I just spent the last five weeks in St. Louis, MO, the location of Skif. I am back in NYC with a whole new wardrobe. There is nothing like a Skif sweater, but one can’t beat the drawstring pants.
I will have the most awesome Fall and Winter because getting dressed will be a snap. The hard part will be in deciding what to wear. It’s like an abundance of Garanimals for grown-ups. Mix and match. Layer it on. Neutrals blend with a shot of color. Words are shy to explain the attachment I have with the Skif method of dress.
We went to see a concert and gave the fabulous April Smith two tiny sweaters. April Smith and the Great Picture Show played in St. Louis while I was there. I invited the employees of Skif and a fun time was had by all. Yaaaay.
Skif is a lifestyle. Be relaxed. Enjoy the weather and experience the love of comfort and a really cool style. Every time one visits the Skif studio, they embark on a journey to discover all new product. It is miraculous how new and innovative items appear on a daily basis. Bias tape is generously and vertically applied to reinvent the classic white shirt. A mixed bag of sweaters disappears in a box and returns days later as truly wearable art, printed and silk-screened by someone very talented who seems to understand this lifestyle, and has the ability to capture the very essence that is Skif.
From the shop, I shipped three boxes that were filled with personal items, a bag from Herbaria, the soap store next door, a can of Greek olive oil and a pair of shiny black pants and varios sweaters, in the forms of a turtle neck, angora yarns, cardigan and a printed hoodie tunic. The tunic went on right away and there it will stay until…I am expecting the other two boxes today, with remnants to remind me of my five week stay. I cant wait to go back to the Happy circle of Skif!
Debra Samitz
“We just love her line,” said Carol Furr, former owner of Kittie Kyle, a Memphis boutique that has been a customer for eight years. “We have them send us a box every month. We don’t even have to look at what she sends. It just sells.”
Headquartered in a rehabbed building in the Hill neighborhood, Ganci’s office is an all-in-one boutique, sales center, design studio and workshop. She invites customers to see the production process, which she said is her favorite part about designing clothing.
“In my industry, designers don’t even want their addresses known because they don’t want people coming in and seeing what they are doing for next season,” she said. “We want people to come in. That is an aspect of being in St. Louis. That could only happen here.”
With a crew that fluctuates between eight and 15, Ganci’s business mantra is enveloped by her brand name Skif, meaning “Sweaters Knitted in Freedom.”
“It is not a factory environment,” she said. “People choose their scheduling and choose what type of work they want to do.”
The clothing is made with only natural fabrics— silk, wool and some unprocessed cotton — and ranges in price from $275-$390 per garment in boutiques. But at her shop on Marcone, garments are discounted upwards of 50 percent.
