Yearly Archives: 2023

……………………..LOVE CUPCAKE!

…………………………After posting my story about ARMANDO and ROBYN……Celia asked if I had named a shirt after  Robyn, and the answer was yes……but my memory not being as sharp as it used to be, I had to look up exactly what the Robyn shirt was, because I had given her the wrong description? It was actually a tunic version of the “KATE” shirt. It has a classic menswear collar and placket front….However, the body, still having princess seams,  was a little less shaped and it was a tunic length with side slits….It became just as successful as the “Kate” shirt……BTW, Robyn had asked me to design this cotton stretch shirt for her to wear in the salon …..She loved it!

……………………..I just came across this photo of TATJANA and SCOTT CONNELL, and since my two most recent posts were about Tatjana and Scott and his family I thought I would post this…..a fun coincidence…..The photo was taken in 1988 by a brilliant and iconic fashion photographer…..Peter Lindbergh.

…………………………ANNA JOHNSON……was a beautiful model that I used very often in my shows. She and Jac had a very similar look, height and size, and were often paired together on designer runways…..both in the US, and Europe. They also belonged to the same agencies…The photo of her to the extreme left was taken of  Anna at one of my fall shows……Anna married a very handsome man, who was also a very successful model named Scott Connell. I swear he must have a portrait in his attic, because besides a few gray hairs….he looks exactly the same. They moved out to California, and started a family…….three boys!!! THREE HANDSOME BOYS!!! but how could they go wrong coming from that gene pool!…….On one of Jac and my trips to California we were staying at the SHUTTERS HOTAL in Santa Monica, located right on the beach. Jac had invited Anna and her boys to spend the day with us by the pool at the hotel. They were all very young and Evan was a toddler…..While Jac and Anna caught up I kept the boys busy….and happy….in the pool. I don’t know who had the better time…..the boys or me!!!!!??? Anna sent me a Christmas card this year with ALL of their pictures and family pets on it….[excluding the photo at the left of Anna in my show]………..I can’t believe how those little BLOND California boys turned into such handsome young men….The handsome didn’t surprise me at all. With parents like theirs and the way they all looked back then….I knew they would be incredible looking when they grew up……They are all over 6 feet, and look like Vikings. Anna is Swedish and Scott is Scottish….I’ve seen pictures through the years, but somehow these hit me!…….There they are with big smiles on their faces with either their girlfriends or wives????!!!!…..Starting at the middle top left….Anna and Scott, both looking happy and fabulous….the photo at the top next to them, is their oldest son Ian with Lindsay……below left, the middle son Aidan with Rachael, and the photo at the bottom right is the baby….Evan with Kayla. I spent most of the day in the pool with Evan. He just didn’t want to get out…not even for lunch! I can’t believe how much they have grown! Anna and Scott must be so proud of their boys!!!!! I know they were very hands on and involved parents…..good for them…..I only wish Jac were here to see these photos….her good friend Anna and Scott and the boys…..She would be beaming!

………………….Remembering TATJANA…………..in my 50 YEARS in the world of Fashion I have met a zillion people, and almost as many models…….There are some who have make a strong imprint on mind that time can’t erase! Tatjana was one of those SUPER MODELS! To say that she was spectacular looking would be a HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT!!!…..Besides everything else she had incredible eyes. She always reminded me of the French Actress, when she was young, Simone Signoret…..There was a reason she was considered one of the SUPERS!….. I tried to book her for as many shows as I could….but she was so busy, and not often in the country working in Europe…..She did two or three Nation Ad campaigns for me. I can’t remember and don’t have the pictures, but they were always photographed by a brilliant photographer who lived and worked on the west coast…….HERB RITTS….who passed away many years ago and died from HIV…..another young brilliant talent gone too soon!…..They had great chemistry together, and created wonderful pictures…Tatjana was always very professional, and NEVER caused any problems. She always did what was necessary to get the job done, and she did it beautifully. She never made a fuss, always had a smile, and in general was pretty quite……I always thought she was a little shy, but that couls have been just around me……It was impossible for Tatjana to take a bad picture….In the photo at the left is Tatjana and Anna Bayle in one of my spring AK shows…..The photo on the right is Tatjana wearing my “Marilyn” dress for a VOGUE EDITORIAL……She’s simple exquisite!…….Like so many Tatjana was taken too soon!…..I’m sure she and Herb, and so many other photographers that she worked with who are gone…..are making beautiful pictures together in Heaven……….RIP dear TATJANA