Baltimore may not be known for fashion like New York, but it does have a unique style.
Gabrielle Elise, 26, is the owner of Mood, a styling service, and sees the culture of Baltimore — its vibrancy, love of our sports teams, our neighborhoods, our community members — as influences on our fashion scene. We are big on shoes (Mondawmin Mall is practically one giant shoe store), and if you aren’t wearing a pair of New Balance, or have them in your shoe rotation, then you aren’t really dressing for the terrain. We love to experiment with color, we love to accessorize, and we love to be comfortable. Elise wants to help her customers to dress in a way that reflects how they feel.
Elise started her business last December, but she’s been styling folks for years, starting while she studied fashion design and merchandising at Drexel University. She wants to dress the everyday person going through different stages of their days, whether it’s someone who wants to have their best on for the office or a big-name concert that demands a themed outfit (think Cowboy Carter, summer 2025)
“My target audience at the moment is everyday people. I have the everyday woman [as a client]. When you think about her, she has her kids, she has to go to work, she’s cooking. She has all of these obligations that she has to do,” Elise said.
Elise’s family roots stretch from East to West Baltimore.
“I went to Pennsylvania for high school, middle school. Philly was, of course, where I went to Drexel. But I said, look, if I’m going to be in a crazy city, I’d rather have back up. So I came back home, and I’m so glad that I did. I have roots here. I love the city,” she said.
Before she studied fashion and started the business, it was her grandmother who fostered her love for styling.
“My grandmother, she is the most fashionable woman I know,” Elise said. “Cheetah print is her favorite color, and so it is now officially my favorite color. When growing up, she would hem her own garments, do alterations. She would make her own clothing, and that inspired me. I’m not a designer, but I loved watching how she put pieces together.”
The importance of dressing in your “Sunday best” is a concept that translates across many cultures, and every little detail and accessory mattered to Elise’s grandmother.
“My favorite thing [was] to just watch her get dressed as we got ready for church in the morning.”
Church and family are major influences on Elise, and she now uses those influences to offer Baltimore residents four types of styling service: event and special occasion styling, personal shopping, wardrobe planning, and photoshoot styling and creative direction.
The root of her work is getting in your business via your closet. She starts with a consultation to see what you are wearing now and what are the things that could go. She will want to know who your fashion icons are at the moment and what you are going for, and then does the work of shopping for you. She’s the brains behind the operation, and as a client you simply become the final product of her creation.
“You know, we’re always being perceived. We can’t help it in this day and age, we’re always in front of a screen, we’re always looking over our shoulder, adjusting ourselves,” she said.
Elise aims to decrease the discomfort of being perceived and help people dress to a level of comfort that matches their mood.
“You deserve to feel phenomenal in the size that you are, in the shape that you are right now. Not, ‘Oh, maybe next summer.’ No, no, no, right now. You deserve to feel good right now,” she said.
And that means it’s not always about wearing the fanciest or most expensive garments.
“I believe [what] sets me apart from other stylists is because I prioritize and shop Black, Indigenous, people of color-owned businesses first. Small businesses first. I love The Doll House [Boutique] in Mount Vernon. A Day in June [Vintage] off Fleet Street. Reversed [Thrift Store], the secondhand store on Fleet street as well. Like, there’s some phenomenal businesses that are local to our area, where it’s almost like secondhand stuff is almost better quality than things that are produced right now. I source a range of clothing from different areas. And then if I need to supplement, sure, I’ll go to Nordstrom, sure, I’ll shop boutiques. But my goal is to shop small businesses first because, you know, we got to keep it in the community. Gotta keep that dollar circulating.”
Elise’s philosophy is that fashion can be a tool to connect us to our authenticity; to look good is to feel good. The personal is political, and now is the time to stand firmly in who we are to help us connect to ourselves, our community, and the right movements that support those identities.
“Ultimately it’s like we want to show up as our best selves. Your best self that day may be sweatpants, right. Maybe a sweatshirt. But is that sweatshirt a color that makes you feel good?” she said. “On a day where I’m not feeling super hot, I’m at least putting on a color that makes me feel happy.”
The economy is rough right now under the influence of the current administration’s strategy to prioritize the best interests of the ultrawealthy. Surprisingly, though, Elise says having a stylist is less of a luxury than it sounds — she makes sure your money stretches by making more out of less. Opulence can be achieved without overindulgence.
“By booking a stylist, not only am I staying within your budget, but I’m also, again, helping you find things that you’ll want to wear multiple times, not for the one event.”