The Wedding Dress

They were just about done cleaning out the closets and the attic when they found it. It was made of white eyelet. The sleeves were long and puffed with a cuff that gathered the sleeve tight on the wrist and closed with snaps. It had a tie that was long enough to fasten at the waist in a bow in the back. The bottom was decorated with a ruffle of more eyelet fabric and the gown was fully lined. The neckline was squared out with eyelet bust gathers to softly enhance the bust line. They unfolded it and put it on their old maid aunt's dress form that had been used in their aunt's work area. The gown was as pristine as the day it was completed.

They wondered whose dress it was as it was obvious it had never been worn. They decided to try asking their mother, if they could track her down. She was always flitting here and there and was hard to pin down, but they needed to know whose gown it was before they decided what to do with it.
　
After several days of playing telephone tag with their mother, the girls, Maggie and Joan, finally were able to catch up with their mother. She finally called from Côte d'Azur, while in between parties. She told the girls she had but a few minutes before her special friend, Jon Luc, came to escort her to a ball they were attending.
　
Maggie and Joan quietly told their mother of the wedding gown fashioned out of white eyelet and asked her whose it was. There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone and then a long drawn out sigh. Their mother, finally broke the silence and said in a soft, whispery voice they had never heard before, "It was your Aunt Beth's gown." The girls were stunned. Tough old Aunt Beth's gown? Aunt Beth, who in their eyes was the most independent woman they'd ever met? Aunt Beth, who never met a man she couldn't best?

The girls asked their mother who Aunt Beth was going to marry and why it didn't happen, but their mother said she had to go as Jon Luc had arrived. Their mother promised to call them the next day and said she would explain. But as always, their mother forget about Aunt Beth the moment her newest "special friend" arrived and didn't call the girls back and didn't return their calls.

Maggie and Joan were enterprising young women and they decided to see what they could find out on their own. They just had to know why Aunt Beth had not gotten married. Aunt Beth had always lived in the same town and was known as a bit of a firebrand when it came to female supremacy. The thought of Aunt Beth getting married just didn't fit Maggie and Joan's image of Aunt Beth. Still, if mother said it was Aunt Beth's wedding gown then there was an interesting story behind it.
　
The girls decided to search on the internet to see what they could find out. Fortunately for them they found articles about Aunt Beth from the times she had led protests for womens rights and the self righteous speeches she had made. There was noted a particular incident where Aunt Beth had smacked the mayor in the nose when he got too familiar with her. Aunt Beth had to be bailed out for that incident. There was a man by the name of Lawrence Beck named in the paper as her attorney of record. So with that tidbit of information Maggie and Joan decided to search for this Lawrence Beck and try to make sense of the mysterious wedding dress.

The girls went to the local legal aid office to see if anyone knew how to get in touch with Mr. Beck. They reasoned by the dates provided in the article that they found on the internet that Mr. Beck must be in his 70s by now. Imagine their surprise when the young man in the legal aid office not only knew Mr. Beck, but was his grandson, Lawrence Beck the first. L.B., as he was called, told Maggie and Joan they could get in touch with his grandfather at Shady Pines, the local nursing home. He recommended that they get there around 9 as that was when his grandfather was most alert. The girls decided to visit Mr. Beck the next day as it was already going on 4:30 that day and so they waited, wondering just what they would find out the next day.

The next day bright and early the girls made their way to Shady Pines. The nurse in charge told them not to excite Mr. Beck too much as he rarely had visitors except for his grandson, L.B. twice a week. So Maggie and Joan quietly made their way down the hall to Mr. Beck's room. When they arrived at his room they were surprised to see Mr. Beck sitting at a desk furiously writing a letter and muttering under his breath. The girls knocked on the door quietly and Mr. Beck looked up in astonishment! "Mauve and Beth? What brings you here?" Maggie and Joan just looked at each other. Mr. Beck had called them by their mother and aunt's names.

