Find Foodie Gifts with a Side of Feminism at Matriarch

Matriarch is the flagship store of Overseasoned, now open at 468 Thames St. in Newport. (Photos by Lauren Clem)

The first thing you notice when you walk into Amy Larson’s new store, Matriarch, on Thames Street in Newport is the scent: warm and cozy with hints of cinnamon, a bit like pastry or fresh-baked bread.

The next thing you notice is a bright red T-shirt with the slogan, “Hot Girls Eat Pasta,” one of Larson’s signature designs and a celebration-worthy mantra for the modern woman.

Matriarch is the new flagship store of Overseasoned, a brand Larson found in 2017 to showcase her love for “everything related to food and feminism,” as she puts it. Her hand drawn designs decorate nearly every surface in the space, from tea towels that read “Shuck the Patriarchy” and “I Scream for Reproductive Justice” to sweatshirts with “Cabernet and Equal Pay” and “Well Read and Well Fed.” On the day I meet her, she’s wearing a T-shirt that reads “Root for Women,” paired with a Rosie the Riveter-style arm pulling up adorably-sketched root vegetables.

Amy Larson.

Larson founded Overseasoned in 2017 after attending the women’s march in Boston following the inauguration of President Donald Trump. At the time, the Portsmouth native was living in Cambridge and working in marketing.

“After I went to that first women’s march and I was seeing all the posters, it just sort of popped into my head,” she recalls.

Larson hand-drew her first design, “Smash the Garlic and the Patriarchy,” and had it printed on a tea towel. The design was hit, especially among the followers she’d accumulated posting recipes online under her social media handle, @overseasoned_amy. She quickly came up with more designs, launching a full line to sell online and at pop-up markets around Boston. In 2021, she was able to delve into the project full-time, her designs now carried by retailers including Free People and Uncommon Goods.

She continued selling at markets after moving back to Rhode Island last year. Then, earlier this spring, an opportunity came up to open her first storefront on Thames Street. The venture fulfills a long-held dream of having her own retail space in a neighborhood where she once worked in restaurants and a salon.

“Having the permanent space just for me to be able to showcase my work was definitely a goal. And then I knew I could supplement it with other artists that I know,” she says.

Some of the products available at Matriarch.

Along with Overseasoned designs, customers will find products from other Rhode Island- and Massachusetts-based makers including Botanical Creations, Sir Milky Quartz, Aster Candle, One Oliver and Caribe & Co. Larson says she wants it to be a store where both visitors and locals can stop in for a quick gift and unique, handmade items. Her creativity extends to the décor: A bright lemon border leftover from her wedding adds a feeling of perpetual summer, with a matching mural in the works at the back of the store.

“I want this space to be somewhere you can feel hosted and get a hostess gift,” she says.

The selection includes special emphasis on products made by women, people of color, LGBTQ+ makers and other marginalized voices. It also offers a bookshelf featuring Larson’s favorite cookbooks, culinary writing and beach reads.

Ultimately, she says, she hopes to expand to a larger space where she can offer cooking classes and bakery items. She plans to host events in the current space after settling in.

“Especially in the off season, I think it would be nice to have flower arranging or have a book club come to life,” she says. “It feels like I can have a better, deeper experience with people than showing [products] on my Instagram.”

As for the name, that explanation can be found in the homage of family photographs along the left wall. Larson named the store for her mother and grandmother, the matriarchs of her family and an inspiration in her work (both on the food and the feminism sides).

“Our family is just all about the women who are in charge,” she says.

Matriarch is located at 468 Thames St. in Newport. Overseasoned products are available at the store or online at overseasoned.com.

The store includes a tribute wall of photos of women in Larson’s family.

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