a mermaid
party, where we are going to grill lobsters and eat oysters and dress up like
modern-day mermaids. Very Daryl Hannah in Splash.

What’s always in your fridge?
Organic whole milk, organic eggs, coconut water, Coca-Cola (glass bottles only),
Sarabeth’s plum jam, Vermont Butter & Cheese lightly salted butter, an emergency
bottle of Dom. More mayonnaise than you could ever imagine.

Your ultimate comfort food?
Graeter’s ice cream.

Favorite place to have a meal in the city when you’re not cooking?
Balthazar. People relegate it to the realm of tourists, but it’s the best-run and most
consistent restaurant in New York. My mom has owned farm-to-table restaurants
since the 1980s, so I grew up understanding the importance of
quality sustainable ingredients.

Recent splurge in the kitchen?
I’m kind of a purist and don’t think there are that many specialty tools you really
need. But I did get some new Japanese knives that are pretty special.

Recent splurge in your closet?
A white Givenchy long-sleeve dress. I love long sleeves.

RECIPE FOR SARAH HOOVER’S EIGHT-LAYER ICEBOX CAKE

Sarah makes homemade chocolate wafers using a recipe courtesy of Smitten
Kitchen. (Find it here.) You can also use Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers,
which work just as well.

INGREDIENTS
3 cups of heavy cream
3 tablespoons of sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
To make the cream, beat together heavy cream, sugar and vanilla extract until soft
peaks form. The trick is to under whip the cream. It has to be a little wet or else the
cake gets too dense. From there, on a cake stand, arrange the wafers side by side and
spread cream on top. Stack the wafers and cream until you’ve made several layers.
Cover the cake with plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for several hours
or overnight to cool.

Photography by Bryan Derballa

For more on J.Crew Collection, click here, and shop Sarah’s favorite skinny
fleece pant here.

Tell us about where you live in Los Angeles.
In a secret pocket of Echo Park, near Elysian Park. You have to drive up a hill through
three blind hairpin turns to get to our house.   

What place in LA reminds you of New York?
I’ve learned that it’s really apples and oranges. That said, the restaurant Canelé in
Atwater Village has a certain bustling, cramped charm that feels like the East Village.   

From 2008 to 2011, you designed a line of eco-conscious clothing called Bodkin.
You did it all yourself, right? Tell us a bit about that process.
It started on a whim and it was a wild ride. Having been a fashion writer and editor 

for years, I wanted to make organic and sustainable clothes that had a strong aesthetic point
of view and started experimenting without any sort of business plan. One thing led to
another, and in two years it was 40 styles a season in 40 stores.

I never had more than one employee and I had to learn about everything from scratch.
Since then, I’ve returned to writing but may bring the line back sooner
or later—stay tuned!

Tell us why you decided to start Nature Baby.
When we had our first child, we fell in love with the idea that we could make
beautiful and pure products for our baby—and that other people would want them
for their kids too. 

What was the first product you made?
That’s going back a while! Most likely an organic cotton kimono bodysuit or an
organic merino wool baby jumper. Back when we began, organic textiles were just
beginning, so we would have to call up farms to see who was growing the raw
product. Then we had to take it through all the processes ourselves, via mills and
knitters, to create the final fabric.

What’s been your proudest moment so far?
Walking down the street in New York and seeing a baby wearing our stripe booties.
We love that people get what we are into, no matter where they are.

What’s an average day like for you?
It usually starts with walking our dog, Maggie, then getting the kids off to school,
followed by visiting our stores in Auckland and finally heading into the office.
We always have new samples coming through, so we have to choose colors, do fittings
and refine the designs. What we do is all in the details!

How would you describe the Nature Baby for J.Crew collection in
three words?
Seaside, horizons and purity.

Shop all Nature Baby here.