Monthly Archives: November 2022

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………………………….Frank Mori was the President of Anne Klein for most of the 20 years I designed for the company……I think Frank described his function as the president extremely well in this quote he gave to WWD in 1984….”My job was to be the orchestra leader, not to design the clothes, get them made, or negotiate the piece goods buy. I had good people to do all of that. My job was to be Leonard Bernstein, and make sure everyone was playing the same tune”, and that he did superbly. I worked with Frank for the nine years while Donna and I  designed AK together, and I continued to work with Frank for TEN more years after Donna left the company to go on her own…….Every time I walked into Frank’s office, or he walked into my studio just to say hello, he always had a smile on his face…..just like in the photo….I can’t recall ever having one argument or disagreement with Frank in all of those years…..An orchestra leader he was!!!…I remember one time I had spent a small fortune on embroidered samples. I had to sign the receipts to approve that they were correct. My jaw dropped when I saw the amount!!!…..I was called into Frank’s office….I knew why!…..He has a stern look on his face, and I knew I was in big trouble. He asked me to sit down, and handed me the receipts….OH NO I was in for it now!!! He asked me if the bills were correct, and I sheepishly said….yes….His stern look turned to a smile and he said these must be beautiful embroideries, and I replied that they were. He said, “Okay, you can get out of my office now”, and that was the last I heard about my spending……..I can also recall one time when Frank was told that he had to intervene with Donna and I about editing the collection. Of course neither Donna nor I knew about someone “telling” on us, so we were caught off guard when Frank asked to see us in the show room where all of the new samples were being stored for the next fall collection……So into the show room Donna and I went at the appointed time. Frank, never one to beat around the bush, and got right to the point. He said he was “told” that we had an abundance of jacket styles and there were too many to be produced. Donna and I, since we were two designers always had more styles than were necessary, but it was difficult for us to part with them….So, the orchestra leader, Frank, asked us to line up all of the jackets on the wall. I think it even surprised Donna and I to see the amount of jackets there were……Frank then said….”Okay guys pick your TEN FAVORITES!!!” Donna and I were horror struck. He explained that to have so many jackets on the line for the buyers to choose from would result in the orders for some being very small. The buys would be so spread out among all of these styles that it would reduce cutting tickets on some styles, which would make it impossible to produce these small quantities…..He explained that it would be better to have less styles and larger cutting tickets. Frank always had a gentle way of saying things, and we understood…..We didn’t like editing so many of our babies out, but we started to choose. Donna picked five and I picked five and then Donna and I discussed what we had chosen to make sure it made sense for the total look of the collection….When we made our final decision Frank said “Okay….now you each can pick one more”. It was like he gave us a present!….He was very clever…..As the article that was in WWD said, Frank was a good father, and I met two of his three children, Chris and Heather. Through the years I saw them grow from  beautiful children tom young adults. They were always dressed well, but always very respectful. The apples didn’t fall far from the tree. While working with Frank, I always felt supported and PROTECTED as a designer….which wasn’t always the case in many companies where the designer was an employee and not a principle owner……When I left Anne Klein I only saw Frank maybe two or three times. I went on a different adventure, and our paths never crossed…..It’s always very hard when someone you knew for many years and had a great deal of respect for passes….I guess I thought Frank would always be around…….The last time I saw Frank he was a young handsome man, and looked exactly like the photo…..with that warm welcoming smile…..That’s the way I want to remember him………Rest In Peace dear Frank.

………………The combination of leather or suede with ribbed knit had already become a Linea signature when I designed this jacket. I have owned a zillion leather and suede jackets myself. Some I have worn very infrequently because, as beautiful as they were, they weren’t very comfortable, and comfort is supreme for me. I was never a believer in “pain for beauty”. Let others suffer! The insertion of knit in the proper places made movement and COMFORT very important. This zip front leather jacket came in MALACHITE, RUBY, and BLACK……I always used a superb quality of soft leather, and the make was unparalleled….All of my leather pieces were very well received, and so was this jacket.

…………………..With each new item I always do a “working sketch”. These are specific sketches that I give to the pattern makers, and I try to make them as detailed as as close to how I want the finished garment to look. I also write all of the important details on the side. These are very different from “designer sketches” which are much looser, and more about the image, and feeling of the clothes…..The “LOOK” is the most important thing with a designer sketch.

……………………..I knew when I did this PUSSYCAT BOW COTTON SHIRT that it would have a limited audience. From my late teens working as a “go for” at the famous house of Norman Norrell I fell in love with HIS SIGNATURE pussycat bow blouses. He used to make them in silk organza or organdy, and showed them with everything from suits to full length evening skirts. The models looked so glamorous with their Kees van Dongen blacken eyes, red lips. and slicked back short hair…..and wearing a fabulous bow blouse and black sequin pants……This bow blouse was my homage to Mr. Norrell. The stretch cotton, which I had developed for me was quite dense, and made a beautiful bow…………always crisp and standing at attention!