Mr. Beck struggled to stand. He realized after a moment that these girls were not Mauve and Beth. Was his mind playing tricks on him yet again? The girls tentatively identified themselves to Mr. Beck as Maggie and Joan Anderson, the daughters of Mauve and nieces of Beth Anderson. Mr. Beck said, "It's like traveling back in time to the 1960s! You have the look of your mother, Joan and Maggie is the spitting image of your Aunt Beth.

The girls just looked at each other dumbfounded. They just could not see the resemblance to their mother or aunt at all. Still, time has the tendency to change things and of course Mother had had all that plastic surgery so maybe they did resemble their mother and aunt.

In any case, Maggie and Joan asked Mr. Beck if they could sit down as they had some questions to ask about their Aunt Beth. Mr. Beck was gracious and said he'd be glad to answer any of their questions. Maggie decided to take the lead and talked to Mr. Beck about her Aunt Beth's sudden death and the discovery of her wedding dress. Mr. Beck sighed and said, "I heard of Beth's death but I just could not face attending the funeral. It was just beyond what my heart could take."

The girls looked at each other and again wondered if Mr. Beck's connection to Aunt Beth was more than client and attorney. Mr. Beck removed his glasses and started to clean them with his starched white handkerchief. He said, "You girls probably don't know this but Beth was engaged to my older brother, Frank. Frank started bringing her around when I was just 10 years of age. I fell for her hard like a ton of bricks and so did Frank."

"Beth and Frank dated for a few years and on Christmas Day in 1969 Frank proposed and Beth accepted." Maggie and Joan just stared at Mr. Beck, their mouths open in shock. Mr. Beck said, "Oh don't be looking like that. Beth wasn't always a firebrand. As a matter of fact, Beth knew all there was about making a man feel wanted, needed and loved." Maggie broke out of her shock first and asked, "Then why didn't they get married?"

Mr. Beck sat down and then with a long drawn out sigh he said, "Beth and Frank started planning their wedding right away. Beth found the perfect pattern for her wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses and started sewing. Then it happened. Frank got his draft notice and off he went to Fort Lee for training prior to being shipped to Vietnam."

"No one was more supportive of Frank than your aunt. She shipped packages to him and his buddies every chance she got and continued to work on her wedding gown and completed the bridesmaid gowns as well. I was old enough by then to escort your Aunt to church on Sunday and help out when she needed help with something. Before Frank shipped out he asked me to make sure and take care of Beth and I promised I would."

By now Maggie and Joan were afraid to find out what happened. Mr. Beck looked at them and said, "I wish I could tell you something different than what I'm going to say, but I can't. Best to just come out with it already. Frank got his papers to come back stateside. He was due to be home in just three weeks and told Beth to finalize the wedding plans with the church. Beth did just that."

"Frank was in touch and was set to arrive the very day of the wedding. He called Beth the morning of their wedding day and told her he'd be there waiting for her when she walked down the aisle."

"Well, several hours passed. Beth and her attendants were waiting in the powder room at the church. Time passed and still no Frank. After an hour had passed beyond their wedding service, Beth figured something had happened to delay Frank.

Just when she was getting ready to announce a delay, Jim Taylor, the local sheriff walked into the vestibule and asked Beth to sit down. He said, "I'm so sorry Beth. There was no way I could get Frank out. The taxi burst into flames and I couldn't get near it. Beth stood up and walked to the front of the church. She announced what had happened and that the wedding would not be taking place."

"Four days later Frank was laid to rest in the local cemetery. Beth gave their wedding bands and her veil to Mr. Eaton, the local undertaker to put into Frank's casket. She didn't shed one tear in front of anyone. She just stuck out her lower lip and dealt with it with more dignity than I've ever seen in my life."

"From that point on Beth was all about her business. She raised many a ruckus in the name of equality for women and went toe to toe with that ignoramus mayor. I bailed her out and continued to do so every time she was arrested. She continued to sew and became well known in the tri-state area for her trousseau collections. I continued to take care of her legal needs up to the day that she died. I had promised Frank I would take care of her and I did so in the only way she would let me."

