……………………The Oct 03 group was the end of Fall/Winter and the introduction of Holiday dressing…….The top left fabric swatch shows a floral bouquet print on velvet. The insert needlepoint was the inspiration. It came from one of Jac’s needle point pillows. She needle pointed constantly when we were watching TV….a true multi-tasker! She ordered her designs from England. They came as blank canvasses, and Jac had to count each stitch according to a chart…..you didn’t want to miss count!! There are pillows in every room of the house…..even in some of the bathrooms! Some of the pillows have beautiful bead work!!…..The jacket had turn back cuffs and an under collar in a contrast color [don’t remember the fabric, but my guess would be silk]……The next jacket was a print hounds tooth check on a Mole Skin fabric…..a sort of faux suede finish…..It too had contrast collar and cuffs and was fully lined. It had two patch pockets……….next was an ENR sweater dress with contrast bugle beaded trims….All of the three colors, red, ivory and black had black bugle beads……..Below left is a silk and cotton classic sweater to coordinate with the jackets…….Next was a beautiful sweater in an angora blend….it had tonal pearl and sequin emb……Like all of my embroideries it was very lush. The emb. was close together at the top and gradually spread out to nothing at the waist It was all hand done……the next sweater had a beautiful cascading leaf design in a combination of bugle beads and tiny sequins. It was asymmetrical and had a branch flowing down the back over one shoulder……Last but not least was a beautiful silk charmuse tunic shirt with bugle beaded collar, cuffs and hidden placket front……..No one to this point was using bugle beads for emb. in a major way the way I did…Most just scattered a few hear and there…………..2003 ended my 3rd year on QVC!.
Would you buy stock in the company that owns QVC and HSN?
NO
Jac’s needlepoint is exquisite. Did she go to the flower shows in England.?
No Cela….the kits came from a company in England. They were very elaborate and the canvasses were blank so she had to count every stitch from a chart….starting at the center. It took great focus. She also did a 6 panel carpet that is in our bed room. Her mother also needle pointed at one point but arthritis finished that. She crocheted instead. I never counted the amount of blankets and pillow covers we have in the house. Almost ever room has one or more of her crocheted blankets. She made a beautiful one for our King sized bed.
OMG, Louis she was really talented in interior design. Your house looks eclectic which takes creativity. From the crown molding to the floors , it looks like a woman’s
touch. I love, love, love your “Green Room”.
Cela, I’m sorry….who and what are you referring to?
Hi Louis, it was just a follow up comment to what you said about Jac’s needlepoint and the carpet she did for the bedroom. I was wondering aloud, I guess, whether
She had a hand in decorating the house. I think what Iveseen of your house is beautiful. I love your “green room”. It’s so serene.
Jac always had a say in what our home looked like, but she always wanted me to take the lead. The padded green velvet walls in the green room was my idea. When we first moved in the room was knotty pine pickled white! I guess they wanted the walls to look like drift wood being by the water. However it just looked like knotty pine with a white wash….horrible! I had the room painted a dark forest green, but all of the knotty pine marking showed through so I asked a decorator friend of mine if the whole room could be covered in padded green velvet, and he said yes so that’s what I did. The ceiling had a large metal grid with the previous owners family crest in the center YIKES!!! They wanted it and I was happy to give it to them……so the ceiling was re-plastered and the large moldings were added. Jac’s pillows and her mother’s crochet blankets added greatly to give the rooms a homey touch. I worked with Jac’s Mom on the color yarns for each blanket in each room, and many of those colors ended up on the Linea collection!
I can certainly understand your position with QVC, Louis, but what I don’t understand is how you brought the quality you did at the prices you did for as long as you did. There is nothing else there to compare with what you brought, not to mention at the price point you brought pieces. I’ve played around the site since you made your announcement last month and there just seems to be a lot of basically mass produced items lacking design or quality at high price points for what they are. Finding you was like finding a treasure and I can’t tell you how much you and your work are, and will be, appreciated as I wear your beautiful pieces in the years ahead.
,
Mary, the answer to your question is simple…..INTEGRITY……from day one Elaine and I strove to make the best product. I chose Elaine to be my manufacturer because at the time she was manufacturing Koos Van der Akker. His clothes were so complicated to make with all of the pieces in different fabrics and on top of that REVERSIBLE….that I figured if she could make these clothes beautifully….she could certainly make anything I gave her. As for prices, there were many many times that we took a cut in our commissions to meet QVC prices or the clothes wouldn’t have been ordered if the prices weren’t met. There was a lot to consider especially keeping the factories going that made these samples. Eventually we all had to lower our commissions on every item to meet QVC’s prices and still keep our standards. The factories always were paid what they asked for to insure that we didn’t loose them. I have to say it was becoming more and more difficult……Very few vendors have the integrity Elaine has, but she too has decided it just isn’t worth it anymore and is retiring before the end of this year…..For most it’s about the $$$$$ even through the quality suffers for sure. It’s all becoming very mediocre, and less.
Again, Louis, I love everything…..but that Floral Print Velvet Jacket……Magnificent!
Seka.
I would buy the jackets today! And if I had the occasion, the dress, too! So timeless! These must be treasured pieces because I have never seen any of them posted for sale online.
That floral jacket is to die for I’m so sorry I was not aware you were on QVC I sure missed a lot. All of the collections are beyond words to describe.
When I look at these beautiful garments, it breaks my heart to know you are no longer on QVC. Is there any chance you will be somewhere else?
I truly doubt it….If Elaine, my manufacturer, was still going to be in business, if the right opportunity came up, I might consider it, but with her closing her business there is no way at this point in my life I would want to start with someone else. Elaine knew, after a 20 year collaboration exactly how I wanted the clothes made. Every year it has become more and more difficult to maintain the quality and give QVC the prices they want. Before we worked for nothing to keep their prices we knew it was time to go.
Louis, Do you think that other designers at the Q are
Going through the same problems with their lines. I’ve
Noticed that Bob Mackie’s inventory isn’t as plentiful as usual, neither is Dennis’. He still designs beautiful faux furs but they don’t have as much detail, they are lighter weight and cropped a little shorter than usual. Also Barbara Bixby had a Couture jewelry line discontinued.
I heard that QVCs annual profit was around 9 B dollars, how can the problem be “budget”? How naive can it be to risk these beloved, high end designers going to other
Shopping networks? For example, if Shop NBC gave you unlimited control, to produce whatever you wanted, how would QVC justify to their board members losing that market?
Cela….I don’t know details but I do know that Bob Mackie is no longer on the QVC….As for Dennis and others I have no information. It wouldn’t surprise me if their budgets were cut. I have noticed there isn’t any new product for Spring 2021 this Jan which there usually is, which means to me budget cuts? Again, I have no inside info. QVC has cut their over head drastically, and it is no secret that there have been many firings, and the elimination of QVC3 and QVC2 meant many people lost there jobs. All of the producers, production staff and stylists went. This makes a big deal to their bottom lines. HSN is owned by the same company that owns QVC and the other channels are small potatoes in comparison and would mean much traveling [not for me]. Other designers in the past that were dropped by QVC like Marc Bower tried these other channels but they never succeeded.