Caroline Kennedy

Walking and Windows
April 26, 2007

I live in the suburbs of New Jersey and commute into Manhattan by train to work every weekday. I then walk from the train station to our offices. Most days, I enjoy the walk (I’m not too keen on it when it rains or is freezing cold!); it gets me moving – just like dancing does. In the morning, it helps me to wake up; in the evening, it helps me clear my head. While I am walking, I think about things and work out problems, but most of all I take in the sights and sounds of New York around me.

The routes that I walk between Penn Station and our office, which will vary slightly depending on the traffic lights, go through some of the different wholesale districts. (I don’t like to wait for a light to change if I don’t have to.) As I walk, of course, I love to look in the windows of the businesses that I pass. Most of them are not very interesting and are chock-a-block filled with stuff – just like the interior of their premises.

But, there are two wholesale storefronts, both of them fashion jewelry importers, that I love to pass. They both stand out; their windows are eye-catching and creative. And the ideas are very simple and they make a statement. I took pictures the other morning of the one store at the corner of 30^th Street and 6^th Avenue shown here. The windows are smaller display windows on the side of the building. The centerpieces of each display are these painted fashion illustrations that are changed at least seasonally; they accessorize the paintings with their jewelry and rhinestones. It’s a very minimalist approach to display and certainly the direct opposite approach from most of their neighbors.

Every so often they will add into the window display, those small jewelry “dress form” mannequins, which they “costume” in tulle or organza or leaves or some other appropriate material for the mood of the season and the featured jewelry. (The other storefront whose windows I also admire uses these mannequins in a similar creative way, and it wouldn’t surprise me if it is the work of the same dresser.) It’s a very retail approach to window dressing and proves that you never know where you might find an inspiring idea. For me, I just enjoy walking by and appreciating the look.

Posted by Caroline Kennedy on April 26, 2007 | Comments (0)