06/05/2026
Thank you to Travel and Leisure’s Amanda Eyre Ward for this beautiful show of love and support for our Willow Bouvier Caftan 💙
“My mother, Mary-Anne Westley, spent a decade as a fashion editor in New York, working at Vogue and Mademoiselle from 1962 to 1972. “We always wore stockings,” she tells me over coffee one morning. “Nylons. And we wore gloves.” In my mom’s Manhattan, there were ashtrays on every desk, 85-cent taxi rides up Lexington Avenue, and the style icon of the moment was Jackie Kennedy. “Oh, she was so chic,” says Mom. But when I think of chic, I think of her—my fabulous mom, who was always the star at every school function, whose closet I still raid whenever I have anything fancy to attend.
Even fifty years later, my mom has iconic looks and lots of opinions, especially when packing for a vacation. For example: Always remember fabulous earrings, a quality bag, and lipstick, and, no matter where you roam, pack a good black dress (“You can wear it anywhere…at any time of day!”).
My mother’s closet is full of prints: stripes, florals, and the occasional leopard. A printed dress is the easiest thing you can pack for spring travel: one piece, zero decisions, instant personality. House of MBR’s designs have the kind of considered pattern work that photographs beautifully on a terrace and wears comfortably through a long day of sightseeing. My mom’s favorite is (of course) the Bouvier. “
