Ginny Branch lives a fairytale. Front and center at Marc Jacobs’ West Village accessories store, Ginny is one to reckon with. Her kindness, sincerity, and Southern sass grow more and more famous (and endearing) by the day. Ginny is a bon vivant – she takes great pleasure in the little things. A simple peek at her inspirational blog, My Favorite Color is Shiny, will instantly make Ginny your girl-crush. She bases her entries around “gratitudes” – lists of the small, daily details and kindnesses that ultimately construct life’s rich quality.

Not to mention, the lady has style! Ginny is hard at work on A Year And A Day, her upcoming line of whimsical, well-adorned headbands. The aspiring designer certainly turns heads, even important fashion ones – she has been featured in Lucky, Domino, and The New York Post. What differentiates Ginny from the catty, fashion crowds in this jaded day and age is that, despite her magnetism, she is compassionate and fully aware of how precious and fleeting life is.

Who is the lovely Ginny Branch?
alice in wonderland. dorothy gail. nonsense and kind. year and a day. trails of glitter. heart on sleeve. black coffee. sweet tooth. mauve. silver hair. big bows. grey. layers. altruism. chocolate tea. gratitude. non-linear. flapper victorian darlings. black tights. books of wonder. hope chests. spools of thread. doo wop. cold weather. high school sweethearts. handiwork. gold. collecting nice girls. muses. teachers. southern. believer. dreamer. lover. “hi, i’m ginny branch and i love love”.

Tell us about your schooling at SCAD and what led you to NYC.
my childhood dream was to be a fashion designer. i studied fashion and fibers and devoted my heart and soul to honing my craft. i met the lovely chelsea cook, my design partner, who is a technical wunderkind. she is the only reason we were the golden scissor award winners our senior year. we moved to new york with the dream of launching our own line. we have been developing a line of accessories, mainly headbands, with peter hale cooney III, a fellow SCAD grad and my roommate. we moved here together and work for different stores at marc jacobs.

What is “the dream?” Do you have a mantra?
do what you love and the rest will follow. disturb the universe. think good thoughts. be grateful. be humble. my mother always encouraged me as a child to write thank you notes to special teachers and include “thank you for believing in me.” carry on this practice as an adult.

How did you come up with the idea to start My Favorite Color is Shiny and to shape it around gratitude lists?
i wanted to record all the lovely things in my day-to-day life. i never want to be a jaded new yorker. i used to make all of my co-workers fill post-its with at least five gratitudes at the end of the day so i could make a mini book of good thoughts. it was so simple and silly, but it made my heart feel so full.

You make work look like fun! How did you get your gig at Marc Jacobs and what are the best and worst parts of the job?
i started working in the savannah marc by marc store when it opened, then transferred to the marc by marc women’s store on bleecker. now i’m at the collection accessories store on bank and w. 4th st.
best parts of the job - the cast of beautiful, hilarious, quirky, naughty, loving people i work with. we are one big family. all five stores in the west village work and play together. the fashion shows. the beautiful clothing they let us wear. the holiday party where glitter pours from the ceiling. clients who take such good care of me. they’ve brought me cookies, fresh organic juice, tortilla soup, handmade obama pins, and banana bread. i am surrounded by generosity on all fronts.
worst part of the job - when my sweet clients leave during the winter and summer.

What inspires you to create beautiful things and to act with compassion? What makes you inordinately happy?
love. killing people with kindness. simone shubuck. shel silverstein. henry darger. kime buzzelli. julie verhoeven. tim walker. julia margaret cameron. ellen von unwerth. sarah sophie flicker. mary ping. vintage children’s books and toys. flea markets. gold charms. lula, milk, and selvedge magazines. the quilters of gees bend. au revoir simone. nikki gasser. collage art. czech new wave films. polaroid sx-70 photography. sequins. my menagerie of girlfriends. my family. my fiancé, the love of my life since i was 13.

You express New York so eloquently within your blog. What do you love so much about the city that never sleeps? What restaurants and shops do you most adore?
the dizzying amount of creativity and passion. the endless treasures waiting to be discovered. boredom is a foreign concept to me in this city.
shops i love: opening ceremony. oak. geminola. tinsel trading company. metalliferous. narnia vintage clothing. luddite in brooklyn. moon river chattel in brooklyn.
restaurants i love: café cluny. freeman’s. brown. tea and sympathy. clinton street baking company. sugar sweet sunshine. relish in brooklyn.

What trends and items are you absolutely giddy about sporting this fall & winter?
slouchy, tailored pants. pale, watercolor colors. paper-thin jersey. antique velvet. drapey, poiret-esque detailing on the backs of clothing. strong shoulders.

Which brand is responsible for your deliciously red trademark pout?
face stockholm silk. if i could buy stock in it, i would.

When’s the big day? What’s your bridal vision?
may 30th. a southern, great gatsby affair. i’ll be a sequined flapper, naturally. i’m hoping for a full-on costume party with a silhouettes-cutting station, a vintage photo booth, candle-lit mason jars hanging in the trees, parlor music, and a cupcake wedding cake. we’re getting married on a crochet field on a self-sustaining farm in georgia. i’ve been waiting to marry this man since we were in the 8th grade.

Marc Jacobs recently announced that he named an upcoming collection of bags after the shopgirls. Have you glimpsed yours yet or heard any scoop on it?
we are all beyond flattered by this gesture. robert duffy and marc jacobs sure know how to make a group of shopgirls feel special. the “ginny” bag is pretty cute. it was shown on the runway and i wish it would hurry up and get here!

For more on Ginny, visit her blog ginnybranch.blogspot.com