Thornwillow Press to Open Invisible Boutique at The St. Regis New York
The St. Regis New York will launch a unique partnership with Thornwillow Press, the limited edition publisher, bespoke stationer, and custom bookbinder.
This fall, The St. Regis New York, which is located at 2 East 55th Street at Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, will unveil an "invisible store" which will offer guests a one of a kind retail experience befitting of the Beaux Arts beauty. "Thornwillow at The St. Regis" will showcase the hotel's elegant interiors while seamlessly merging an expertly curated collection of hand-crafted leather books, Thornwillow publications, art, library accessories, fine stationery, and other curiosities personally selected by Thornwillow's founder and arbiter of style, Luke Ives Pontifell. It is a fitting partnership as The St. Regis brand of hotels is known for its unique luxury, customized service and refined elegance.
Nestled within the walls of the hotel, Thornwillow at The St. Regis will be located in a quiet oasis on the ground floor. This unexpected boutique will be the city's best kept secret and will be a welcome change from the traditional shopping experience. Designed with comfortable reading chairs, writing desks and antique paneled cases, visitors will be drawn in by the warm and intimate atmosphere. Guests will be attended to by the Thornwillow Librarian and encouraged to linger, enjoy a cup of tea, an espresso or fine whiskey while surrounded by a unique selection of beautifully designed, one of kind items, all handmade in Thornwillow's artisanal studios. Thornwillow at The St. Regis will also feature a Stationery Bar were guests will be able to mix and match Thornwillow note cards, journals and other items, selecting various motifs and colors, creating a bespoke set of stationery. Thornwillow products retailed exclusively for The St. Regis New York can be seen online.
"The St. Regis New York boasts a rich literary legacy, from John Jacob Astor's original library to the family's endowment of The New York Public Library, and it is important for us to continue this tradition today," says Paul Nash, General Manager of The St. Regis New York, which was founded by John Jacob Astor IV over a century ago. "Thornwillow Press offered the rare opportunity to celebrate this literary tradition, while offering our guests a modern and unique retail experience."
Building on their common rich literary history and appreciation, Thornwillow will launch a series of beautifully designed little books, named Libretto. The Libretti will feature themed content of short stories on a wide range of topics from fashion to music, poetry, beautiful collections of recipes including St. Regis' beloved macarons to a sampling of historical cocktails. Published regularly as an ongoing series, each Libretto will feature unique content, and be beautifully designed to last, encouraging guests and the general public to collect them all. The Libretti will be presented to all guests staying in the hotel's suites and will also be available for sale at Thornwillow at The St. Regis. Thornwillow Press will also offer bespoke stationery to guests of the hotel.
In addition to curating Thornwillow at The St. Regis and offering bespoke stationery and invitation services to guests staying and entertaining at the hotel, Thornwillow will also be responsible for the care and restoration of John Jacob Astor's original collection of books for the hotel. Housed on the second floor of The St. Regis New York in the Astor Library, the collection contains over 3,000 titles which Colonel Astor commissioned from Scribner & Sons in the early 1900s for the hotel. Once a working library, complete with its own librarian, the Astor Library collection is now behind glass to preserve the state of the books.
Pontifell founded Thornwillow Press 25 years ago and since that time the company has grown to be the world's leading bespoke printer and publisher of handmade limited edition books. Thornwillow Press uses traditional printing techniques and artisinal skill to produce beautiful stationery, invitations, cards, and leather bound books. All of the work is done in-house by trained craftsmen in Thornwillow's complex of 19th Century buildings on the Hudson River in Newburgh, New York. Thornwillow's work has been sold at leading retailers around the world and is in the permanent collections of The New York Public Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Getty, The British Library, The Biblioteque Nationale, The Vatican, and The White House, among many others.