Maggie and Joan were quiet. They thanked Mr. Beck for telling them about Aunt Beth and Frank. They both kissed him on the cheek and promised to visit again soon, however, that was not to be. That night Mr. Beck slipped away in his sleep, to join Frank and Beth.

Maggie and Joan decided it was only fitting to donate their aunt's wedding dress to the local museum along with her dressmaker's form for display purposes. They could think of no better way to pay their respects to their Aunt Beth.

My girls just left the house for their first day of school. This year they are both in the same school, one in sixth grade and one in eighth grade. My oldest daughter is showing her sister the ropes. I didn't even have to ask her to do this. She just took it upon herself to grab her sister yesterday afternoon and help her pick out her first day of school outfit.

Next came the makeup session to enhance her sister's blue eyes., fair skin and curly hair. Of course my oldest daughter has her look down pat. My girls are completely different from each other. The one thing they have in common is they love school which I am forever grateful for.

Of course they have a great bunch of teachers to help them along the way and very involved parents which makes for an excellent team.

Today and every day I wish my girls a great school day and every day for all the years to come. Of course I keep thinking back to the days of their birth and can't imagine where the time has gone. It seems just yesterday I was up at 2 a.m. for feedings and tickling their little feet when dressing them.

And of course no more shocking an elderly man in Wal-Mart who overheard me telling my oldest daughter when she was 8 weeks old, "If you kick that shoe off one more time I'm going to staple it to your foot." The look of horror on his face was amazing. At that point I realized that I'd better stop being so anal about things. After all, when you have kids you sometimes just have to go with the flow because of course things change in a big way once there are kids in your life.

So my girls, enjoy your lives. Don't wish for tomorrow to come already for when you get older the time is just going to fly on by. Enjoy!

Odette Barsa, the legend, the entrepreneur, the woman

Today we conclude our interview with Nadia Barsa Bardwil Gerrity in reference to her mother, Odette Barsa, the First Lady of Madison Avenue.

When I started to research the Odette Barsa label I found a change in the patent/copyright from Odette Barsa to FRESOEUR, INC. CORPORATION. When asked about this change Mrs. Gerrity stated, "Our mother started her business as "Odette Barsa and it was always this until she changed the name to" FRESOEUR" meaning brothers and sister years later in 1966. The reason she changed the name was to make sure that I was part of the business, "one sister and two brothers." Odette's sons, Gabriel and Albert, became involved in the day to day running of the business after World War II (both Gabriel and Albert were in the army during the war)and Nadia was involved in a financial manner. Albert was an engineer having graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology( MIT,) Magna Cum Laude, and Gabriel graduated Summa Cum Laude from Fordham University.



Odette Barsa in back row, and left to right: Gabriel, Nadia and Albert

Mrs. Gerrity said, "I worked there for two summers during the war, and got a kick out of watching her figure the cost of something in French figures ,because of course her education was in the French language in Cairo. It was so interesting to see how all the employees admired her and were devoted to her . It was like a family there."

Mrs. Gerrity provided us with many personal photographs and articles which were written about her parents and Odette herself. The volume of magazine spreads in Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, etc. is impressive. Odette Barsa's intimate apparel lines were carried by the finest stores including Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord and Taylor and Bullocks to name just a few.


Advertisement from Harpers Bazaar



Cover of Harpers Bazaar April 1956

One of the articles I was provided mentioned that Mr. and Mrs. Barsa spent their summers in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, which is an hours drive from where I live. When asked why her parents chose the Poconos as their summer retreat, Mrs. Gerrity explained "My mother wanted to send the three of us to camp. My brothers went to camp in Vermont and my mother found Camp Tegawitha for me in Tobyhanna, PA, right near Mount Pocono. They came up every weekend to visit me. It wasn't far. They found out they had friends in the area and bought a house. Then they moved to a bigger house. Then dad built us a house next door to his and we lived there for a few years in the summer, after I was married and had children. That was our love affair with the Poconos. But as our seven kids got older it was too hard to leave once we moved to Rye with summer jobs and other summer activities. We loved our summers there. Mother and dad were so happy there . They had lots of friends and had loads of parties. It was such an exceptional time in our lives!. What a gift, to have the old and the children so happy together.!! My children will never forget those days!"

