MOD Monday

There have been some very popular designers & fashion houses that have been around since forever and you'd be surprised to know just who has been creating styles since the days when 'MOD' was all the rage...

Pierre Cardin, the Italian born, French designer founded himself in 1950.  He made the mini shift dresses in bright colors his trademark piece in the 60's.  His patterns were all about geometric shapes and that moved the decade into a 'hipp'er' place. 

Givnechy, founded by Hubert de Givenchy in 1952, went on to be the creator of the most famous little black 'mod' dress ever in 1961.  It was worn by Audrey Hepburn in the vintage classic 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'.   

Yves Saint Laurent, was a Paris born, French designer who began his career in 1962 making the Mod Mondrian shift dress that was totally reflective of his love for pop art.

Pucci, or by his sir name, Emilio Pucci was a Florentine Italian fashion designer who's received recognition for his work by the 1950's.  His signature style was always associated with geometric prints in a kaliedoscope of colors.

These fashion moguls style houses continue on to this day creating new pieces with the flair of an era gone by still mingled in amongst their modern day designs...

pics: blog.nj.com , celebdelecream.com , retrokimmer.com , fashonshanty.com , doctormacro.com , onthisdayinfashion.com , tumblr.com , harpersbazaar.com

Vintage Beach Beauty Rewind

Back in the 1950's you would not be seeing a thong bikini clad vixen on the beach and if you did she was more than likely going to be arrested for indecent exposure.  You would however see women wearing what was more of a 'bathing dress' than a 'bathing suit' & they would accessorize it appropriately with a stylish cover up, full face make up and perfectly coiffed hair.  Guess they didn't do much swimming?! 

Of course, less was consider more in those days in regards to 'baring skin' &   surprisingly we are in the midst of a vintage beach beauty rewind as we are seeing a resurgence of that modest 50's style for Summer 2011. Designer Michael Kors suits are making big waves especially when accessorized with chic shades and wide brimmed hats.

I particularly love designer Betsey Johnson's fun & flirty take on this retro swimwear style that makes you think 'pin up' girl sexy!

It's no mystery that we live in a society that leaves 'little to the imagination' in regards to pretty much anything these days so what's wrong with backing it up a little bit and attempting to revive the jive of the simpler days?




pics: hubpages.com , o.tqn.com , thefashionpolice.net , thisnext.com , theorchidboutique.com

Beyond The Blue...Crazy For Colored Jeans

Blue jeans have been a fashion staple for both men and women since what seems like forever, but get this...the origin of Levi's made by Levi Strauss dates back as far as 1873!  Blue jeans designed specifically for women didn't occur until the Fall of 1934 however, they didn't become completely popular with both sexes until the 1950's. Different styles of jeans have come and gone throughout the years.  We've seen the bell bottoms & baggies of the late 60's and into the 70's.  The slimmer cut, butt hugging designer jeans of the 80's that made Calvin Klein, Sergio Valente' and Jordache, household names. The 90's brought us a bit of a down fall in denims popularity but of course it never went completely out of style, just a turn in designs is all, as khakis, chinos and carpenter pants became the must have. With the new millennium came a 'free for all' as all styles, cuts and colors are acceptable for wear and we have most definitely seen a trend going beyond the blue as every one's crazy for colored skinny jeans this Spring 2011!       

Colored denim is not a new concept because back in the 80's when 'punk rock' fashion was popular, we saw a rise in colored jeans but there were not so many variations in the styles and cuts we are seeing today that is giving a creative spin to classic vintage jeans...

  
There are so many possibilities for pairing colored jeans with just about anything so check out the stylings of Rhianna, Fergie and Victoria Beckham for some fresh new ideas!...

   


: thetrendsetter.files.wordpress.com , fabglancenashville.com , trendmill.com

Rated PG Sexy

What's sexy?  Is it true that 'less is more'?  Nowadays it seems quite the opposite as we are seeming to conform to the European standards of modesty on all media fronts and even more so in today's fashions. Case in point, naked models walked the runway at London Fashion Week for Charlie Le Mindu! Way to shop your hats!

The 1940's & 50's was supposed to be the eras of the pristine 'good girl' but they managed to sneak a little naughty in there for sure!  My mother said she remembers back in the day her mother wearing a black sheer button down blouse with just a black bra underneath.  How did they get away with that back then?!  Maybe grandma was just a rebel? Check out this sheer lace number Rita Hayworth wore in the 1942 musical comedy 'You Were Never Lovlier'.  This now vintage scandalous dress was definitely ahead of it's time!

My mom's story of my grandmother's risque fashion choice led me to do a little scoping out on sheers as a current day trend.  I've been reading a lot about the New York Fashion Week still as articles are still trickling in and continue to pop up in the style section of the news as well as in the fash mags.  I came across Proenza Schouler.  Never heard of them, but they are fairly new being that they've only been around since 2002.  Proenza Schouler is a New York based modern design label that focuses their inspirations primarily on women's wear & accessories.


I Google'd them and went looking to see what I could find and their spring 2011 collection at the New York Fashion week was 'sheer heaven'!  I really dig how they couple the aspect of maintaining modesty with the sheer and sexy vibe of the delicate fabrics leaving much to the imagination by accompanying the styles with appropriate under garments such as boy shorts and camis.  

Sheer is definitely 'in' for Spring/Summer 2011 so make sure you keep it classy and not trashy and wear it rated PG Sexy!


 coolspotters.com , omiru.com , styletog.com , photobucket.com , hotbeautyhealth.com
  

Howard Hughes....Bra Designer?

The recent passing of film and pin up sex symbol icon of the 50’s Jane Russell, reminded me of just how influencial she was on the fashion front in regards to what women wore underneath their clothes (i.e. brassieres).

Jane was discovered by the late Howard Hughes who was an aviator, industrialist, engineer, who also had film director and producer added to his credentials.  Jane was his dentists receptionist and he took her on as the lead in his 1941 movie ‘The Outlaw’ which ended up being known as his epic story of cleavage in the old West. 

 

The movie wasn’t released until 1945 but only to a select audience because it couldn’t pass the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America’s) ‘code’ which was written to enforce morality in Hollywood movies.  Given the movies made these days, I’m pretty sure that code has long been removed eh?

The movie ‘The Outlaw’ was stated to have starred Russell’s breasts and although there was no rule against cleavage cited, approval was denied and the movie was put on hold.  There was just too much jiggling and bouncing going on!

Earlier bra designs didn't have much body or form to them so in 1943, Hughes in an effort to ensue a more modest appeal then decided that he was going to design a seamless underwire brassiere which ended up being a breakthrough in the science of bra designing.  It was by all means the first practical ‘lift and separate push up bra’.  He designed this ‘uncomfortable contraption’ as quoted by Russell in an effort to eliminate unsightly visible support lines.  

The actual ‘general release’ of the movie ‘The Outlaw’ didn’t occur until 1946 and unbeknown to Howard Huges, Jane actually ended up wearing her own bra on the film set with the straps pulled down! Nonetheless, Howard's efforts were not in vain being that he set the foreground for women everywhere and years later Jane even went on to be the spokeswoman for the Playtex 'Cross-Your-Heart Bras' for full figured women. 

source: timesonline nifty fifties  flickriver.com never plead guilty