Shop of the Week: Owl's Lab

Bubbly boutique owner Ashley Thompson has given a new name and look to her Washington Square space formerly known as Addict. Splitting from her Addict partner, Megan Johnson, Thompson's newly named Owl's Lab still caters to high-fashion working girls (who, as Thompson describes, "go out for drinks") with labels like Vena Cava, Ilana Moses and Alice + Olivia. After one visit spent lounging on the plush chairs, petting Wally (the store's Lhasa apso), and chatting with Thompson and her crew while tapping your foot to the MTV-inspired soundtrack, you won't want to leave the nest. A black and white lightbox with the sketch of a girl kissing an owl is the centerpiece of the store, set with blond wood throughout. Shoppers can find trim, white LiDi pants or a tailored Chaiken suit in the back; trendsetters look to the middle area for items like a colorful abstract-patterned Thread dress with a sky-high hem or a
marigold and gray knee-length number courtesy of Twelfth Street by Cynthia Vincent. The front of the shop is casual chic with Velvet knit dresses, supersoft Garcon tees, alongside jeans by Citizens for Humanity, Tsubi, and Sass and Bide. Although some of the prices reach well beyond the several hundred dollar mark, Thompson says she's made a conscious effort to stock the store with items in the double digits, like Smashing Grandpa printed T-shirts and tanks, and Hobo International wallets in mod red-and-white patterned leather. If you want to splurge, save, rock out or relax, Owl's Lab has something to satisfy. 20 E. 12th St., (212) 633-2672 Whitney Spaner

Photo by George Rippon