Yearly Archives: 2021

…………………….The FOUR additional pieces were all very special……There is a strong belief that “fashion” repeats its’ self every ten years. I actually think these days similar looking clothes have closed the year gap to zero. The top at the bottom left is made in Stretch VELVET and Crinkle georgette. I think you can tell from the sketch which is which…LOL. As you can see there are ruffles outlining the ballet neckline, the armholes and two rows of ruffles at the elastic cuff. To the the stretch velvet it had a some what fitted look….This was a very successful top and the women loved its’ femininity…Jump ahead to 2020 and you see I repeated myself in the form of A390842, the crinkle georgette ruffle top. The new top is all one fabric and the sleeve treatment is different, but the total look is the same. It is now at the unbelievable price of $33.96….PLEASE do not look at the plus model in the top!!! I was livid when I saw the picture. She is obviously TWO SIZES BIGGER than the top she is wearing. It’s not the first time I complained about the sizes they were giving this model. I have never seen her look good in anything, and that’s because they only pull size 1x, and she is no 1x. Of course they wouldn’t reshoot, and I know it hurt the sale of this blouse. I wouldn’t buy it from their photo, but having them change something is like trying to keep the tide from coming in. Their photos have always been a bone of contention with me. They have strict rules on how the models look…..I agree with none of it. I think the models should look as beautiful as they can….I think blouses like these are a vital part of any women’s wardrobe……If a special occasion comes up wear it with a pant or skirt or even jeans for that “high Low” look. This top came in a deep saturated GRAPE and Black. There was also a matching pull-on velvet skirt…….The next button front. The blouse was in satin charmuse. It had a V neckline with bands that ended in streamers that could be tied into a bow as illustrated…….It had a 3/4 sleeve with shirring and a two button band cuff…..It came in Fawn, Orchid and Black. It looked fabulous under the boucle jacket with the satin stripping and the matching skirt as well as the boucle jacket with the twisted ribbon and pearl detail. When the jackets were left open, as many women wore them, this beautiful blouse brought the suit to a higher DESIGNER level. It’s a blouse that would work under many jackets and cardigans……Next time you put on your suit jackets, whether your basic blazer or your riding jacket, try a feminine blouse under it for a whole new exciting option……..The next sweater  had a V neck and 3/4 sleeves. It was banded in sequins. It came in Black and Turquoise with matching sequins. A timeless classic piece that will look great forever.

………………….Spring is always a wonderful time of year…..a rebirth!………..Lets pray that this spring brings all things good and hopeful.

………………..I would like to start with the jacket and coordinating skirt at the bottom left. These two pieces were the closest I ever came to doing “Couture” for Linea. I would have made these pieces exactly the same if I had designed them for Anne Klein. What makes them “Couture”? The amount of labor, detail, tailoring, hand sewing and materials involved are just some of the things that make up a couture garment…and these pieces had all the boxes checked. The jacket was made in what now had become my “signature” boucle. Absolutely no one at QVC ever came close to trying to duplicate it…..frankly it was too expensive for them. The jacket had SIX shaping seams in the front, and SIX shaping seams in the back to give me the shape I wanted. It had a small demure collar with rounded points, and the sleeve had a cuff that also had rounded corners at the split. There were pocket flaps, but the actual pockets were in the seams…..The jacket had tiny faceted buttons down the front and on the pocket flaps….they were DTM the jacket colors…..ALL OF THE BLACK STRIPES in the sketch were SATIN!!!!!…..The collar, down the front, the  hem and cuffs were bordered with SATIN PIPING. The satin fabric covering each and every seam were first pre made into  narrow satin strips that had turned edges ready for sewing. This stripping was made into yardage. These strips were then sewn on top of each seam!!! This was EXACTING COUTURE WORK…..Elaine looked at these sketches and said “the factory will never make these complicated jackets….they will refuse….we’re not in the “designer” business”. How many times did I hear that from Elaine! She saw big head aches ahead! I said well let’s send the sketch with my speck sheets and see what they say. They said nothing and made the jacket and skirt samples…..When I saw them I was astounded!!! They were magnificent….and still at a price point that QVC would accept. The skirt, made in the same boucle, had  EIGHT GORES. Each seam had the satin strips on either side of the seam,  but they were kissing. Toward the bottom of the skirt the seams separated and a godet of georgette was inserted, so when you walked the the slits opened revealing the georgette and a hint of leg….It was a fabulous skirt and an incredible suit. It came in all Black or Forest Green……….The jacket and pant above were also very special. They were made in my new crepe with the satin back. This fabric was perfect for tailoring. It sewed beautifully and every detail was shown to perfection. It had a narrow shawl collar and a four button front that were positioned so it wasn’t necessary to wear anything under it if you so chose. It was lined in satin. Each seam and body dart were top stitched which added a dress maker look. However, it was the satin bows on the pockets that really added that dressmaker feminine look. These bows were not separate bows that were just sewn on top of the pockets….they were part of the construction of the patch. I don’t remember exactly how they were done, but the satin created a band at the top, and a band of the crepe was sewn on top holding the satin in place to create the bow…..so the satin was on the outside and inside of the pocket….If that weren’t enough I inserted a faux belt of satin in the back between the two princess seams. This was more complicated than you would think with all of the other top stitched seams….Another shake your head jacket for Elaine…LOL….At least the pants were simple!………..The blouse was in a satin charmuse….It was very romantic and had the look of a heroine in a period English book. It had a small demure collar, and a button placket front. The buttons were tiny pearl. It had a front and back yoke with shirring and the 3/4 sleeve ended with shirring going into a buttoned band…..What made this blouse very special was the wide band of SMOCKING at the waist creating a soft shirred bottom and body of the blouse. I realized this blouse wasn’t for everyone when I designed it, but I always felt nothing I designed, except for maybe a tee, was for everyone. It came in a beautiful Antique Rose and Ink, and Pearl color.