I asked Mrs. Gerrity to tell us about her mother in her own words. She said, "Mother was an incredible business lady. She was the designer, the promoter, and the best sales person because everyone who came into the showroom wanted to see her. She was such a great lady, and everyone knew it. In the eyes of my mother, the love for her family at home always came first, her children and her husband and how can we forget those grandchildren? She was such a loving and giving person. As hard as she and my father worked, they always knew their responsibility was to give to charity to help others in need . Their hands were always extended. Because of this, our mother will always be admired and respected in the business world and with her family and friends."

"After Mother died in 1975, my brothers stayed in business together and then decided to go their separate ways."

We will now close our blog with some beautiful examples of Odette Barsa's intimate apparel from the personal collection of Nadia Barsa Bardwil Gerrity. We would like to thank Mrs. Gerrity once again for sharing her family with us.


White lace robe


Turquoise Peignoir Set


Butterfly Robe




Odette Barsa with granddaughter, Betsy in 1973

Odette Barsa: The legend, the entrepreneur, the woman


Amidst the ruins of the stock market crash of 1929, a young determined woman, mother of 3 children who had been brought up in a very sheltered family, rolled up her sleeves and started an intimate apparel business and what a business it became. This is the story of Odette Barsa, deemed "The First Lady of Madison Avenue: as quoted in "Intimate Apparel" magazine.

We’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Odette Barsa’s daughter, Nadia Barsa Bardwil Gerrity in reference to her mother and father. We would like to thank Mrs. Gerrity for sharing her parents with us.

Simon and Odette Barsa’s lives were very much the American dream. Both Simon and Odette were born in Damascus, Syria, the oldest city in the world and both Christians. Simon’s father was killed in Syria because of his religious beliefs. Simon’s mother decided to relocate to Lebanon and Simon, who was high school age at the time decided he wanted to come to the United States to make his way in the world.

Odette’s family also left Syria because they were Christian, however, they relocated to Egypt. Odette attended Sacred Heart Convent and there learned fine sewing and was taught in the French language. How Simon and Odette met is a real family affair.

Simon and his brother, Abdula worked for their uncle in his robe business. A few years later the brothers decided to go out on their own and started their business. The brothers named their business "A. Barsa and Brother." The brothers worked hard and did very well and made a great living with their business. They were living the American dream come true.

As Mrs. Gerrity recalls, "Our Uncle Abdula was married to a lovely lady he had met in Cairo. This was my Aunt Marie. He told my father "say, there‘s another one of these ladies over there." So my dad went over and met my mother, Aunt Marie‘s sister. Two brothers married two sisters."

Because of large donations my father and Uncle had made to Rome, the Pope wanted our parents to be married in Rome, but Dad wanted to be married here in the United States. Our parents were married at the Church of the Resurrection in Rye, NY in 1922. "Last year, one of my grandchildren was married there, which makes four generations of Barsa related family to be married there, most recently Jennifer Odette Lynch. Our mother and father had three children, two sons, Gabriel and Albert and then myself, Nadia."




From left to right back row: Uncle Abdulah, Aunt Marie, Odette and Marie's mother, Odette and Marie's brother and sister, Odette and Simon

front row left to right: Michael, Joseph, Violet and Mary Claire, children of Abdulah and Marie Barsa, and then Nadia, Albert and Gabriel, children of Odette and Simon Barsa





Odette and Simon Barsa at their 50th anniversary party

Mrs. Gerrity said, "Business was very good and our parents led the great life with an apartment on Riverside Drive (the place to be in those days before Park Ave was in style), a home in New Rochelle, were members of the Westchester Biltmore Country Club, had nurses, cooks, drivers, etc."

