It's Summer!
California or New York?
It’s been a rough few weeks, right? I went to New York for the first time as a grownup/Californian and I was frankly shocked at how much I felt at home in the city (and by “city” I mostly mean Brooklyn, which is probably not what you mean, but I did like Manhattan as well). Then I had kind of an extended Covid episode, and then the news in America has made it pretty tough to keep looking for joy in everyday life. But I think buying secondhand is more important than ever, and I have always found comfort and strength in self-expression and community through fashion and storytelling, so let’s dig in.
To ease back into writing, I’m mostly offering a picture book today looking at the differences between California and New York summer fashion in my favorite year for vintage fashion: 1946. It’s been my feeling that New York designers were more apt to take risks and push boundaries, and California designers were more interested in creating comfortable, practical clothing that was on trend but not necessarily ahead of it. To test this theory, I chose twelve editorial or advertising photos of either New York or California designers and I’m leaving it to you, dear reader, to guess whether each one is east or west coast. Comment your guesses and the winner(s) will receive a pattern or magazine from my archive of your choosing. One bonus point each if you can guess the designer (without doing an image search! you’re on your honor) Let’s get started!
1
Style notes: Sandals, free and easy hair, pants that are between Bermuda shorts and clam diggers. What is this length called?
2
Style Notes: Round sunglasses; again with the sandals.
3
Hmm, is this a copycat image? Is the last one the copycat? Are they both from the same place? Easy hair is a theme in 1946.
4
Style notes: The casual draping of fabric, as though one just came across a bolt on the sand and styled it impromptu for an IG story. Again, the round sunglasses.
5
Style notes: directional stripes, particularly on the dress skirt. A very Greek shade of blue.
6
Style notes: Square neckline. And sunglasses. Greek vibe with the sandals/fabric/pose.
7
Style notes: Belted shirt, kind of a proto-80s vibe. Also, sandals. Easy hair.
8
Style notes: Joy!
9
Style notes: More easy hair; big ticking stripes like a towel or umbrella.
10
Style notes: Swimsuits that are cut straight across the thighs, something nearly impossible to find today. Trivia: a prominent designer copied these several years later.
11
Style notes: THE belt by Phelps of the 1940s. Consider this your free square but you will not guess the dress designer if you don’t already know it; I certainly wouldn’t.
12
Style notes: Big bracelet. Subtle monogram.
Okay, that’s it! Comment with your guesses before 4pm PST next Friday the 15th—which ones are New York and which are California? These are all from 1946 to level the playing field a bit, but there is one repeat on a designer. Again, no cheating through image searches! Just make your best guess; these are not easy.
Have a great week!
The odd numbers are California and the even numbers are New York?