Hattie Carnegie's Philosophy

Taste is so much more important than fashion - Hattie Carnegie


Hattie Carnegie

Hattie Carnegie

Hattie Carnegie February Vogue 1950

Hattie Carnegie 1950s

Hattie Carnegie Suit Model Sunny Harnett

Hattie Carnegie

Cherry Nelms in Hattie Carnegie Gown
Harper's Bazaar March 1954

Read more about Hattie Carnegie on our Hattie Carnegie Page


The Mysterious Marie-Thérèse

How can there be so little background information on the lovely fashion model Marie-Thérèse. She had a prolific photo portfolio.

Is she the same Marie-Thérèse who was Pablo Picasso's muse and model?

Is she the same as Marie-Thérèse Walter?

It seems, the more we search, the less we know.

However, we do have a few exquisite photographs to show you.

Marie-Thérèse in Lanvin-Castillo Evening Gown and Shawl
Philippe Pottier Photo 1953

Marie-Thérèse in 1953 Christian Dior Cocktail Dress

Marie-Thérèse in 1954 Pale Pink Ensemble by Pierre Balmain

Marie-Thérèse in White Lace Gown by Givenchy
Photo by Philippe Pottier 1954 in L'Officiel
Marie-Thérèse in Pale Pink Shantung Dress by Nina Ricci
Straw Hat by Claude St. Cyr
Philippe Pottier 1952

Marie-Thérèse in Pierre Balmain 1954

Marie-Thérèse in Green Prince of Wales Check Suit and Jacket
Pierre Balmain Design
Georges Saad Photo 1956
Marie-Thérèse in "Clorinde" Evening Dress
Pierre Balmain Autumn/Winter 1954-1955

Marie-Thérèse in 1950's Pierre Balmain

Marie-Thérèse in Madame Grès 1953



Eileen Ford - Fifties Supermodel Pioneer

Salute to Eileen Ford, founder of one of the world's most prestigious modelling agencies, born on this date in 1922.  

Ford created the career and  represented most of the top fifties models. Included among these supermodels were Jean Patchett, Dorian Leigh, Suzy Parker, Evelyn Tripp, Lisa Fonssagrives, Mary Jane Russell, Carmen Dell'Orefice, Dovima, Lillian Marcuson, Dolores Hawkins, Sunny Harnett, Nan Rees, and Georgia Hamilton. They would go on to work for many of the most influential fifties' fashion designers, magazines, and photographers.

Jean Patchett for Vogue May 15, 1951
Photographer Clifford Coffin
Dorian Leigh in Lilli Ann Ensemble
Harper's Bazaar 1957
Suzy Parker in Lilli Ann Dress 1956
Evelyn Tripp in Louise Dahl-Wolfe Photograph
Harper's Bazaar 1955
Lisa Fonssagrives in evening gown Amerique by Christian Dior
Irving Penn Photo for Vogue October 15, 1950 
Mary Jane Russel in Clifford Coffin Photo
Vogue February 15, 1950
Carmen Dell'Orefice in Pauline Trigere Dinner Coat
Hat by Elizabeth Arden, Photo by Dan Wynn
Harper's Bazaar January 1959
Dovima in Madame Grès
Richard Avedon 1950
Lillian Marcuson 1951 in Milliken wool crepe dress
Janice Milan Designer
Dolores Hawkins in Jonathan Logan Gown 1954
Sunny Harnett in Claire McCardell Dress
Richard Rutledge Photo for 1951 Vogue
Nan Rees in John Weitz Housecoat
Milton Greene 1951 Photo
Georgia Hamilton in Balenciaga
Eileen Ford and these world-class supermodels are responsible for today's fascination with fifties fashions.


Fifties Springtime Fashions

Isn't Spring wonderful? I remember how I looked forward to all the new summer frocks my grandmother would make for me and my little sister. Let's take  a quick look at the most popular spring and summer fashions from the 1950's

Little girls in the fifties wore the sweetest little dresses and pinafores.

1950's Simplicity Girl's Summer Dress
MidvaleCottage Etsy Shop
Springtime attire for both of my grandmothers were cotton day dresses usually accompanied by bib aprons.

Lane Bryant Catalog 1955

This 1952 Jonathan Logan shirtwaist dress is what many women wore to the grocery store.

Jonathan Logan 1952
Wouldn't this sundress worn by actress Peggy Knudsen be perfect for Fifties Spring Break?

Peggy Knudsen "Never Say Goodbye"
Time to choose your new swimsuit.

Catalina Swimwear 1955
My Vintage Vogue
Capri pants were very popular in the 1950's. My mother called them pedal pushers.

Capri Pants 1950's
Fifties ladies often chose denim dungarees for gardening or yard work. They were rarely worn away from home.

Denim Dungarees 1952 Sears Catalog
And what is spring without a new prom or cotillion dress. Many ready to wear prom dresses were patterned after this Jean Dessés couture gown.

Jean Dessés Prom Dress 1956
The favored outfit for most fifties ladies was summer sportswear.

Paddle and Saddle Sportswear 1953
And we all wanted a pretty polka dot or gingham check dress.

1954 Simplicity Pattern
Vintage4Me2
Let us know what you think of these fifties fashions. 

Nylons Were a Fifties Fashion Staple

Initially worn as a means to keep warm, early legwear choices merely consisted of scratchy woolen, cotton, linen or silk fabrics.

Prestige Nylons 1957

Women's stocking industry was revolutionized in 1939 when DuPont Chemical Company chemist, Wallace Hume Carothers, developed a synthetic fabric named nylon.

Cheap, durable, stretchy, and sheer nylon stockings were first introduced by DuPont at 1939's New York World's Fair. They quickly became a high demand product.

After ramping up production in their new plant in Seaford, Delaware, DuPont sold 64 million pairs of nylons in their first year.

In 1942, nylon fibers became very scarce as they were needed for wartime parachutes and tents.The remaining or contraband nylon stockings soon became prized possessions.

With the end of the war in 1945, nylon stocking demand returned with a vengeance.

DuPont Nylons Ad
Early stockings were fastened to garters on open bottom girdles for a smooth and non-sagging look. 

If the women chose not to wear a girdle, they attached their nylon stockings to a garter belt worn around their waist and under a full slip. These nylons were knit in a manner that required a cotton seam down the back.

With the invention of circular knit machines, seamless stockings became available in 1950.

Fine Feathers Nylon Hosiery

Please consider this brief history of Agilon Stocking manufacturing from 1956.