This all came to a very abrupt end with the stock market crash of 1929. As Mrs. Gerrity recalls, "Dad was heavy on margin. What was close to 2 million dollars turned into nothing just like that!! From what I understand from my brother, Gabe, who died last year, after the first blast the broker thought things were going to come back and dad put the business into harm and then lost that!! So there was the family with no money! My mother had to get rid of all nurses and cooks, etc. My mother said she took us to the park and did not have the money for a balloon."

"Our parents were tough. Our father took on partners and started his business up again with their money."

In 1931, Mr. Barsa's firm was experiencing difficulties during the depression. Odette Barsa felt that she should work and she wanted to design children's dresses. Her husband, however, suggested that she try the intimate apparel field, since it was very simple, with everything crepe or satin and just blue, pink or white. Of course anyone that knows Odette Barsa's work will smile at this, as her designs were numerous, made from a plethora of colors, fabrics, rich laces, and embroidery which was done in Madeira. Odette Barsa also introduced several new fabrics to her intimate apparel.

Mrs. Gerrity recalls, "Our sweet mother, the former princess, took one room at 16 East 34 Street, the same building that my father was in. Our Aunt Sophie became the salesperson, and our mother had one sewing machine operator. She started to design nightgowns and robes. She did not draw them. She made the patterns herself. She always tried them on. Mother always felt that this was the reason that she was so successful, because her things always fit. Every year she had to take more room, until finally she had the whole floor. By the late 1940s she was "The First Lady of Madison Avenue" as quoted in" Intimate Apparel" magazine."

Odette Barsa's creations were worn by Hollywood actresses such as Rita Hayworth and Italian actress and former model, Elsa Martinelli. Odette had a wonderful eye and when a shorter sleep gown was made in Paris, Odette translated this for the U.S. into a ballerina length which was the basis for the waltz length gown and robe set that became the industry mainstay.

Rita Hayworth in an Odette Barsa Robe




Life Magazine cover with Elsa Martinelli


Mrs. Gerrity stated, "Our mother introduced several fabrics to the public, one of which was washable velvet which was a huge hit!. Mother had all her embroidery done in Madeira. She purchased her lace from sales men who came into her office. It was probably from France or domestic. After silk fabric was dropped from the line the fabrics she used were made in this country. It was important to mother to have something that could be worn with elegance and washed as well."



The Washable Velvet Robe is introduced by Odette Barsa via a magazine advertisement

One wonders where Odette Barsa derived her ideas and styles for her intimate apparel . Mrs. Gerrity said, "Our mother designed new fashions three times a year. She made her own designs, and her own patterns, too, which made her so popular because everything fit. It was hard to come up with new designs that frequently. She often went to museums and looked at old costumes to get ideas. She named them too, for example, "The dream of Josephine."


The Dream of Josephine

This concludes the first part of our interview with Nadia Barsa Bardwil Gerrity. Please check back for our second and final installment of the Odette Barsa Story.

"That price is just too high." "I can find a coat like that in a thrift shop for $5." "I'll find a dress like that myself and pay a lot less."

These are things I've heard over the years in conversations all over the internet about vintage clothing. I've heard the wails of people saying sellers are pricing things too high. I've heard people saying they can find the same things themselves for $5.

So here's my honest opinion about buying vintage clothing and pricing. Remember this is my opinion so it does not represent anyone's opinion but my own.

Vintage clothing is not my hobby. It is my business. Like any business I have bills I incur to promote my business. That eye candy website I have has a monthly fee. The auctions I list have fees regardless of whether the item sells or not. That advertising links I have are an expense as well.

I also pay fees to PayPal and Google checkout when I sell something. I have business cards, stationary, flyers, etc. They are necessary to my business and are also an expense. Let's not forget the shelf full of fashion books that I consult when looking at styles, eras and details to make sure I am dating these vintage items correctly.

