an ode to Jackie Kennedy style.

google images

google images

During the early 1960s, Jackie Kennedy was a fashion icon for many women. She enlisted Oleg Cassini to design her wardrobe when her husband was elected president of the United States. Cassini designed nearly 300 looks for Kennedy. 

Cassini, a French-born American designer,  originally worked as a costume designer. Cassini grew up in Florence, but visited Paris twice a year with his mother to study French fashion. In later years, he moved to New York and eventually Hollywood. 

Kennedy's style was elegant, yet simple. She wore pieces that were tailored, geometric and decorated with large buttons. Many women copied the "Jackie" look by donning pillbox hats, above-the-elbow gloves and low-heel pumps. However after her time in the White House, her style changed dramatically. Her conservative First Lady clothes disappeared and she started to wear wide-leg pantsuits, headscarves, large sunglasses and gypsy skirts. Her clothing was also bright in color. 

Not only did Kennedy wear Cassini, she also wore Chanel and Dior. 

Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel was the inventor of the "little black dress," quilted handbags and the tweed suit. Chanel grew up in an orphanage during the late 1800s. Though she never married, she had several lovers and eventually obtained the funds to start her fashion empire. She shortened the hems of skirts to just below the knee (this was long before Courreges instituted the miniskirt in France) and made costume jewelry fashionable. According to Werle (author of "50 Fashion Designers You Should Know"), Chanel was not the first to reject the corset in her designs (Poiret and Vionnet had previously done so), but it was ultimately she who banned this garment from the wardrobes of the world. 

During World War II, Chanel stopped production of her clothing (as did most other French designers). However, in 1954 at the age of 71, Chanel made her comeback. 

Christian Dior, yet another French designer, took his wearers into the past. His evening gown creations used up to 40 meters of fabric. Chanel is quoted as saying, "These heavy, stiff dresses that don't even fit into a suitcase--ridiculous! Dior doesn't dress women, he upholsters them." However, Dior said his aim was to "make elegant women more beautiful and beautiful women more elegant." 

Dior proved to be successful, and by 1950 he had as many as 1000 dressmakers working for his fashion house. In only ten years he created 22 collections, and changed the silhouette of his designs each season. As many designers abolished the corset, Dior brought it back. Chanel's answer to this was tweed suits, quilted bags and the "little black dress."

the forgotten, yet notable: part I

google images

google images

I found this gem during one of my many trips to NW 23rd Avenue this summer. This fashion bible begins with the success of Jeanne Lanvin, the creator of the oldest fashion house in the world, and ends with Stella McCartney, the daughter of Paul and mastermind behind high-end fashion with a green conscience. 

Though several of the designers depicted in this book are practically forgotten, current fashion will forever be indebted to these designers. 

Madeleine Vionnet, a French designer, was the first to blend elegance with comfort. Vionnet eliminated the corset from her softly-draped creations and experimented with cuts that flowed carelessly around the body. 

During my travels through Europe last year, the statues lining the walls of Greek museums were adorned in marble and stone dresses, yet the craftsmanship made them appear as silk flowing freely around the statue's body. The Louvre in Paris also displays this Greek artistry with one of its most famous statues, Nike of Samothrace. Though her dresses were not carved of stone, it is clear that Vionnet found her inspiration in the beauty of Greek culture. In fact, her fashion house displayed frescoes of Greek beauties wearing Vionnet designs.

Though Vionnet was the first to eliminate the corset from her designs, Paul Poiret took the credit for the abolishment of this undergarment. Poiret's most controversial designs were pants for women--which were hardly considered acceptable for women during the early 1900s. He also had a hand in creating t-shirt dresses and "lampshade" tunics. Like Vionnet, Poiret's garments were inspired by culture and art. The Russian Ballets (Ballets Russes) inspired Poiret to create turbans, coats with kimono sleeves, richly decorated tunics and flat slippers.

Poiret spent time traveling Russia and America to promote his label--he had an instinct for marketing. He introduced window displays and gave fashion photography an artistic edge. However, the clientele of his competitors, such as Coco Chanel, forced Poiret into debt. He died in 1944, homeless. 

The world of fashion is cutthroat. Designers come and go, but their designs stay inspirations. Culture and art, as evidenced by Vionnet and Poiret, play the leading role of inspiration. Though Paris was and remains the center of the fashion world, French designers were influenced by various other cultures and art movements of the time.