…………………………..There were some beautiful pieces in this group of Sept 09 clothes…..Starting at the top left is an open front cardigan in cotton/acrylic. I took the rose and wisteria pattern I had done on the boucle jacket which had been reordered at least two times by now. I thought it would a good idea to translate it to a more seasonal cardigan that could be worn for a longer time of the year, especially in the south wear the boucle had limited wearing…..Each different color cardigan had different color emb….The next tunic was in a beautiful soft Ponte knit…It had a 60s/70s vibe…very Audrey Hepburn. It had that narrow funnel collar that so many of her tops and dresses had. It had a button front to the horizontal seam, with special faux Horn buttons. It also had side slits and horizontal band pockets. The next jacket was all SUEDE….This was a very complicated COLOR BLOCK SUEDE jacket with approx. 22 pieces, not including the metallic leather!!!!. You have to take a good look at the sketch to see just how complicated it was. It had an exposed zipper front and zipper pockets The colors were beautiful and saturated. Spruce Green [a little lighter and brighter than a forest green], Purple, Wine and Ruby was one combination while Fuchsia, Black, Med. Steel Grey, and Violet made up the second combination………The Rayon Jersey body suit fit perfectly The draping started at the back neck and continued down the front, and from the top yokes. It was a wrap over……But what made this FIT so well was the fact that it was a BODY SUIT. The stretch and tautness kept the drapes in place, and even when you sat the wrap over never gaped or was revealing. It was offered in Spruce Green, Burgundy and Black, and was the perfect layering piece under all of the jackets. It was also a great top on it’s on!…..The next sweater had a high dolman sleeve. It was in the rayon/nylon blend [WK], and came in Raspberry and and Ink Navy.. It had a narrow ballet neckline….but….it could also be reversed to be worn as a V-neck. It too was a great layering piece under jackets and cardigans, plus a wonderful sweater on its’ own.

…………………..The three items above were perfect add ons to anyone’s wardrobe….The fleece/velour type jacket was taken from a book I have on Military clothing. It had contrast piping on the stand collar, down the front, the PIPED BUTTON HOLES down the front, on the four pocket flaps and on the sleeve band. The buttons were antique gold…….There were four pocket flaps with the gold buttons and all of the body seams were top stitched for added detail and tailoring. All of the piping especially the button holes gave the jacket a lot of pizzazz, and was authentic to the dress military British uniforms I used as inspiration…..Another jacket that very labor intensive, and was far from easy to make!……The top below was one of my favorites….It was in a beautiful quality of rayon span. I always used a heavier quality than everyone else, because I hated jerseys that clung and showed every imperfection…..that said any jersey of this type, depending on the style of the garment, should only be worn by women it flatters. TOO often I see women in jersey tops or knit pants and I cringe. Don’t they look in a mirror or have a good friend who can tell them NO. The things I have seen, and I’m sure you have too are simply horrifying!…..but I digress………The top had long raglan sleeves and a some what fitted body….but it was the shirred curved band at the top that was the magic. It was made in CRINKLE GEORGETTE. It had a piped ballet neckline. The band was approx. three inches wide so it came down onto the top of the arm and across the bodice….it was a fabulous top and still wonderful today. We did it in Purple and Smoke…..there must have been a reason that we didn’t do it in black. There must have been other Smoke things in the Sept. group…….The top at the bottom left was another rayon jersey top that had shirring details to create the design. Tops like this had to be FITTED. The measurement HAD TO BE SMALLER than the actual body measurements or the top would droop instead of stretching over the body to create the draping…..Frankly, these were the designs I had the most disagreements about. I wanted them much smaller that “they” were willing to go. Women were confused by the measurements and thought they would be too small, but that’s exactly how they should have been. Women who bought them one or even two sizes bigger were never happy with the way they fit, and always blamed the fit of the garment as being baggy rather than the fact that they bought them too big. Most of the time when measurements of STRETCH GARMENTS seam too small it is because they are STRETCH! I have often heard from women who were confused by the measurements of ENR WK sweaters because they seemed too small….but the EN is very stretchy, and if bought too big would look baggy, and sometimes that WAS the complaint. I wanted to tell them “you bought them too big” but they couldn’t hear me………LOL