23 Friday Oct 2015
Posted in Fashion History
Ever wanted to know what an Epaulette was. Or, who started Athletic Wear. Well, it seems as though the uber high end luxury department store Barney’s has got you covered with their “Alphabet of Style, Explained. Fashion A-Z.” Check it out. Then come back for you test……
06 Wednesday Mar 2013
Posted in Fashion History, Style Icons
When I was a little girl, I used to watch “Style with Elsa Klensch” on CNN with my step-mother on the weekends. Elsa is one of the reasons I love fashion. Anne of Green Gables (the 1985 movie) is the other!!!! But I will save my rant on Anne of Green Gables for another post. Until then, here are some videos I found of Elsa’s show. (Also, look out for the Super Models of the day!)
21 Thursday Feb 2013
Posted in 1930s, Fashion History, Hollywood Glamour, Museums
Tags
1930s fashion, american textile history museum, bias cut dress, bias cuts, coco chanel, Fashion History, glamour, grace and glamour, hollywood glamour
Two years ago, I had the opportunity to visit one of the best textile museums you have never heard of, The American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA. During this time, they had an exhibit called “Grace and Glamour: 1930s Fashions.” This collection featured many beautiful bias cut dresses that were the fashion statement of the 30s. Luckily, the museum allowed me to take photos. Here are some of the dresses from this exhibit.
(I tried my best to clean and sharpen them up in Photoshop. Flash was not allowed.)
28 Monday Jan 2013
Posted in Fashion History
I am doing some research on pin up girls for a photo shoot I am styling in April. And wouldn’t you know, the iconic illustrations of Charles Dana Gibson and his Gibson Girls could be thought of as the original Pin Ups. The more you know, the more you grow!
20 Sunday Jan 2013
Posted in Fashion History, Find of the Week, Trend Alert, Uncategorized
I am constantly buying vintage clothing to either study, sell, or wear. On one of my last buying trips, I found the below dress. It really intrigued me. Firstly, there are no labels which suggests that this dress was handmade. But than, I started to wonder…who made it? Why was it made? When was it made?
You see, this dress has cartridge pleating at the waist. If this dress was handmade, who took the time to do that? If you know anything about cartridge pleating, you know it can take a lot of time and patience to do. The fabric seems to be a printed cotton voile and is lined with a lighter cotton muslin or voile. The size and length suggests it was created for an adolescent girl. It is very very small. I tried it on my display mannequin that has a 25.5″ waist and it was too small. So I laid the dress flat and measured the waist. This dress has a 24″ waist. Also, the length is odd. Not quite maxi yet not short.
Cartridge Pleated Waist Line
The old world detail of cartridge pleats, lace around the neck and pleating in the bodice seem to suggest this dress was created during another time such as the 19th century or is a 19th century reproduction. Teenage dresses in the 19th century were a shorter length than adult dresses. But then the designs of Gunne Sax came to mind. Popular in the 70s and 80s, Gunne Sax maxi dresses were inspired by Victorian and Edwardian styles.
In any case, I wish I could fit it because I would wear this dress!!!
02 Wednesday Jan 2013
Posted in Fashion History, Style Icons, Uncategorized
Tags
Balmain, Charles Worth, Christian Dior, D&G, Dior, Dolce Gabana, Elsa Schiaparelli, Embroidered, Embroidery, Fashion History, Gaultier, Jean Paul Gaultier, Marchesa, Myrbor, The Met, The Metropolitan Costume Institute
This past year I learned the art of embroidering. I love it and can’t wait to add embroidery to my own designs! Because of this, I was inspired to write this post. Take a gander of how it was done then and how its done now.
05 Wednesday Sep 2012
Posted in 1930s, Fashion History, Hollywood Glamour, Irene Lentz, Uncategorized
Tags
Costume Design, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Irene Dress, Irene Gibbons, Irene Lentz, Irene Lentz Gibbons, Lana Turner, Shall We Dance, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Vintage Irene
Irene Lentz. What can I say? I only just learned of Irene Lentz and made mention of her in my last post, but have seen her work in many films without knowing whose work it was. I did not know that she designed the costumes for movies such as “Shall We Dance” and “The Postman Always Rings Twice” where she put “hot pant’s” on Lana Turner. Check out the Vintage Fashion Guild, Irene Lentz, and Wikipedia for a more in-depth look into her life. However, take a look at some of her beautiful designs here…
Sometimes success like this doesn’t bring complete happiness. She committed suicide November 15, 1962.
Here are some excerpts from two of the famous movies she worked on.
25 Wednesday Jan 2012
Posted in Christian Dior, Fashion History
Most of us know the uber luxe fashion label Christian Dior. But not many of us know the history behind the brand. Here are a few bullet points on the basics of the House of Dior.
– Couture fashion label founded by Christian Dior in 1946
– Christian Dior is the inventor of the “New Look” silhouette which debuted in 1947
For more in-depth history on Christian Dior, please watch this great video as well as check the info found on The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s website and Wikipedia.
