Everyone knows that the West Village is the place to go to find stylish, original finds. The independent boutiques and cobblestone streets set the area apart from the rest of Manhattan’s bustling Starbucks scenesters. One such of the Village’s best kept secret boutiques is NY Artificial.
Started in the late 90’s by current owner, Aaron Bond, and designer Alex Guzman, the boutique is a miasma of handmade purses, clothing and makeup, all created in the back of the store, on the premises. “We do not carry any of that China made, sweat factory clothing that is so common these days”, says Bond of the store, “Everything is high quality, made by independent designers, or hand loomed in the back of the store by Alex [Guzman]”. One can see the intricacy of the pieces, and the painstaking attention to quality is the weaving of the dresses. NYA caters to a certain type of woman, the woman who demands respect upon first glance, who cares for her look and the perceptions that others have of her, but not so much as to lose her own hard won originality. “We used to carry a lot more unusual, fantastical pieces, but with the recession they just weren’t selling.” says Bond “People are buying more basic right now. Desperation leads to conservatism.”
Unfortunately, politics does tend to dictate the evolution (or devolution) of fashion. What used to be a several location store has waned down to a single location in the Village. However, NYA is hardly dying; its customer basis still includes A-listers such as Brooke Shields, Maggie Gyllenhall and Camilla Belle. However, NYA does not discriminate against its less famous clientele, “You walk into Catherine Mallandrino and if you’re not a size 0, they’ll turn their backs” says Bond. Not so at NYA. NYA caters to a variety of different sizes and style preferences, offering a unique array of entirely vegan, cruelty free garments in a wide variety of materials. Some of its best finds include a hand loomed, hunter green frock dress, with detailed hand stitched patterns and an abbreviated hemline; a floral printed silk, sheet dress, and several radiant colors of handmade angora sweaters. My personal favorite? A silver studded satchel that will officially be topping the list for my upcoming birthday… and probably yours now too!