And of course there's my internet connection for how else would I be able to draw on the expertise of the Vintage Fashion Guild members when I have a question that I can't answer after researching a dress for hours on my own.

How does that vintage dress you buy from me arrive at your door all nice, clean and ironed? Well, I clean that dress with specialized products that are friendly to vintage textiles. I iron or steam that dress and check it over with a fine tooth comb before it's packaged for shipment. Those specialized products, steamer and iron, the tools of the trade so to speak, are an expense as well.

But the biggest expense of all is hunting for that perfect vintage dress that someone is going to buy from me. It means spending time in places that might have one nice piece of vintage for sale even though you've traveled 50 miles to find it.

It means spending time with a family who is selling their loved one's home and they are selling vintage clothing that may or may not have been stored properly. It means listening to the clothing's past and where it was worn (which I absolutely love!).

It means bringing home things that you hand wash only to have them disintegrate in the wash bin in front of you because they were touched by cold water and very, very mild soap for the first time in 50 years.

Let's not forget setting up the display of the dress on a mannequin, half form or model. I also have to photograph the dress in just the right light so that all the wonderful features stand out (which requires a decent camera and lighting set-up to do).

Then after editing the pictures and sometimes having to take those pictures again, hoping for better more clear results, comes writing the auction itself trying to describe in words what you've just tried to capture in a few images. You also hope that whomever decides to buy your dress has actually read what you wrote including those oh so important measurements because vintage clothing does not fit like the clothing of today.

So when you are looking at my listings or the auctions of hundreds of other vintage clothing sellers and think in your head "that dress just costs too much", I hope you'll remember the time, skill and dedication it takes to bring a vintage dress to life in an auction listing. We are your personal shoppers. We use our skills to bring you the best the past has to offer. You're not just paying for that dress. You're paying for our expertise.

All it wanted to do was go home. It was 63 years old and although it's owner had loved it for a long time, it was tired. Tired of sandy beaches and salt water taffy. Tired of being passed from sister to sister, niece to niece and granddaughter to granddaughter. Tired of being exposed to sun, summer after summer from Maine to Florida to California and all beach points in between.
It was finally donated when it's last owner just felt it had no use left it it and that's when I found it in my travels.

Checking out one of my favorite shops, I saw that this one was different. There was just something that caught my eye. As I picked it up off the rack and rifled to see the label I could tell that it was vintage. Then it happened. A treasure. A bona fide treasure in a place I shop often. I saw this:




I looked again, not believing what I was seeing. On the exterior I was cool as a cucumber and sauntered up to the checkout line. I paid for my purchase and made my way to the car. Once I got my treasure into the car I gave it a good going over. I'd seen a similar label a few years back.
I decided to head back home as nothing else I could find that day would compare in any way to my treasure.

Once home, I showed my treasure to my husband. He said, "You can't sell that on your venue. Why did you buy it?" I looked at him and smiling, said, "Because I'll never find another one like it." I took my treasure into my office and went right to the Vintage Fashion Guild label resource and looked under Jantzen. There were similar labels but none exactly like this one. The ones that were similar were from the 1940s. Surely there was no way I'd found a 1940s Jantzen bathing suit.

I searched on the Internet for the Jantzen website and much to my surprise found that they are celebrating their 100th anniversary this year. So I emailed the sales department and asked that my questions about the bathing suit be forwarded to their archivists.

On Monday morning I received an email from Jantzen letting me know that my treasure was produced in 1946 and called "Sun Soaker", made of gorgeous Lastex Velva-Lure. It retailed for $5.95. I showed the bathing suit to my 12-year-old daughter who loves vintage clothing, in particular vintage bathing suits, but alas, the suit would not fit her, so I had a decision to make.
Would I offer my treasure on another venue or keep it.

Later in the day I received another email from Jantzen offering to purchase the bathing suit. I decided it could have no better home than in the Jantzen archives. So today the Sun Soaker is finally going to make its way home where it will receive a well deserved rest. I am positive that this bathing suit was the favorite of many, many women. Here's hoping that Jantzen will come out with a retro line of these suits. I know at least 3 women in my household who would definitely buy the Sun Soaker.

