From Louis

………………………The Aug 03 group continued with a WAFFLE knit wool and acrylic blazer sweater in black and tobacco……I still have these samples and they still look great…. This sweater was reorder in 2004 in 2 additional new colors……the English rib cardigan and the blazer sweater repeat……..next the square neck cotton/acrylic 3/4 sleeve sweater……….the tunic sweater had a roll over neck was in a 5 gauge cotton/acrylic rib. It came in black and burgundy……..below is a maxi paisley print gored skirt…….the trench jacket was done in khaki and navy. I don’t have an indication what fabric it was made in……the next jacket is boiled wool with pick stitching. It came in red and taupe both with black stitching……….the next jacket was in suede in sea foam and tan……the last jacket was a zip front ponte jacket in Aqua and tan……………

…………….Since May was my Anniversary I was given a second date for a show with a whole new group…..This second May 03 group had a tropical vibe……there was a crinkle silk georgette tunic in a large palm print. It was in two colors….black with tan and aqua and taupe…….the FUJI SILK tunic was so soft and flowy on the body. The fabric had a sand washed finish that made it feel like talc……..It was just wonderful to wear and felt incredible on the body…..the women loved this fabric, and were upset when I was forced to give it up. The buyers would not accept the higher pricing…….Next the silk and cotton ballet neck sweater had 3/4 sleeves in aqua, peach and cocoa…..The tank was a silk and cotton knit too…..it came in black, ivory, cocoa, aqua and coral….The silk and cotton blend became another casualty of silk price increases…the pant was in linen and rayon, and the skirt was a reorder knit skirt in new colors……

………………………..The May 03 group was very large with a fun assortment. This marked my 3rd Anniversary….. From the amount of clothes I would guess this was a two hour show. Starting on the top row at the far left is a linen/rayon tunic with deep side slits and beautiful thread emb. It had a buttoned placket front and 3/4 sleeves….next was an unlined easy denim jacket with patch pockets and ivory pearl buttons……The next tunic shirt was a patchwork silk print shirt with contrast narrow banding on the collar and down the front. It too had high side slits…..perfect over jeans and leggings……The next dress had a ballet neckline, 3/4 sleeves and a side slit. I don’t recall if this was a sweater knit or a light ponte knit………the next item became one of my most successful that reordered year after year until the Fuji silk became too expensive. I called this my work shirt….It had so many wonderful details. It had straight bands at the shoulders [a sort of yoke] that extended passed the armholes for a drop shoulder look. At the end of the bands there was an X stitched just for emphasis. It had two breast pockets and buttoned flaps as a work shirt would have. The sleeves were long with classic button cuffs, but they rolled up and had button tabs to keep them there. It had a curved shirt tale bottom, and the back was slightly longer than the front giving the shirt the high low effect. Everyone else was making their bottoms straight across. The next season there were many high low hems. They say that copying is the highest form of flattery. If the vendors didn’t do it QVC would have anyway. They were always quick to jump onto a good thing whether it be a silhouette, a detail or a color…..even color names were used for other vendors and that continues today. Not too long ago when I introduce the name Loden the buyers didn’t even know what Loden was and gave me a hard time for using it. I explained that a Loden coat was a classic Austrian coat and usually in these olive-ish shades. Today everyone has gotten on the Loden band wagon. What also made this shirt super special was it had a hidden button placket, meaning the buttons didn’t show, but in between each button was an emb. horizontal bar in a tonal emb. color the width of the placket. This really made the shirt look upscale and designer. No detail was spared…..Next was a Milano Knit open front cardigan. I was the first to introduce this double knit in sweaters. I don’t recall but it may have had a shiny rayon knit trim? The sketch below was a reorder that was done in new coordinating colors. Ending the upper row was the reorder windowpane shirt with the addition of red and white…..On the second row, far left, is the linen/rayon jacket. It had a stand collar, straight body, and long sleeves. The collar, edge of the front, bottom edge of the jacket and sleeve were banded in a contrast color. The emb. matched the banding. The bottom picture is a detail of the emb…..The next sketch was a favorite of mine because it was very unexpected for the mid range market but was a major trend on designer lines especially in Europe……the print spring coat. This was a large abstract floral in white with navy and beige with black……Next was a woven stripe shirt/dress with white cotton collar and cuffs. It had high slits and looked great on its’ own or over skinny pants or leggings…….The next jacket had a large white plastic industrial zipper for emphasis. It had a jewel neckline with long sleeves and pockets. The entire front had cotton appliques as well as borders on the sleeve. It was all in a beautiful quality cotton sateen. I believe it came in navy with white, chocolate with white and black with white……,These pieces became collectors items and are just as modern today as the day they were introduced……..next was a linen/rayon solid tunic shirt…..and above that a linen/rayon safari type coat/dress. It was unlined and could double as a dress or a jacket…..Safari items would always make an appearance somewhere!

……………………..The Feb. 03 group was all about Spring….It was an eclectic group with very special pieces…….The first jacket at the upper left was a suede jacket with multi color suede floral and leaf appliques….the colors were very pretty as you can see from the little suede clippings…there was a short suede skirt to coordinate and a short sleeve jewel neck rib sweater that coordinated with the jacket and skirt…….The next jacket was an unlined suede topper with contrast crocheted seams…It came in two colors the navy with red crochet and the parchment color with black crochet…….The two sweaters at the bottom were very special. The first, on the right, was a rayon blend sweater with an interesting diagonal rib on the  body. The sleeves were vertical ribs. The body was emb. with tiny tonal pearls in the ribs……..the last sweater was a cotton acrylic ballet neck sweater with 3/4 length sleeves. It had baby tonal sequins hand emb. all over in three beautiful colors..

……………………….THE July 03 group was short, but sweet……From left to right…..the Suede topper with tonal leather trims……..the Suede jacket with leather whip stitching….the reorder Leopard shirt……….the Boiled Wool jacket with knit rib sleeves and collar……….the coordinating mock neck elbow sleeve sweater……….July traditionally  starts the fall winter season. That’s the month that most retail stores start showing the new fall items. QVC followed the retail program and also started showing fall clothing…….,sorry this is out of order!