Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
We’ve noted that West Asheville-based dress designing star R. Brooke Priddy has a new shop. Here’s a reminder about her big sale at Ship to Shore on Saturday, and a lovely story by Asheville Scene reporter Carol Motsinger about Priddy’s new digs:
This heirloom decor presents the studio as a memoir; a rich reflection of Priddy’s heritage and values; it was Marcheta who taught her to “invest” her work with a story, to make it memorable and make it last.
But the space also reads like the first few lines in this innovative artist and entrepreneur’s next creative chapter.
“I wanted a space with more privacy, more room,” she said, compared with her previous home of five years, a brick storefront on West Asheville’s Haywood Road. “I really want to have a dye garden outside. I want to be able to dye the garments with plants I’ve actually grown. I want to hang my garments out to dry in the sunshine. I get really inspired by just having more nature in my life.”
A dye garden? That’s right. Not just handmade, but — by growing and making the dyes for her fabric — her dresses will also be utterly homegrown. Instead of farm-to-table, think yard-to-closet.
Priddy’s work is already celebrated as haute handmade. Ship to Shore has garnered attention from such publications as Lucky and Southern Living for its unconventional elegance. Priddy’s signature is dramatically draped stretch fabrics that confidently skim the female form.
The sale:
The new Ship to Shore Shop, 85 State St., West Asheville, will be celebrated during the annual clearance sale 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday. The sale will feature Brooke Priddy originals for up to 70 percent off.
For more on Priddy, visit shiptoshore.com.