I decided to re-run this blog from last year. It is one of my very favorite experiences in the hunt for vintage clothing and accessories.

Every so often a memory of growing up activates in my brain and I start wondering about common place items we had in our home growing up. Casserole dishes came to mind which were made by the Everedy Company in Frederick, Maryland. My granddaddy, Paul, worked for the Everedy Company. I knew that they made casserole dishes and cake safes as I remember that my mom had those things but I had no idea how the Everedy Company started out.

From what I’ve been able to find the Everedy Company started out as the Everedy Bottle Capper Company in May of 1920. The factory made a range of metal items for the home including door hardware, gift merchandise, home bottling equipment and chrome cooking utensils.

During World War II the Everedy Company expanded into military contracts manufacturing anti-tank mines, grenade adapters, rocket parts and bomb parts.

I specifically remember my Mom’s cake safe which I now have and use on a regular basis. It’s made of stainless steel with a Bakelite handle. It still gleams brightly and you can truly say they don’t make them like that anymore. So when I happened upon another Everedy cake safe of course I had to buy it.

In researching the Everedy Company on the internet I came across a “tidbit set” for sale which is a small tray in the shape of a leaf used for displaying cheese, crackers, olives, or any other tidbit you might serve at a get together. I remember my Mom having a set of these as well. So now that tidbit set has been added to my Everedy collection.

I talked to my sister via email the other night and her memories were of rice pudding and scalloped potatoes being prepared in those casserole dishes. There was a greenish blue dish and a rose colored dish and both had a petal pattern on the base section of the dish. We believe they had glass lids as I did find a casserole dish on an auction site but it had a chrome lid and we neither of us remember chrome lids so my hunt for those casserole dishes will continue.

The one thing I really covet right now, though, is this stainless steel canister set by Everedy. Of course each time I find one of these my wallet is empty so I continue to watch and wait. Eventually a full wallet and the availability of one of these sets will coincide and I will acquire one.




I suppose you could say that I am a collector of sorts. However, that said, my collecting has a lot more to do with memories rather than seeking out items that are of great value. They are intrinsically valuable to me because they remind me of simpler days and times. We live in very complicated times and it’s nice to be able to time travel to a simpler gentler time every so often.

It all started with a promise to love, honor and cherish each other and then becoming a parent came next, although there was quite a gap of time in between (Perhaps God was waiting for us to be mature enough to handle parenthood)!




Today is a big day in our household. It's Father's day and 13 years ago we had our first bundle of joy on Father's Day. I wonder where the time has gone. It has just seemed to fly by. Fifteen months later our second bundle of joy in the form of our second daughter came along.



Now having been married for 15 years before we had our first daughter, some of my friends were concerned that DH would not like being out of the spotlight. They could not have been more wrong. DH is the ultimate Dad. From the very first DH was wrapped around the girls fingers and that is still true today. I'm the disciplinarian in the house when it comes to making the girls tow the line and be responsible for their actions. DH is the one that they go to when they want a puppy, kitten or that pair of shoes they know I'll say no to because the heel is just too high.


DH is the one to take the girls out for a father daughter day to the movies and lunch afterwards. DH is the one that calls them at 8 o'clock every night (he works the night shift so I can work at home and be with the girls) to ask them about their day and to say goodnight. He's the one who makes me feel better when business is slow and I feel I'm not making a big enough financial contribution. He always tells me he wouldn't have it any other way (I retired from the phone company when our second daughter was born).

Dad is the one who is the "fun" parent while most of the time I'm the disciplinarian. Don't get me wrong, Dad is right there when things are going rough and supports me when I lay down the law, but if the girls want to enjoy something really silly Dad is their go to guy (as evidenced by DH doing his he-man I'm not cold shoveling the snow in my bathing suit pose below!)




