Although Gilmore Girls is set in a fictional town, Ember Quillweb found a way to recreate the magic of Stars Hollow right in her hometown in New Jersey. As a huge fan of the show, Ember runs an online shop, Gilmore Garbs, selling carefully curated vintage clothing “as seen on” and “inspired by” Gilmore Girls. Her attention to detail is amazing! Read her interview below.
Question: What made you decide to recreate Stars Hollow?
Answer: I’ve been selling vintage and funky clothing on and off for years whenever I needed some extra bread in the ol’ bread box here
Ember’s favorite Gilmore Girls location that she recreated is Luke’s Diner.
“Luke’s is what comes to mind when you think Gilmore Girls, it’s the hub of the town!” says Ember.
You can find Lorelai’s adorable cardigan and leopard dress, and Rory’s t-shirt and Sherpa jacket at Ember’s vintage clothing shop!
Click on the image below to see the full panorama of Ember’s recreation of Luke’s Diner!
Question: How did you manage to recreate the sets yourself? Do you have a background in production design?
Answer: I’m an artist, and I love staging and decorating; it comes natural to me and I do it just for fun or when the occasional friend offers to hire me. I’m also pretty good at “designing on a dime,” especially since my past decorating jobs had small budgets. I can only imagine what I could create with more money!
Ember scavenges items to use for props in her own home. Can you spot all of the Easter eggs in Rory’s room? Get Rory’s infamous yellow backpack, here.
Above: You can find Rory’s denim jacket and skirt in Ember’s vintage clothing shop!
Question: How long does it take for you to track down these vintage outfits and accessories?
Answer: It takes A LOT of time! There are so many styles featured on Gilmore Girls; it’s a revolving door of researching and tracking them down which can be very tricky and time consuming. In fact, every aspect of the shop – from recreating the sets, taking photos, writing descriptions and inspecting the garments – is very time consuming, and sometimes the process can make you cross-eyed. But, it’s all a labor of Gilmore love!
Ember created Gilmore Garbs for other fans who may not have the time or know-how to track down vintage clothing as seen on Gilmore Girls. Want to dress the part of an Inn Keeper? Check out these items as seen on and inspired by Lorelai: an orange sweater vest and western button-up shirt.
Question: What was the most difficult “Gilmore Girls” location to recreate?
Answer: The most difficult Gilmore Girls set to recreate ended up being the most simple one in theory – the “Life and Death Brigade” camp scene. I picked a public park to take the photo, which meant I had limited time for setup, break down and actual photography. Also, I was dealing with a small window of good weather, so it had to done under two hours.
“The shooting location turned out to be really windy and the tarp I had to use for the tent was smaller then I anticipated. Since it was a public park, I didn’t want to stake anything into the ground…thus, hilarity ensued.
“The wind blew the tent down before I got to take the picture!”
“People passing by kept asking all these questions, as if I was shooting for Vogue magazine.”
“Oh, and although I steam-ironed the blue ball gown (get it here), it got wrinkled inside the garment bag. It was just one of those days.” :-)
Ember had to wait for snowfall in order to capture this magical wintry moment at the gazebo. Lorelai’s plaid coat is available!
Question: Anything else we should know about you?
Answer: I’m for hire – from decorating to staging, to advising on where a koi pond might look the most zen in your garden, or if you need your home in Nantucket looked after, I’m your gal.
Remember the lawn jockey that Lorelai bought from Mrs. Kim’s because she knew it would drive Emily crazy? This is just one of the many amazing Easter eggs found in Ember’s recreations.
I would love a duplicate of the earrings and necklace Liz gave to Luke for Loralei ! It’s kind of hard to tell from the show what their exact look is
This is really quite impressive! you have quite a gift!
So where is this place in nj, I would love to see it