About

Ruby Giraffe is the hybrid of Classical Vintage and New School Futurism. Each garment is an artifact of the soul of the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and the infinite beyond told through a mosaic of color, elegance and the strange. It is the combined legacy of Ruby Jean and Chrystal Giraffe.

The brand launched in 2012 as a homage to Ruby Jean, the creative director's grandmother. We are a dangerous and unconventional brand as we create our own trends, we don't look to the mainstream to validate who we are! Our mantra is " validate yourself". Our consumer will wear whatever, whenever and not give a damn about what anyone has to say.

You have options. You can choose the normal or you can choose Ruby Giraffe. We will take you on a sublime journey to psychedelic outer space, Paris in the 1920s or 1960s Chicago. You can come with us where normal does not exist or you can be left behind. It's your choice.. No robots allowed, unless you are the funky dancing robot type.

The universe is a canvas. Paint it…red with giraffe spots.
Hush, listen…you feel the change coming.

ru·by

noun \ˈrü-bē\

: Ruby Jean

: Inspiration for Ruby Giraffe

: a deep red stone

Ruby Jean, a Southern Bella born in the midst of the Great Depression felt the heartache and heartbreak of the Jim Crow South. She wanted a life apart from racial injustice and cotton fields, she wanted adventure and beauty. With an Amtrak ticket and her lace gloves, she left the South for the home of the Blues. In Chicago, she was referred to as a "brickhouse" and dressed her curvaceous body well. She was outspoken, a rebel who referred to conform to the sexist archetypes of women of her day. She was active in the Civil Right Movement and rubbed shoulders with greats Sam Cooke and Harold Washington. She was the epitome of timeless elegance and movie star glam. Hers was a love affair with debonair beauty and grace.

She’s legend 1933-2011.

gi·raffe

noun \jə-ˈraf\

: a very tall African animal that has an extremely long neck and legs

: a quirky, weird individual

:Creative Director of Ruby Giraffe

A Chicago geek, she was often teased and called Giraffe due to her height and long neck. Her colorful, shiny and handmade clothing made her an outcast in conservative Chicago. She wanted to fit in, she did. She could not fit in even if she tried.  Her grandmother Ruby Jean spoke life into her, she said, “be the best at who you are. If you are different, be the best at being different”. She never tried to fit in again ever and stood out even more. 

Unable to find her style in department stores and boutique, she started designing her outrageous fashions and accessories during her freshman year of high school. She studied Architectural Design, Biology and the Negro poets of the Harlem Renaissance. She listened to Jazz and found solidarity in Hip Hop.

When she was 18 years young, her grandmother Ruby Jean presented her with 7 vintage dresses. She has been a vintage junkie ever since. She lives, breathes, eat and sleeps vintage. She is in love with an era that is not her own. She watches movies from the 1940s-1970s. She watches black/white talkies and foreign films with subtitles to create the magic and grace from her Grandmother’s era.

She reclaimed the nickname “Giraffe” as a term of empowerment for weird, quirky, extraterrestrial individuals everywhere.

 She is a swan.