Martin wearing her own designs for her spring 2024 show in Milan. Photo: Vogue.
Color, print, and pattern all evoke an energy, a frequency, and when you’re wearing them, you can feel different. A lot of people are doing this subconsciously, putting on those pink pants! It’s one way to raise your vibration.
J.J. Martin – American fashion and home goods designer and founder of La DoubleJ.
This is a quote from an interview with Martin in Vogue magazine, winter 2024.
Martin believes in the power of energy and approaches her designs with that in mind. She’s known for busy, bold prints in bright colors for both her clothing and homewares, which are all made in Italy.
I’ve noticed that I’m drawn to certain colors at different times. All of a sudden for seemingly no reason, I want to surround myself with purple, bright green, or yellow. Most recently it was mauve or soft pink – I just couldn’t get enough of it, like candy, and I think it’s because I find it a comforting shade. Patterns also call out to me; often it’s plaid but this past year polka dots are my thing because they’re such fun. Perhaps subconsciously I’m shifting my vibe. Whatever is happening, I’m enjoying it!
How about you, readers? What colors and patterns are you attracted to this spring?
A change of season means a change of hats. It’s time to don our pretty bonnetstrimmed with flowers and ribbon.
I have enjoyed the cold and wet winter we had in my part of the world, but I’m excited for spring and all that it brings – sunny skies, colorful flowers, and spring fashions.
Earlier this month my partner and I attended the Art Deco Society of California Member Mixer at the Alameda Masonic Hall. This is the first ADSC event for us since just before the pandemic shutdown in 2020 and what fun it was to get back into the swing (donning masks).
The label on the dress says, Made in France for Bonwit Teller.
I had three vintage outfits put together, but it was the weather that would decide it. As it turned out to be a cold and rainy day, my wool dress was the winner.
When creating vintage outfits I like to mix it up a bit. I’ll wear a simple silhouette from any era and add vintage accessories. This time I paired a royal blue 1960s A-line long sleeve dress with a blue 1920s cloche hat, which defined the era of the look. Since it was chilly and wet, I wore cream colored tights and waterproof suede Oxford shoes by Clarks. A vintage pearl cuff bracelet picked up the color of the tights. I carried a blue fabric satchel handbag that I found at a London antique market and my guess is that it dates from the 1960s, but it’s timeless. A blue crinkle silk scarf from Kiss of the Wolf and pair of vintage leather gloves completed the ensemble.
Accessories make the outfit.
The star of the outfit was a red Bakelite picture hat brooch that I wore on the shoulder to pick up the red crisscross accent on the dress. It received a lot of attention.
Just one statement piece can add a punch.
I plan all my outfits, but it’s extra fun to put together something like this for a period event. We had such a lovely day catching up with other ADSC members and touring the Alameda Masonic Hall, which was built in 1927. I look forward to more Art Deco events in the future.
I have always loved sweaters; they are cozy, comforting, and an easy layering piece. I have quite a few sweaters including a navy blue cashmere that was my father’s. It’s almost a dress on me, but I pair it with a slim skirt and a wide belt.
Mom is wearing the beloved sweater paired with slim pants and desert boots. Circa, 1958.
One of my favorite sweaters was a black wool cardigan that belonged to my mother. What we both really liked about it was its sailor flap in the back, which “took it out of the ordinary” as Mom would say. Since it didn’t have pockets at some point she knitted a square in thick black yarn and sewed it on, making her own pocket.
Eventually she gave that sweater to me, as she did many of her clothes, and after years of wearing it I managed to lose it. I have no idea what happened. It was there at my desk at work and then it was gone. I looked everywhere possible – all over my office, my car, I tore my apartment apart, I even went to my local cleaners thinking I might have brought it in (and forgotten), but weeks later I had to accept that it was gone for good. It remains a mystery.
That was about eight years ago and ever since I have looked for a similar sweater with no luck. Until recently when I found a wool cardigan at Lesley Evers in Oakland. It’s navy blue, not black and it doesn’t have the back flap, which I can’t do anything about. Nor did it have pockets, but I could do something about that. I took a page out of Mom’s fashion book and knitted a square and sewed it on. Presto – a pocket!
You know that magical purchase that is just right in every way? This is one of those. I love this sweater almost as much as Mom’s and having added the pocket, it feels like hers. I’m so happy it’s now a part of my sweater wardrobe.
I have always believed that breaking rules is what makes clothes interesting. It is what I’ve done in different ways for my entire career. I love mixing fabrics and shapes in unexpected ways – the classic with the modern, the rugged with the elegant. There are no limits, as long as it’s done with a certain taste level.
Ralph Lauren – American fashion designer.
Ralph Lauren is one of my favorite designers. I appreciate his always tasteful designs and his nod to the past.
Image courtesy of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
Congratulations to the de Young Museum and Laura Camerlengo, Associate Curator of Costume and Textile Arts at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco for their latest fashion exhibition, Fashioning San Francisco: A Century of Style, open now through August 11, 2024.
There has been much anticipation among the local fashion crowd for this exhibition that features over 100 high and couture fashion pieces worn by prominent SF Bay Area women and created by top designers including:
Lucile
Jeanne Lanvin
Rei Kawakubo
Christian Dior
Vivienne Westwood
Christopher John Rogers
Alexander McQueen
and many more – more than 50.
