LoveShackFancy, a bubblegum-pink boutique full of bobbles, frills, and floral dresses, is the latest national fashion house to open an outpost in Nashville.
Inspired by dreamy travel and vintage finds, the clothing line is known for its romantic and whimsical designs with an emphasis on lace details, hand-dyed fabrics, soft hues, and floral prints. The brand was founded by Rebecca Hessel Cohen in 2013. The former fashion editor was in the midst of creating bridesmaid dresses for her own wedding when she caught the design bug. As her passion grew, she found her footing and established the style that would become the signature of LoveShackFancy.
“I’ve always been a lover of vintage fashion, thanks to my mom,” Cohen says. “The elements inspired me to [design the dresses and] create a brand built with special, timeless, and high-quality pieces meant to pass along from generation to generation.”
In fact, it was Cohen’s mother who inspired the brand’s iconic name.
“As collectors of vintage, we were going to start a prop-styling business online,” she says. “My mom would style different houses and call them ‘love shacks’. We did a shoot with British Magazine, and someone had said, ‘It’s a love shack, but it’s love shack fancy,’ and she loved that. When I was starting this brand, I thought of a million names and nothing felt right except for LoveShackFancy.”
Those same muses that first caught Cohen’s eye for design still inspire her today.
“Our design process always begins with vintage inspiration,” she says. “[We] look back at some of our favorite looks from a wide span of decades and pull elements of them to merge with our Victorian silhouettes to create a modern, yet timeless iteration.”
While the brand’s signature dresses have created a cult-like following for the brand (think floral prints, frills, pintucking, and embroidery), LoveShackFancy also offers a variety of other apparel and accessories, including adorable mommy and me sets and sweet swimsuits with matching towels. Home décor, including elegant vintage-inspired wallpaper, a whimsical assortment of bedding in heirloom florals, and heirloom-worthy table linens round out the shop’s offerings.
Since its inception and first brick-and-mortar store opened in Sag Harbor, LoveShackFancy has installed fourteen storefronts around the country, including the Nashville location. For the Music City store, Cohen and her team designed a pink paradise honky tonk-inspired 1,330-square-foot storefront in 12 South. The exterior of the unmistakable shop is decked out in LoveShackFancy’s signature blush color alongside a hand-painted mural by local artist Natasha May Platt.
Inside, the shop boasts Nashville-inspired interior design from top to bottom, including a pink-and-white checkered floor, hand-painted guitars, rustic ceilings, and the brand’s iconic pink Ikat Rose wallpaper. Playful, feminine dresses mingle with cowboy hats, boots, and more. In tribute to Nashville’s music scene, the space is lit by a custom neon sign that reads, ‘cowgirls wear pink,’ and a stage offers local performers a fashionable place to showcase their talent.
“It was our vision to mix our pink LoveShackFancy essence and blend it with some Nashville flavor,” Cohen says. “We wanted to combine the elements of the two together to create an authentic, all-encompassing experience for our shoppers. Exclusive to the location, we have hand-painted cowboy boots, embellished vintage band tees, dreamy cowgirl shirts, and custom Nashville tees.”
It’s a match made in heaven for Cohen.
“Opening a shop in Nashville feels like a dream come true. [It] has always been a city that’s inspired us. As a woman-owned and female-led brand, we’ve really looked up to all of the female artists and disruptors that have come out of Nashville,” Cohen says. “This city has such a vibrant and free-spirited energy to it that reflects who the LoveShackFancy girl is, and we can’t wait to see how this city blends with our brand.”
(2301 12th Ave. S.; loveshackfancy.com)