Ace & Jig designers Cary Vaughan and Jenna Wilson are in the business of making clothes and textiles that empower a larger community of women and protect the earth through safe, all-natural, and no-waste manufacturing. “It’s a really soulful process,” Vaughn said of their hand-weaving and dyeing operation in India. “Everything we make is effortless and seasonless—it’s not about being trendy.” For Spring, Vaughn and Wilson stayed true to their brand ethos by producing a collection that feels personal and, most importantly, full of positivity. Coming up on their second girls-only, design-centric road trip across the American Southwest this fall, they were inspired by one particularly bold female artist of the past.
Anne Ryan was a writer who turned to Abstract Expressionist painting in her 50s. She was part of a group of feminist artists who came up during the post–World War II era and who were recently honored with an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art titled “Making Space: Women Artists and Postwar Abstraction.” Vaughn and Wilson borrowed from Ryan’s found-object collages and serene color palettes. Lavender, marigold, and dusty rose stood out among the reds and oranges, woven into soft, reversible off-the-shoulder tops, belted tunics, and smock skirts. Layered all together, the patterned jumpsuits, button-downs, and dresses looked like one of Ryan’s mesmerizing works of art—an abstract mix of textures, colors, and silhouettes.
There is a lot of variety in Vaughn and Wilson’s Spring collection, something for every kind of woman, whether she’s a writer, painter, designer, or dreamer. There are shoes too: The ladies teamed up with Aurora James of Brother Vellies to create a special Ace & Jig textile version of her best-selling Burkina sandals. As Wilson noted of the cheery, hopeful new wares during the presentation, “Joy and an uplift in mood was top of mind for us. We wanted to use joyful fabrics—fabrics that feel passionate and that you can feel good about wearing. Like Ryan’s work, each one of our textiles tells a story.” If this lineup is any indication, it seems as if their narrative is only getting stronger.
