Designer

………………………….Tissage de Chaumes, the fabulous French fabric manufacturer that I worked with, developed these Ribbon Tweeds in a Hounds Tooth  Check pattern. They were an incredible company. They had been in existence for over 100 years. The mill was a three story, wooden structure, and they still had many hand looms upon which they did production. They had rows and rows and rows of these high wooden structures that were divided into cubicles filled with different types of yarns in every color imaginable. If they didn’t have the right color they would dye it in another building. Unfortunately they closed many many years ago. The only company I know of that still can manufacture this way is in Scotland. They too made many of the Chanel tweeds…….The Hot Pink with Red, and the Black and Ivory colors repeat, now in these wonderful patterns. A simple fitted dress with its’ matching shaped coat was the perfect answer to special occasion dressing when the occasions weren’t too too dressy. When I was young everyone dressed for Easter Sunday……..these would have been perfect.

……………………….Clothes that were in Black, Ivory, Red and Kelly Green were now morphed into Red and Hot Pink….The stripes and color blocks, though vivid, became more subdued due to the equal valve of the colors. The contrast of the Black, Ivory and Red was much stronger. For the fashionistas the matching tights and shoes were a must with these short lengths……..Remember, this was 1991, and coordination was the BIG THING…….Also, the “designer” clothes were only sold up to a size 12. Anything above that was a special order and minimums had to be met so only the largest stores could  buy larger sizes if they wanted them. When I started designing for QVC the size range went up to a 3X which was new to me. I had to adjust my thinking. There were clothes that I had designed before that wouldn’t translate well into plus sizes. It was a good challenge for me.

……………………..The shapes on the collection, once established, repeated through out in different colors and fabrics. This made for a cohesive statement and a strong point of view. Today many, not all, collections are all over the lot, and to me very schizophrenic. They seem to jump from one idea to another without a common thread to hold the collections together……..The coat above is the same silhouette as the Ink Blot print coat, but this time in the Hot Pink wool crepe. It is shown over a stark ivory dress in the lighter weight wool crepe. The Artisan Gold ball necklace gives that warm glow that I love…..I did a similar necklace for Linea early on.

……………….Hot Pink and Red became jackets, shorts skirts and sweaters as complete tonal looks………..Artisan Gold was my accessory color of choice.

………………………The Elongated jacket was a major silhouette in the Spring 1991 collection….The very narrow over lap of the Double Breasted crepe blazer kept the line long and lean. The cut away bottom gave relief  to what could have looked more like a coat…I showed the Hot Pink blazer over a Red tank and red pencil skirt….The jewel necklace has an interesting story…………One of my all time favorite si-fi movies was…….”THE FORBIDDEN PLANET”…….Anne Francis was at her most beautiful, and wore beautiful clothes that ROBBIE THE ROBOT would whip up for her at a moments notice……He also, at her request, would make her the most beautiful NECKLACES of precious stones. These took a little longer to make…LOL……Anyway, the necklaces he made for her looked like the one above…..strands and strands of faceted jewels spaced out on fine chain. They were essentially BIB necklaces that filled in a decollete….The long drop earrings matched.