Just a year ago, on her 34th birthday, designer Emily Dawn Long found herself with a mere $34 in her bank account. That’s a stark contrast to her current success, a journey she recently reflected on this past summer. Today, she occupies three bustling units on Chrystie Street – one for inventory, one for her personal office, and a vibrant showroom constantly filled with customers, stylists, and buyers eager to explore her latest designs. Her showroom is a treasure trove of unique clothing and accessories, from spiral barrettes and cowrie shell jewelry to elegant, backless dresses. These distinct pieces are released spontaneously, whenever inspiration strikes, and are born from Emily’s intuitive taste and ideas gathered from her close circle of friends.
“I’m constantly checking in with my community, asking, ‘What do we need? What feels missing?’” she shares.
One recent collaboration with her friends led to a hat playfully shaped like a pomegranate. Emily’s talent lies in transforming collective and personal desires into unique, delightful, and practical wardrobe additions. “She truly understands how to create objects and designs that appeal to everyone, from a baby to their mother,” explains Allegra Samsen, a 26-year-old model and artist based in New York. Allegra first discovered Emily’s work while attending school on the West Coast. Their friendship blossomed after Emily spotted a TikTok video of Allegra’s stunning long hair and sent her a unique hedgehog-shaped claw hair clip.
Operating outside the conventional fashion system, Emily Dawn Long embraces her role as an independent designer. However, this past winter, she presented her debut ready-to-wear collection for both men and women in Paris during men’s fashion week. This move garnered significant buzz, attracting celebrity stylists and editors from major fashion publications, though reviews of her collection are still anticipated. Her typical day now often involves a whirlwind of activity: “We’ll receive an email from a stylist, then someone drops by for a pick-up, followed by a casual chat. Next, there’s an official appointment, and then, suddenly, an email from Jeremy Allen White arrives…” she recounts. “Every day is a new adventure, and we’re constantly creating,” she adds.
The Floppy Hat That Captured Global Attention
Six years ago, the now 35-year-old Emily Dawn Long, with her distinctive ’90s-inspired blond pixie cut, started creating small batches of clothing and accessories. Her early clientele consisted mostly of friends and their creative contacts – artists, models, and stylists. Among her initial creations for her namesake brand, an unexpected star emerged: “A Hat Named Wanda.” This floppy, crocheted hat, playfully named after the movie “A Fish Called Wanda,” became a sensation. In 2022, it caught the eye of Kendrick Lamar, who famously wore it on multiple occasions – at a Los Angeles Dodgers game, in his “Count Me Out” music video, and during his Coachella performance.
The hat’s popularity exploded, gracing the heads of numerous celebrities including Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Ayo Edebiri, Lewis Hamilton, and Hailey Bieber. Priced at just over $200 (with other Emily Dawn Long pieces ranging from $300 to $800), it offers an accessible alternative to high-end designer accessories. Each hat is meticulously handmade by a small collective of female artisans in Peru. Beyond its quality and affordability, the hat’s growing cult status adds an undeniable allure. This past summer, while attending the U.S. Open, Emily herself saw her creation on the Jumbotron. The person wearing it was Andie Wexler, a 29-year-old brand strategist and writer, completely unconnected to Emily. Andie had purchased the Wanda hat on Depop, drawn to its unique style and the designer’s reputation as “the cool girl making them.”
Growing up in suburban Georgia, Emily initially envisioned a career in interior design. However, during her studies at the Savannah College of Art and Design, her professors encouraged her to switch to a double major in fashion and textile design. “That’s where I truly discovered my creative voice,” she recalls. After graduating and moving to New York, Emily gained experience working for notable brands such as 3.1 Phillip Lim, ATM Anthony Thomas Melillo, and Jill Stuart.
In 2016, while working part-time as a photo researcher at Vogue.com, Emily took a mirror selfie in the office bathroom. Following a long-standing habit, and inspired by Raf Simons’s debut Calvin Klein collection, she styled a nude long-sleeve sweater under a vintage jacket, intentionally letting it fall off her shoulder to reveal the outline of her areola. She posted the photo on Instagram, and within 24 hours, she was dismissed from her job. “No hard feelings,” Emily says now, looking back with a chuckle.
Remarkably, this incident propelled her to her next opportunity. It was the height of the “free the nipple” movement, and after seeing Olivier Zahm, editor-in-chief of Purple magazine, address the topic in an editor’s letter, Emily DMed him on Instagram, sharing the story of her selfie and its consequences. Coincidentally, Mr. Zahm’s assistant of 11 years had just resigned that same week. Emily recalls being called in for a meeting and hired on the spot.
Roughly a year later, another twist of fate occurred. While dining with a friend in Los Angeles, where Purple magazine’s office had moved, Emily was approached by a woman who admired her vintage ensemble and revealed she was looking for a new stylist. “Suddenly, I was sourcing vintage pieces for Amber Heard,” Emily recounts.
Amber Heard then asked Emily to extend her services to her then-boyfriend, Elon Musk. (“Honestly, I had no idea who he was when I first met him,” Emily admits.) For Mr. Musk, Emily sourced Japanese denim and authentic World War II-era leather jackets. “He’d send me images of icons like Harrison Ford and Paul Newman for inspiration,” she shares.
However, just as she was getting the hang of it, she decided to leave. “I never aspired to be a stylist,” she explains. “While I have a natural eye for shapes and colors, and styling comes easily, I simply have no desire to engage in that particular industry dynamic.”
“I Can’t Keep a Secret”: A Passion for Immediate Creation
Upon returning to New York, Emily immediately shifted focus, creating unique pieces for her social circle. Her friend, chef Danny Bowien, even provided leftover vegetables from his restaurant, Mission Chinese, which Emily used to hand-dye garments with imaginative patterns. “People kept requesting my pieces, and then their friends started asking too. So I thought, ‘I guess I should turn this into a business,’” she recalls. In 2019, she officially launched the Emily Dawn Long label, selling her unique creations through Instagram and her personal website – a direct-to-consumer approach she maintains to this day.
Emily has deliberately avoided traditional fashion milestones, such as hosting runway shows during New York Fashion Week or applying for prestigious programs like the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund, common paths for independent brands seeking funding and mentorship. Her creative process simply doesn’t align with the rigid fashion week schedule, she states. “I just want to create things and share them immediately,” she explains. “I’m terrible at keeping secrets when it comes to my work!”
Her studio maintains a ‘revolving door’ policy, with new items released as soon as they’re ready. After Emily showcased her summer collection in Paris, renowned stylist Danielle Goldberg reached out, seeking pieces for Emily Ratajkowski to wear at an event promoting her new show with Lena Dunham. Danielle chose a striking black blazer, a collaborative creation by Emily Dawn Long and furniture designer Bennet Schlesinger. “Collaborating with Emily is a pure joy because she’s not focused on leveraging her work for anything beyond the creative process itself,” says Mr. Schlesinger. “It’s incredibly authentic. I truly see her as an artist.”
One summer afternoon, while awaiting an appointment, Emily reminisced about other recent visitors, some of whom simply wandered in off the street. These spontaneous visits often extend beyond a quick try-on, with guests engaging in genuine conversation with Emily as they explore her unique designs. It’s a rare, intimate experience for customers to connect so directly with the creative mind behind their clothes. “Recently, a friend came to pick up a dress, but ended up leaving with a matching set – pants and a shawl,” Emily recounts. “And then she told me, ‘I’m bringing my boyfriend back next time!’” Another young woman, she adds, “stopped by to collect an order the other day and ended up staying for two hours, just chatting.” They even met up for drinks that weekend, a testament to the personal connections Emily fosters through her brand.