On a beautiful Santa Monica day, kids are building sandcastles and losing themselves in a fantasy world of wizards, witches and magic. For anyone else looking to enrich their lifestyle with magical properties, they need not travel far, as an opportunity is provided for them just a stone’s throw from the Third Street Promenade.
At 320 Santa Monica Blvd lies Sparkl Fairy Couture, a pink-laden palace with fashion apparel and accessories geared toward fantasy worlds. From dresses and bikinis to coats and footwear, everything at Sparkl is designed with magic in mind, drawing inspiration from fairies, mermaids, unicorns and other storybook favorites. Guiding customers through her palace is Gabrielle Hall, a young entrepreneur known as Gabi Sparkl, who says that her fairy mantra is "being your truest self."
"[It’s] letting your energy and inspiration flow out on the outside, because everything that you have on the inside people can’t see," she said, adding, "So being sparkling, it’s [being] happy, smiling … hopefully [it] inspires [people] to be a little bit less ordinary [and] more extraordinary."
A constantly creative type during her youth in Maui, Hall recounted her "really beautiful childhood" molding art and fashion from scratch while viewing the wonders of Hawaii. However, it wasn’t all rainbows, as Ponzi financial schemes targeting Hawaiians in the aftermath of the 2008 recession wiped out her family’s assets, forcing bankruptcy and a swift move to North Carolina.
The headstrong Sparkl owner eventually sought Los Angeles to turn fashion dreams into reality, starting with a short stint at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM). While she appreciated the tools the school gave her, Hall felt she was being pushed "in a very corporate direction" and desired ownership and control over her self-expression. Her true experience began while she was still a teenager, selling bikini designs in Venice Beach while contemplating what her true calling was.
"I’d make a little stand and go out there in my bikini, but then I was like, what do I do when I’m not at the beach?," she said. "And I had this idea that I wanted to make my whole world Sparkl, so I took that to heart, I stopped wearing anyone else’s clothes, only clothes that I made."
Opening Sparkl as a pop-up at 23, she noted that "nothing could prepare" her for owning her own space. To complicate things further, the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged businesses nationwide two months later, forcing her to survive off online sales and private showings. Launching her shop with a focus on bikinis, Hall finally found a business boon by introducing a footwear collection, which remains a key part of the Sparkl catalog. The current inventory includes tops, dresses, lingerie, jackets and travel bags; mixing the functional with the cute fairy look and feel customers have come to expect. The fusing of function and form is evident in the store’s current hot seller, the Coco Puffer Coat and Aspen Puffer Jacket.
The inspiration behind Sparkl’s color palette of purples and pinks comes from the self-expressionism of the music festival scene and bringing the unique world into the everyday one. The vision has been co-opted by A-list collaborators, with the likes of Paris Hilton and Megan Fox modeling the clothing.
"I’d see everyone would come out and dress up to the nines and everyone’s different, then we come back to everyday life and everyone was wearing these [black] suits, or just all blending in, and I was like, what happened?" Hall asked. "What’s the disconnect between why is everyone allowed to be themselves there and not out here?"
To aid in the extension of her business, Hall brought on like-minded Ashlie Roswall, known as Ashlie Crystal, who also attended FIDM and appreciates the individualistic nature of Los Angeles fashion. The second-in-command eventually rose to be Sparkl’s Fashion Brand Manager, helping in a host of areas like graphic design, game planning and modeling.
"I didn’t know what I was getting myself into … but I just did it, and Sparkl is totally my vibe, I believe in the brand," she said.
Identifying specifically with the mermaid aesthetic, Roswall added that she "loves helping [Hall] create this vision" and the endeavor has forced her to become more organizational. The duo’s organizational skills will be especially tested over the next several weeks, as the fairies will be spreading their wings to Paris Fashion Week at the end of February, their largest promotional assignment to date.
While they couldn’t divulge their full collection details for Paris, Sparkl plans on bringing a "fairy twist" to an "American classic," that being denim wear. One of the world’s landmark fashion gatherings, Paris is an expansion point that highlights the team’s go-getting attitude.
"I think one of the things I’ve learned [in] the fashion community is you make all your own opportunities, then put yourself in the right places," Hall said adding, "There are endless opportunities out there."
This year marks the 10-year anniversary of Hall’s colorful journey, one where she has "mastered the way" she wants her artistry "to be distributed to the world." Along with mastering her craft, she’s mastered what it means to grow her skill set and mental fortitude.
"I’ve scraped together every single thing I’ve made," she said. "When I was 18, I was working like four or five different jobs just to make this happen, and I continue to actually do that. I really developed my skills in multiple avenues … to be able to be paid for my work is a really cool thing."
To browse Sparkl products or learn more about the business, visit sparklfairycouture.com.
