(Wallace Courtesy Nina Frantzen ? Valentina by Kohle Yohannan, Rizzoli New York, 2009)
Alex A asks what made me think of Valentina, the Russian-born designer who was a dominate force in American fashion in the middle of the last century. I admit it was an emotional flash to the simplicity and slight drama of the Maria Pinto dresses worn by Michelle Obama. I was probably also making an unconscious connection to Ms. Obamas shape and height and to her evident self-confidence, qualities in a woman that were enhanced by a Valentina dress or coat. Then, the other day, I opened some mail from Rizzoli and found a brochure for Kohle Yohannans upcoming book about Valentina (due in early February). I just love the cosmic forces.
And I laughed when I saw a quote from Bill Blass, who loved to share his memories of his friend and neighbor Valentina. He said, If Valentina were to stage a comebackshe would be greater than Chanel. Her clothes were simple and dazzling, and the seemingly small things she did to her designs, like the cut of a neckline or the shape of a sleeve or a gather at the bodice, had an enormous effect. There was a rightness to her clothes, and of course the lady knew it. You ask price for dress that change your whole life! she once said. Oh, yeah: Valentina was as fierce as she was clear. I suspect that the side-by-side story of her marriage to George Schlee, and his long affair with Greta Garbo, diverted some attention away from appreciating her fashion, so perhaps Yohannans book will help correct things. (Kennedy Fraser, in her book Ornament and Silence, also has an excellent essay about Valentina.) Looking at the images and layouts in the Yohannan book, I thought that if more designers today truly understood fit and proportionand maybe were less ironic and more sophisticatedwe might have more clothes that were genuinely good and not merely pretty good. You feel a decisiveness, an expertise in her clothes. How well Valentina knew what her fashion could do for a woman, and, equally, what it shouldnt do. So isnt reasonable to think of Michelle Obamas wardrobe in the same way?
(Courtesy Gary and Manya Drobnack)
Sometimes I really think that women designers are better than men. The other nightactually it was very early in the morningI was at my local Wal-Mart superstore. As some of you may know, Im a great fan of Wal-Marts fashion selection, though I think in recent years it has slumped a little. Anyway, as I was pushing my cart across the floor, I saw in the distance an unusual display and then the name Norma Kamali. I didnt know that Kamali had done some clothes for Wal-Mart, and Wal-Mart, being adamantly low-key about such things, didnt publicize its collaboration with one of Americas great designers. I immediately went over to the display and saw two half-empty T stands. Picked over! I saw a black jersey wrap dress with a sweet-heart neckline and a striped cotton top with a scoop neckline. I grabbed them. If Kamali had designed them, I reasoned, they had to be good, whatever the price. The price, as it turned out, was $20. The dress fit perfectly, as did the top. A few days later I returned and saw that the display had been restocked, and now there were more dresses as well as trim-looking suits.
This morning I had a long chat with Kamali about the ongoing experience. (She has a long-term contract with the mass merchant.) It was obvious that she has enjoyed the whole thing, maybe to her own surprise. Ive worked with so many large companies over the years, but I was impressed by how the people at Wal-Mart were able to conceptualize what I wanted to do, and by the efficiency, she said. Its incredible. She described the process as an education. When the clothes first came out, she visited a Wal-Mart in Westbury, Long Islandwithout any advanced publicityand said that customers started applauding her and some asked for her autograph on their sales receipts. I started crying, she said. They were genuinely excited that I even came to the store. She also visited stores in Connecticut and White Plains, with the same reaction from customers.
I can understand why: the clothes work. Theyre flattering and just a little bit unexpected. Women recognize those qualities when they see them, and they dont see them often enough, I think. For Kamali, who also sells her signature label at stores like Barneys and Bergdorf Goodman, as well as in her own shop, it was important to design clothes for women with families to support who might need a suit for a job interview. The jersey wrap dress probably packs a little more fashion punch, as does a cotton cocoon jacket. Still, women saw the valuein the design as well as the priceand snapped them up. I really want to do things for people, Kamali said. There was an angel on my shoulder when I started working with Wal-Martwho knew? Its an honor for me to do this.
.