The Fine Arts Museums has an impressive and extensive collection of 20th and 21st century women’s fashions thanks to generous donations by Bay Area women. This is the first time in more than 35 years that pieces from the collection have been shown. Additionally there are pieces loaned to the exhibit by locals including Sherri McMullen, East Bay resident and owner of McMullen, an Oakland boutique named by Vogue and Women’s Wear Daily as among the premiere fashion retailers in the country.
Christopher John Rogers, 2021. Image courtesy of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
I was disappointed to have missed the Press Preview, but did I attend the Members Preview Day and I appreciated getting a different perspective. There was a certain excitement in the air and I enjoyed hearing people’s comments and reactions as well as chatting with fellow fashion enthusiasts, including Lee, a Bay Area resident who as a designer herself was interested in taking a close look at construction. She pointed out to me that a 1955 Dior dress has zippers underneath the sleeves.
Backed by lightweight curtains with subtle architectural designs, Fashioning San Francisco is divided into seven sections that smoothly transition from one to the next: after the 1906 earthquake, the little black dress, suits, global influences, fashion as art, formal wear, and a small collection of shoes.
While attendees moved from section to section a soundtrack of mid-century standards played in the background. I asked fellow attendee, Aldona what she thought of the music and she said that she hadn’t noticed. After listening for a moment she commented, “It’s like we’re at a party.” It did feel like a party and suddenly I craved a cocktail.
“Junon” Christian Dior, 1949. Image courtesy of Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
But we were already giddy looking at the dazzling fashions surrounding us. Particularly in the formal wear section, where two well-known evening gowns by Christian Dior – Junon and Venus – with their fairytale sparkle called out to the crowd.
I was also drawn to the suits and one that caught my eye was a 1999 John Galliano for Dior: wool slacks and a jacket designed to wear backwards. I would have loved to have seen it from the back. Another Galliano that I liked was an ensemble with a short black jacket that had unexpected cutout detail on the sleeves.
John Galliano jacket, 1996. Love that detail!
Something new (at least to me) was the use of two levels of mannequin displays, called “balconies” one on top of the other. I liked the simplicity and use of space, plus it felt fresh and it offered viewing from a distance – why not bring opera glasses? Also new and great fun is Snap AR Activation, which allows attendees to “try on” some of the couture in the exhibit. Stand in front of a screen and like magic it will drape your reflection in a beautiful gown. (Don’t miss it – it’s located downstairs from the main exhibit.)
Well-Suited. The John Galliano for Dior suit I mention is center bottom. Image courtesy of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
For a deeper dive, Laura Camerlengo has edited a 336 page catalogue that accompanies this exhibit and includes detailed images, information about who owned and wore some of the pieces, and essays by fashion historians.
The exhibition catalogue is available in the museum shop.
I walked through the exhibition three times and could have circled again and again and still spotted something I didn’t see before and that’s a good reason to buy the book.
Fashioning San Francisco: A Century of Style is a fashion feast. Don’t miss the party. Click here for tickets.
There is something about sparkle this time of year that lifts my spirits. In January I pull out some of my sparkly pieces of jewelry, which includes a strand of cut crystal beads that belonged to my grandmother, a vintage rhinestone star brooch, and a Victorian diamond horseshoe pendant that is also a family piece.
Every day I choose one sparkly piece of jewelry to wear. (I like to think that the horseshoe pendant offers a bit of luck to the new year.)
A touch of sparkle makes the so-called “bleak midwinter” a little brighter.
Here we are at the final day of The Twelve Days of Shoes.
Aren’t these shoes fabulous? They are an unusual copper color leather and date from the 1920s.
Inside one of the shoes is marked “Halle” which was a department store in Cleveland, Ohio from 1891 until 1982. I enjoy seeing how far vintage items have traveled and I do wonder what that path was from there and then to here and now. In this case I only know that last 30 years.
I used to help my mother, who was an antique jewelry dealer, do antique shows; often she and I would dress in vintage clothing to add a certain appeal to our booth (plus it was such fun). I remember she wore these shoes with a lovely cut velvet dress. I don’t know how she came to own this pair of shoes; I imagine she found them at a vintage shop. Eventually she passed the shoes on to me when I started going to Art Deco events.
Like many of the others in my collection, these shoes have also seen a lot of fun at various dances and evening events. I have paired them with a 1930s brown velvet dress and a green silk Kiss of the Wolf long sheath dress.
I hope that readers have enjoyed the ODFL Annual Twelve Days of Christmas – the shoe edition. There’s more fashion fun ahead for 2024.
It’s Day Eleven of The Twelve Days of Shoes and today we have an old favorite and the pair of shoes used in the ODFL logo. (Take a look at the top.)
Yes, they are a bit tattered as they have danced many a night away. These suede 1940s platforms are made by Urbanites by James Kean. The cutouts on the top adds interest and the platform with the three inch heel gives height without pain. I have worn these shoes with long gowns to dances, day dresses to period events, and even trousers when working. They fill a lot of needs.
Pop back to ODFL tomorrow for one last peek into my shoe closet.
OverDressed for Life 