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Selwitz is particularly excited about one new Lark print. "It was designed in collaboration with vintage fashion aficionada and Egyptologist Colleen Darnell, a.k.a. @vintage_egyptologist. Dr. Darnell has been a fan and friend of Lily-Lark's for many years. She suggested using art from ceiling patterns of tombs, circa the 1300's B.C.E., to create a print." The result is called WASET, named for the ancient city where the tombs are located. The artwork is by Stephan Jans, owner of the textile studio PRINTS OF ORANGE. Larkis the culmination of an extensive design process to preserve the luxe Lily-Lark feel at an accessible price point. The result is a slightly pared-down, more minimalist parasol, which requires less labor to produce. Thankfully, with intensive support to remove the toxins from her system, Luna remained stable and was able to go home a few days later. But not all cases have a happy ending like hers.
Luna, a Ragamuffin kitten, was just four months old when her owner, Emily Pryce (29), received a bouquet of flowers for her birthday. The flowers included lilies and Emily had placed these on a table, thinking they would be out of harm’s way. Among the newly debuting prints are a selection of neutrals, created with fashion flexibility and appeal to all genders in mind. Some prints are figurative, some are abstract… there's a Lily-Lark print for every stylish attitude. The company began when Selwitz, anxious about getting older in an ageist industry, became passionate about skin protection. "I was still trying to protect my career as well as my skin, and to prevent my skin from premature aging, I had an idea for this fun parasol," she says. Utilizing her skills as a creative director, she founded a business where beauty of all ages is celebrated. Lily-Lark is deeply infused with Selwitz's love for art and design; she says, "when I see a piece of art that just hits me over the head as the perfect parasol to have over my head, I follow my instincts." Speaking on this new chapter for the company, Lily-Lark's founder, CEO and Creative Director Lisa Selwitz remarked: "With the launch of 18 new prints and a less expensive parasol, we aspire to make serious sun protection inviting to more people."ABOUT LILY-LARK: Lily-Lark is a woman-owned company devoted to creating "the most beautiful skin protection under the sun." Their artisan-made bamboo parasols provide UPF 50+ protection, and their curated print selection makes for an accessory that turns heads. Parasols (literally translated from its French and Italian roots as “defense against the sun”) are not a new thing, having been around for centuries in China, ancient Egypt and Assyria.
Lily-Lark hand-makes its bamboo frames and drapes them with modern artful prints, ranging from colorful mosaics of stripes and zigzags to non-meek florals." All said and done, not everyone is comfortable carrying a parasol – what would you tell those who are hesitant?We wanted to share our story, on Small Business Saturday. Our hope is to someday be too big to celebrate it. In the words of our founder, this is how it all began and where we're heading: Lily-Lark's distinctive parasols combine a stunning, artisan-made bamboo frame with an eye-catching canopy crafted of sun-protective fabric. A matching carrying case makes it easy to take a Lily-Lark along for a stroll down city streets, a day at the beach, or just running errands…all occasions that require shade. While strolling around a sculpture garden one day with my aunt, noticing her lovely Asian parasol, I had my aha moment! I was going to make something wonderful that would speak to today’s contemporary women of all races. After 24 months of researching and sourcing manufacturers in Asia, prototyping in the US and abroad, finding gorgeous prints and tweaking all the details, I’m proud to present our UV Lily-Lark sun parasols to you. I hope you’ll find great joy in using them to stay your beautiful and healthy self!”
Luna was examined by the vet team at PDSA and blood tests confirmed that she had eaten enough of the pollen to cause potential kidney failure, so needed urgent treatment. Lisa Selwitz: Getting into parasols was an organic path for me. I had long been protective of my skin, because I was a woman in an ageist industry. I always liked the idea of walking with an umbrella in the sun, but really nobody was doing it. One day, I was at a sculpture garden with my aunt, who was carrying this gorgeous bamboo parasol around the premises in the hot sun. I fell in love with the traditional Asian construction and took note of it. When I finally started seeing women in urban areas begin to carry umbrellas in the summer, I was inspired to create something better. I thought of my aunt’s parasol and the designer in me just took off.Lily-Lark originated several years ago when I worked in advertising as an Art Director/Creative Director in New York City. As a successful career woman in an industry that values youth and beauty, I was terribly afraid to look my age. I always wanted to walk around with an umbrella to protect my skin from the sun. When I started noticing other women in Manhattan beginning to do that, I was happy but also found most umbrellas uninspired and purely functional.
Veterinary Care Assistant, Jemma Hughes, said: “Lilies have become quite popular in Easter bouquets, but all parts of the plant, including the flower and leaves are toxic to cats. The biggest danger is if a cat gets some of the pollen on their fur, then grooms themselves, as ingesting even a small amount can be fatal.” Relieved owner Emily said: “PDSA made such a huge difference – the care was great and the staff were so lovely. I would’ve done whatever it took to get Luna the care she needed, but it would’ve been a struggle financially, so this took a huge weight off my mind.” In addition to slathering on SPF, using sun protective clothing and accessories can help shield skin from the sun's harmful rays. Lily-Lark's parasols feature UPF 50+ sun-protective fabric, and help protect those easy-to-overlook body parts, like the ears and scalp. The signature line of Lily-Lark parasols is ready to ship, and can be in your hands in time for your next summer adventure.I’m not really in the market of trying to convince people to carry them. They’re either comfortable or not. But when people finally try them, they discover how much more comfortable it is under a parasol than under the hot sun, and appreciate not getting burned or having hat hair (plus they cover a lot more surface than a hat!). The parasols come with matching carrying cases, so they can be carried over the shoulder when not in use. Given that they can be carried in a bag and not held at all times, they’re less likely to be left places. In the end, the trend is slowly starting to take off. As more women start enjoying them, others will see them and be inspired to try them. But I didn’t quite have an understanding yet of how to make it more profitable and what to do to expand faster. So I started working with various mentors and realized that if I could make a less expensive parasol, I could have greater appeal and grow my audience. I found new fabric printers and a bigger manufacturer who was not only capable of scaling, but making a parasol that I could sell at roughly half the price. Along the way, she dashed out some hand fans that are appearing to be quite popular for us, especially as gifts. Now we have 2 lines of parasols and 16 new prints. Our hand fans are made in every print. My hope is to expand in the future by adding collections for different audiences. I’d like to do a children’s line, and a bridal line, maybe even a mother-daughter line. Eventually, influencers were happy to share on their social media and the company started to grow. We began to get some great press.
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