Our inspiration
Edith Bouvier Beale and her life at Grey Gardens during the 1930s and 40s serves as our muse for Grey Gardens Collections. Our pieces reflect different aspects of her life as she grew up at Grey Gardens in East Hampton, New York. A popular young woman, Edie’s social calendar was filled with parties, fashion shows and society dinners.
She also attended the Spence School in New York and Miss Porter's finishing school in Farmington, Connecticut, essential in shaping her into an accomplished, creative and talented person. Little Edie meticulously filled scrapbooks and journals with photographs and party invitations and wrote almost daily about the events in her life.
Vintage Jewelry
Edith Bouvier Beale had fabulous style in her younger days, as evidenced by the large number of high-style fashion photographs that she left behind. Her style carried forth through her entire life, and manages to continue to capture our imagination. Her famed "Costume of the Day," seen in the 1975 documentary, Grey Gardens might be unusual, but it was entirely her own.
Our Vintage Jewelery Collection is inspired by Little Edie's fashion sense, and the style of her times – reflected in the eclectic, whimsical, charming, sparkly and unique pieces that bring her to mind.
Velvet Cuffs and Bracelets
Our velvet cuffs reflect the lifestyle of Grey Gardens in its heyday in the 30s. All pieces are designed exclusively for Grey Gardens Collections.
Welcome to Grey Gardens Collections
Welcome to Grey Gardens Collections.
To introduce myself, my name is Eva Marie Beale, and I am married to Bouvier Beale — whose Grandmother (Big Edie) and Aunt (Little Edie) lived at Grey Gardens in East Hampton. Their story was made famous by the Maysles Brothers documentary in the 70s, and more recently by the HBO movie, “Grey Gardens,” starring Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore.
After Little Edie passed away in 2002, we made the decision to put together a book of photographs and writing from her early life and published “Edith Bouvier Beale of Grey Gardens, A Life in Pictures.” We wanted to share some of the images we have of Edie as she was growing up, and give some background on her early history.
While working on the book, I became absorbed into the time period and the style of the era. Little Edie inspired me in many ways as I began to understand her story.
For years I have been treasure hunting at flea markets around the world and developing my own design sense. As these two interests came together, it seemed a natural progression to develop a line of items called “Grey Gardens Collections,” as a tribute to Little Edie.
Where to start? Naturally, I thought the best way to start would be with antiques and vintage items. I was very familiar with some of the items that Edie left behind, like her famous French opera glasses – or a beautiful silver tray. These items share one thing in common — opulence.
My desire has been to develop a style defined by luxury combined with comfort that evokes the lifestyle of the Big and Little Edie at Grey Gardens during the 30s and 40s. I have always been attracted to antique paintings, fabric, silver, ironstone – and other antiques that together create décor with an eclectic feel.
One of Grey Gardens Collections’ first projects was an antique hydrangea fabric design inspired by photos of Big and Little Edie posing outside of the house, in front of Hydrangea bushes. Our Antique Hydrangea fabric is available in three colorways (pink, blue and white) and also available as pillows.
We will also be developing wallpaper, duvet covers, table covering and more. Stay tuned!
Big Edie (left) and Little Edie (right) pose in front of the Hydrangeas & Rhododendrons at Grey Gardens