| Rachel Ashwell | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 30, 1959 Cambridge, England |
| Ethnicity | English American |
| Occupation | author, designer, entrepreneuer |
| Years active | 1989-present |
| Known for | her name being synonymous with shabby chic |
| Website | |
| www.ShabbyChic.com | |
Rachel Ashwell (born Rachel Greenfield on October 30, 1959), in Cambridge, England, is an author, designer and entrepreneur who was raised in London.
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While in her teens, Ashwell, whose mother restored antique dolls and teddy bears and father was a secondhand rare books dealer, began selling antiques at London outdoor markets. She dropped out of school at the age of 16.[1] She told The Sunday Times in 2004, "Following my father around the markets taught me how to make quick decisions about what was or was not worth buying."[2]
Ashwell began a career in her native England as a wardrobe and prop stylist doing TV commercials and photo shoots. Ashwell moved to the United States in the early 1980s, opening her first store in Santa Monica in 1989.[3] The name Rachel Ashwell, according to Huffington Post, has been synonymous with shabby chic for 20 years.[4]
Ashwell started her home furnishings company and opened her first store in Santa Monica in 1989. Since she grew up going to flea markets, it was a natural for her to use them as a source. She brought in her flea market finds to her shop for her customers and soon couldn't keep them in stock.[5]
From 1999 to 2003, Ashwell hosted a TV show, titled "Rachel Ashwell's Shabby Chic," on E! and the Style Network.[6][7] The New York Times, on the Encyclopaedia Britannica, in its annual trend roundup in 1992, recognized Ashwell’s company and her signature product, the slipcover, writing, “not the trim, well-fitting kind, but sloppy, wrinkled ones dubbed ‘Shabby Chic’ by a California company of the same name.”[8]
In 2004, Ashwell purchased a home in Malibu Colony. Oprah featured Ashwell on her webside with a tour of Ashwell's beach house.[9] During an appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show on January 1, 2006, Oprah was quoted as saying, "Rachel Ashwell single-handedly turned shabby into chic and it caught on like wildfire!" In April 2010, Ashwell was one of 10 interior designers showcased on Oprah.com.[10] When Ashwell's home sold in July 2010 for $3.55 million, the Los Angeles Times covered the sale, describing Ashwell as "the creator of the Shabby Chic brand."[11]
As reported in The New York Times early in 2009, after 20 years in business, Ashwell's company filed bankruptcy,[12] which caused her to reevaluate. The site Shelterpop.com asked, "Can Rachel Ashwell's Shabby Chic Survive in Modern Times?"[13] Ashwell, the article said, weathered the bankruptcy of her company "and embarked on a redux."
Also, Rachel Ashwell bedding is available at national retail chains and outlets.[14]
TV Guide Listings [1]