A Gap Guru’s Gorgeous Brooklyn Pad
The kitchen chairs are Bertoia.
We know you and your fiancé love to cook and entertain at home...what's the secret to dressing for a dinner party? Any other dinner party secrets you can share?
“A fresh pedicure and loose-fitting pants are a must. I’m very casual when I entertain––my apartment and back garden are so informal, I sort of feel silly wearing anything but sandals when I’m home, and most of the time I’ll just go barefoot. I figure that if I’m comfortable then my guests will be, too. As for secrets, I’m a firm believer in cooking what you know when you’re throwing a dinner party.”
In the kitchen, Jane wears a Marni top and collar, a Jeremy Laing skirt, and YSL heels while attempting to juggle clementines.
What inspires your style these days?
“Minimalism and comfort. I want to wear clothes that reflect a balanced mix of what’s happening in fashion right now (hence the minimalism), and in my life right now (hence the comfort; working as I do, it’s best my clothes not be too fussy). Conveniently, these two things often go hand-in-hand.”
The bar is chaperoned by a portrait of former NYC mayor, Fiorello La Guardia. Jane found this home trick––turn an ugly radiator into a pretty tabletop––in Domino magazine (RIP).
What do you love most about living in Brooklyn?
“Three things. The open sky: There are no high-rise buildings in my neighborhood, which means shorter shadows and a lot more sun on the sidewalks. The food: At Caputo’s on Court Street you can buy fresh mozzarella from an Italian man who’s been making it by hand for nearly fifty years. ‘37 years in Brooklyn, 15 in the old country,’ he’ll tell you. And, lastly, Prospect Park: Its grass is always greenest to me.”
In the bedroom, Jane wears a Chloé sweater and Current/Elliot for Marni jeans. The rug is Madeline Weinrib. Jane made the decorative pillow behind her by sewing the embroidered placket of an old shirt onto a plain linen case.
You spent some time living on a remote farm, too...coming from such a hardcore fashion background, was the change of environment refreshing?
“To be fair, I only spent one week on the farm. But yes, it was totally refreshing, and one of the best experiences I’ve had to date. I laughed more than I had in months during that very short period of time (mostly at myself––the farmers who I stayed with had a terrific sense of humor, particularly about the fact that a fashion girl was traipsing around their organic homestead in ill-appropriate clothes weeding leek beds and chasing chickens for slaughter). The work was so physically challenging, and the dirt got everywhere (everywhere), but I loved it. Friends will confirm: I’m a nature girl at heart. Plus, I’d get to finish every day with a communal dinner made entirely from food that the farmers had grown, and that I’d helped to harvest. It was just delicious.”
"My dressing room is the only room in the house where I can decorate however I please. I keep it girlier on purpose."
in NYC