In today’s installment of our local holiday shopping series, we visit Artemesia—a clothing and accessories shop that opened Black Friday on Elm Street—and talk to store manager Emma Wiltshire.
Here’s our conversation.
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Aurora Coat in Tapestry. The colorway is ‘woodland,’ made with salvaged fabric. $425 at Artemesia, 78 Elm St. Credit: Michael Dinan
New Canaanite: Please give us some background on Artemesia and tell us what you have here.
Emma Wiltshire: Wendy Akroyd is our owner and designer. She started her first store in 2018 in Hudson, New York. She was sewing in the back and selling out of the front. We still have that storefront. It’s one of our three storefronts. New Canaan is our third. Our second is Great Barrington, in the Berkshires in Massachusetts. Our warehouse is up there, and our whole company is based on natural fibers, ethically sourced textiles—small batch textiles, so we never mass produce. Everything is made with purpose, and that’s what we have on offer here. Our production studios are all in the United States, and we prioritize domestic production.
Herbal pillows, stuffed with balsam and lavender from organic farms in Vermont, handmade by owner Wendy Akroyd, ranging from $55 to $145, at Artemesia, 78 Elm St. Credit: Michael Dinan
What sort of things are people coming in for this holiday season?
We’ve had a really good reception here. It’s obviously our first time in Connecticut, but a lot of our radius of customers is around New York City. We’ve had some people come in knowing us. We have a big social media presence. Stocking things have been really big. Scents. We source all of our different brands that create a lifestyle image for us. So we have Brooklyn Candle Company. We have Tatine Candles, which are a Chicago based brand. We have all these cosmetics. They’re all naturally harvested, organic materials, safe to use everywhere. Those have been really popular for us. But clothing-wise, the first rack over there [inside the door], Wendy creates in her home studio—ponchos, shrugs, all 100% wool, some cashmere blends, and tapestry coats with salvaged fabric.
The Pebble Wool Shrug ($325) at Artemesia, 78 Elm St. Credit: Michael Dinan
I know it’s early going, but what’s your sense of what it’s like to be a retailer here?
Obviously we’re brand new to the environment, but a lot of people have come in saying that they’re looking forward to having a change of pace, especially since there are box stores here. I think we bring an artisan element to Elm Street.
New Canaan has a lot of new residents and your store is also new. What would you tell someone who hasn’t been able to see this shop yet about Artemesia?
Colored Herringbone Poncho $365 at Artemesia, 78 Elm St. Credit: Michael Dinan
Artemesia has something for everyone. Our whole motto and message that we build our brand around is a ‘capsule wardrobe.’ So these are pieces that can last forever. It’s 100 percent Lithuanian linen. It’s 100 percent cashmere, Italian cashmere wool. So if you treat them well, they’ll last forever and you can wear them 15 different times with 15 different outfits. So we have something for every body type, for every style. We’re just looking to build on your own wardrobe.
Artemesia at 78 Elm St. (here on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest) is open 11 to 6 every day but Sunday, which is 11 to 5.