Joan Bostwick is not subtle. She is Fancy Girl, and her handmade oversized vivid ostrich feather brooches have been turning heads all over social media, appearing on all of the best dressed color maximalists. Fancy Girl Boutique NYC dresses brides, dancers, Kentucky Derby guests, and the most creative technicolor stylists. Her motto? “We Make Everyone Fancy!” I am so excited to work with Joan, and thrilled that she agreed to an interview with DomaChroma Magazine. Follow her on Instagram @fancygirlboutiquenyc, and see all of her vivid work at fancygirlboutiquenyc.com.
DomaChroma: What is your favorite color, and why?
Joan Bostwick: That’s a hard one. I love so many colors. It depends on the moment. A color I wear feels different from a color on a wall, or a color that matches my mood. I tend to gravitate toward bright, bold colors, but I also love rich fall tones like deep burgundies and vibrant pinks. As an artist, it always comes down to the mood, the moment, the location, and the energy around me.
DC: The world knows you as Fancy Girl! Tell us about the girl who became NYC’s maker of fancy!
JB: Growing up in New York City, the fashion capital of the world, I was always drawn to style. I dreamed of being a fashion model, though my height had other plans. Still, my love for style, passion, and uniqueness never left me. I never wanted to look like everyone else, but always wanted my own identity to shine. That style brought me to Fancy Girl, knowing everyone can be fancy in their own unique way.
DC: Your motto is “We Make Everyone Fancy!” In color terms, what does fancy mean to you?
JB: My motto is: we make everyone fancy. We believe in giving everyone their own style. We don’t judge. Our desire is to make everyone feel good, unique, and special. In color terms, what does fancy mean? Fancy means happiness. It’s that feeling good inside and out, knowing that when we walk into any room, we own our power, our style, our identity, and we do it with love, happiness, and joy.
DC: Why feathers? What do feathers do with color that no fabric, bead, or ribbon can?
JB: Feathers, especially ostrich feathers, are happy and whimsical. They bring a special kind of joy because they move with such ease, the way you feel watching a young couple in love, or when a baby is born, that light, energetic, yet fancy feeling. Ostrich feathers bring a flowing, whimsical, good-energy feel to any moment.
DC: Where does NYC hide its best color, and how does it end up in your work?
JB: New York City’s best color isn’t hidden in one place. It’s everywhere, because it’s filled with love and confidence. It shows up the moment you walk into a room and feel good about yourself, inside and out. How you feel is how the color represents itself. Being a lifelong New Yorker, I can wear any color and feel good in it. That’s Fancy Girl.
DC: What’s your message to someone considering a hot pink feather brooch, worried it’s “too much?”
JB: Considering a hot pink brooch? It represents so much. Womanhood, beauty, power, energy, love, confidence, and honestly, so does every other color. Every color tells a story: the story of the moment, and the story of the person wearing it, going out with girlfriends, on vacation, to a fundraiser, or into a business meeting. What makes Fancy Girl so special is that it’s handcrafted with love and quality, made to make a statement in every room you walk into.
