Clik here to view.
October Treasure of the Month: Monte Santo & Pruzan
This month’s treasure comes from Special Collections and FIT Archives. It features the wonderful sketches and swatches collection of the coats and suits manufacturer Monte Santo & Pruzan. Vincent...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday: Shirley Temple
Shirley Temple (b. 1928) Without a doubt, Shirley Temple was the most famous child of the 1930s. Precocious, bubbly, and an embodiment of “cuteness,” Shirley began her film career at the tender age of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday
Prints and patterns – the bolder the better! Here’s our new mystery: What company produced this textile? From what design series is this textile? Think you know? Post your guesses below; we’ll tell you...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday: H. R. Mallinson’s “American National Parks” Series
If you guessed H.R. Mallinson’s “American National Parks” series, you are correct! “To see a little further into Fashion’s future; to dig a little deeper for quality production; to know no mean between...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday: Marquise de Miramon
At the Getty Center in Los Angeles hangs this painting by Jacques Tissot. The subject, Thérèse-Stephanie-Sophie Feuillant, the Marquise de Miramon (1836-1912) is painted in a pink velvet ruffled...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday
Interested in hair styling? This mystery is for you: What is the name of this elaborate updo? What does it signify? Add your guesses below. We’ll provide the answer on Thursday!
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday: The Squash Blossom as a Symbol of Fertility
Yes, this hairstyle is called the squash blossom whorl, and it is the traditional hairstyle for unmarried girls in the Hopi tribe. The Hopi are a Pueblo Native American tribe who have farmed land in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday: Anna Maria Garthwaite
Save for a few biographical tidbits, very little is known about the life of Anna Maria Garthwaite (1690-1763), the daughter of a clergyman who left home in 1726 to live with her widowed sister. In...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday
While watching the fall foliage change from greens to bright yellows and mottled reds, we’ve also sighted a fair amount of New Yorkers in colorful and patterned jackets, scarves and hats. It’s these...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday: Halston, The Hat Man
Cloche hats, toques, doll hats, and snoods…yes, this is one of Halston’s designs! When many of us think of Halston, we think of heady perfume, sultry synthetics and Studio 54. Most of the world...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday: Alice Vanderbilt in Fancy Dress
Halloween is fast approaching—do you know how you’ll be dressing up? Perhaps you’ll take a cue from Alice Vanderbilt and go as Electric Light. Or follow the lead of this young lady, who “daringly...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday
As Hurricane Sandy arrives, and those of us on the East Coast prepare to wait out the storm (and perhaps wade through the aftermath), here’s another mystery for you: Who is this dapper gentleman? What...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday: The War Hero and His Wellingtons
Rain boots, galoshes, wellingtons… an invention of Arthur Wellesley! According to the Victoria and Albert Museum, “Wellingtons first appeared at the time of the Napoleonic Wars, when the army became...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday – Women Suffragists of the United States
A woman is fitted in a woefully out-of-style crinoline. “The Anti-Suffrage Society as Dressmaker,” Suffrage Atelier, ca. 1909-1912, Museum of London. Although this image is from the English women’s...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday
I am inspired by successful, intelligent women who work tirelessly yet always look fabulous. How do they stay si soignées? Here’s this week’s mystery:Who is this elegant woman? What was her profession?...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday: Ginette Spanier, La Directrice
Yes, this is Ginette Spanier. She was the directrice of the House of Balmain from 1947 to 1976. From It Isn’t All Mink. In her autobiography, It Isn’t All Mink, Spanier describes her job and its...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday – Hélène Fourment
Peter Paul Rubens, Hélène Fourment, c. 1630, chalk and pen and ink, 24 x 21 1/2 inches; The Courtauld Gallery (Samuel Courtauld Trust). History has given us plenty of silly headdresses. But what,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday
“Too intelligent, too wilful! …Not bad taste, however!” …said one member of the press when this young American fashion designer dared to show her collection in Paris. Who is the young American designer...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mystery Monday: Elizabeth Hawes
Prevost, Jean. “Modes d’Amerique” July 6, 1931. Found in Fashion Is Spinach by Elizabeth Hawes. That’s right; this article is about Elizabeth Hawes (1903 – 1971), the fashion designer and author....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fashionista Friday – the Turkey
North American wild turkey. While the roasted turkey may be the star of the American Thanksgiving table next Thursday, turkey feathers have had a steady supporting role in the fashion world for...
View Article