(Wallace Courtesy Nina Frantzen ? Valentina by Kohle Yohannan, Rizzoli New York, 2009)
Alex A asks what made me think of Valentina, the Russian-born designer who was a dominate force in American fashion in the middle of the last century. I admit it was an emotional flash to the simplicity and slight drama of the Maria Pinto dresses worn by Michelle Obama. I was probably also making an unconscious connection to Ms. Obamas shape and height and to her evident self-confidence, qualities in a woman that were enhanced by a Valentina dress or coat. Then, the other day, I opened some mail from Rizzoli and found a brochure for Kohle Yohannans upcoming book about Valentina (due in early February). I just love the cosmic forces.
And I laughed when I saw a quote from Bill Blass, who loved to share his memories of his friend and neighbor Valentina. He said, If Valentina were to stage a comebackshe would be greater than Chanel. Her clothes were simple and dazzling, and the seemingly small things she did to her designs, like the cut of a neckline or the shape of a sleeve or a gather at the bodice, had an enormous effect. There was a rightness to her clothes, and of course the lady knew it. You ask price for dress that change your whole life! she once said. Oh, yeah: Valentina was as fierce as she was clear. I suspect that the side-by-side story of her marriage to George Schlee, and his long affair with Greta Garbo, diverted some attention away from appreciating her fashion, so perhaps Yohannans book will help correct things. (Kennedy Fraser, in her book Ornament and Silence, also has an excellent essay about Valentina.) Looking at the images and layouts in the Yohannan book, I thought that if more designers today truly understood fit and proportionand maybe were less ironic and more sophisticatedwe might have more clothes that were genuinely good and not merely pretty good. You feel a decisiveness, an expertise in her clothes. How well Valentina knew what her fashion could do for a woman, and, equally, what it shouldnt do. So isnt reasonable to think of Michelle Obamas wardrobe in the same way?
(Courtesy Gary and Manya Drobnack)
Sometimes I really think that women designers are better than men. The other nightactually it was very early in the morningI was at my local Wal-Mart superstore. As some of you may know, Im a great fan of Wal-Marts fashion selection, though I think in recent years it has slumped a little. Anyway, as I was pushing my cart across the floor, I saw in the distance an unusual display and then the name Norma Kamali. I didnt know that Kamali had done some clothes for Wal-Mart, and Wal-Mart, being adamantly low-key about such things, didnt publicize its collaboration with one of Americas great designers. I immediately went over to the display and saw two half-empty T stands. Picked over! I saw a black jersey wrap dress with a sweet-heart neckline and a striped cotton top with a scoop neckline. I grabbed them. If Kamali had designed them, I reasoned, they had to be good, whatever the price. The price, as it turned out, was $20. The dress fit perfectly, as did the top. A few days later I returned and saw that the display had been restocked, and now there were more dresses as well as trim-looking suits.
This morning I had a long chat with Kamali about the ongoing experience. (She has a long-term contract with the mass merchant.) It was obvious that she has enjoyed the whole thing, maybe to her own surprise. Ive worked with so many large companies over the years, but I was impressed by how the people at Wal-Mart were able to conceptualize what I wanted to do, and by the efficiency, she said. Its incredible. She described the process as an education. When the clothes first came out, she visited a Wal-Mart in Westbury, Long Islandwithout any advanced publicityand said that customers started applauding her and some asked for her autograph on their sales receipts. I started crying, she said. They were genuinely excited that I even came to the store. She also visited stores in Connecticut and White Plains, with the same reaction from customers.
I can understand why: the clothes work. Theyre flattering and just a little bit unexpected. Women recognize those qualities when they see them, and they dont see them often enough, I think. For Kamali, who also sells her signature label at stores like Barneys and Bergdorf Goodman, as well as in her own shop, it was important to design clothes for women with families to support who might need a suit for a job interview. The jersey wrap dress probably packs a little more fashion punch, as does a cotton cocoon jacket. Still, women saw the valuein the design as well as the priceand snapped them up. I really want to do things for people, Kamali said. There was an angel on my shoulder when I started working with Wal-Martwho knew? Its an honor for me to do this.
.