The Midnight Masquerade: Floor XIII Is Open (Sort Of)

Floor XIII · The Midnight Masquerade · A limited run, until Halloween only

The ELE Hotel isn't open yet. The guests didn't wait.

They started arriving in October, a few at a time, with peculiar luggage and very particular requests: pointed oversized hats, bone bow ties, fang earrings, and one question about broomstick parking. The lobby doesn't have its carpet yet. The Hall still smells like fresh paint. And yet, somehow, every one of them had a key.

A floor that isn't on the plans

The building has twelve floors. We have the blueprints. We have checked them many times.

But when the guests step into the elevator and press a button that isn't there, the doors open onto Floor XIII: a long hallway lit by candles, a ballroom that seems larger than the building around it, and a door at the end with a sign that simply says Midnight Masquerade.

The guests say they've come for a party. They have assured us that they will all be gone the morning after Halloween, and that they won't be coming back.

Meet the first four guests

Their room numbers never appear on the elevator panel, but somehow their keys always work.

• Vivienne Vesper, Room 1301, The Velvet Suite. The vampire. Arrived with seven trunks and an invitation dated a century ago. “Fashionably late. By a century.”

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• Opal Nightshade, Room 1303, The Moonflower Room. The witch. Came to inspect the moonlight and decided to stay. “A little magic. Excellent manners.”

• Felix Marrow, Room 1307, The Encore Suite. The skeleton. Here for one more song, and then another. “Dressed to stay for one more song.”

• Odette “Dottie” Veil, Room 1313, The Unmade Suite. The ghost. Wore the hotel's linens to the party, beautifully. “Do not disturb. She's getting dressed.”

Each guest has a full story in the Journal. Start with whichever room you'd most like to knock on.

What the Midnight Masquerade is

The Midnight Masquerade is the first drop from the ELE Hotel: a small collection of art and clothing built around these four guests. Every guest is hand-drawn by Erika, then turned into black heavyweight tees, a striped raglan sweatshirt, art prints, and a sticker sheet of the whole floor.

It's a limited run, and it's only available until Halloween. On November 1, the guests check out for good, and these pieces won't be made again.

Every piece arrives in character

Why a hotel?

ELE stands for Everybody Loves Everybody. The ELE Hotel is the world that holds all of it together: the art, the stories, the sewing lessons, and the people who gather around them. Every guest who checks in brings a story, and every story is a small invitation to come as you are.

The Midnight Masquerade is the first night the hotel has ever hosted. It won't be the last. The full ELE Hotel opens its doors in December, and new guests are already on their way.

Leave your name with the Front Desk

Join the guest list and you'll hear first when a new guest checks in, when the doors open, and what's waiting on the floors above. One letter from the Front Desk a month. Join the Guest List

Shop the Midnight Masquerade: Shop the Midnight Masquerade on Etsy. Available until Halloween only.

Which guest would you give the room next to yours? Tell us in the comments.