DH is the one that I leaned on completely when within a two year span my parents both died. He provided never wavering support when things got really tough and has stood by me through thick and thin. I don't think that there is a husband or father who has been anymore solid than my DH and the girls father.

My girls are Daddy's girls. They share their hopes and dreams with him and he tells them the sky is the limit. They can do anything they want if they work hard.

The highest compliment I can pay DH is that he is just like my Dad who was always there for me through every trial and tribulation one faces in life. Dad has been gone 9 years now but all I have to do is turn around and look at DH to see the continuing legacy of what a great father is.



So Happy Father's Day to all Dads everywhere. I wish an especially happy Fathers Day to DH. This year our girls are both in middle school, our oldest in 8th grade and our youngest in 6th grade. Time flies so fast and high school is on the horizon. To our girls, this is only the beginning of your journey. May it be filled with love and friendship. It will always be filled with our love and support.

I saw this video from our local newspaper online and just had to share it. The article is by Stephen Sacco of the Times Herald-Record. Enjoy!

Recently, Port Jervis shop owners Louise Gilkes and Joe Fouts celebrated 42 years together, both as husband and wife and as business partners. In the posh days of the New York City fashion world of the 60s and 70s, designer clothes created by Fouts-Gilkes were in the windows of Bloomingdales, on the pages of Vogue, and for sale in high-end Madison Avenue boutiques.

Today I'm blogging about something I've been doing since I was 10 years old. Sewing is a wonderful way to let your creative genius thrive. It's a way to delve into colorways, styles and things that you just can't find in ready to wear.

In the vintage past women were wonderful seamstresses and created some of the most stunning ensembles known to man. My own mom and my dad's great cousin, Angie (seamstress extraordinaire for Bergdorf Goodman) created a stunning evening gown of American Beauty Rose fuchsia brocade. I vividly remember my mom wearing this with a white spiderweb stole (which I have in my possession never to be parted with) and my Dad in his then IBM standard black suit and white shirt with a conservative tie. I was 6 at the time and even though I'm 51 years old now the memory is still vivid.


Mom and Dad in the 1960s

I spent later years going through home economics class making what was a nautical print red, white and blue maxi dress with a side slit just past the knee on the side and a white pointy collar and white cuffs with round golden eagle buttons. I also made a red pants suit to wear for graduation night from Poway High School in 1977 as if to say "Look out world! Here I come!"

In the years after I've made everything from evening wear for company parties my husband, dresses to wear to family member's weddings and doll size clothing for my oldest daughter who weighed 4 pounds 12 ounces at birth. I've also made christening and communion outfits for both my daughters and matching leopard hats and coats out of polar fleece for them. Then of course there are the Halloween costumes over the years as well (a skunk costume, lady bug costumes and flower costumes come to mind).

So it makes perfect sense for me to have a vintage pattern store selling all types of vintage patterns as well as modern patterns on occasion.

I was fortunate enough to find a treasure trove of patterns from several seamstresses who made many beautiful outfits from the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. We have children's patterns, men's and women's patterns.

We have many plus size patterns available. It's always a chore trying to find a vintage plus size dress in a color or print you like that will fit perfectly. So now for the discerning seamstress we have a wonderful choice of patterns from the 1940s on up. All our patterns are priced at $12 or lower regardless of size.

Well, almost all of them. There is one pattern in my store from the 1940s that is priced at $35. It's easily my very favorite pattern even though it's not in my size. For now I'm leaving it priced the way it is because I want the person who buys this pattern to want it and love it as much as I do.


Vintage 1940s Simplicity Bathing
Suit and Beach Coat Pattern 4624
Size 18 B36 W30 H39 FF


So remember when you are hunting for that perfect vintage pattern to set loose your creative energy to check out Born Too Late Vintage Patterns

It was a Saturday night. My uncle and his girlfriend had come to our apartment to babysit me and my siblings. My Dad was dressed in his regulation IBM corporate wear (white shirt and black suit, remember it's the 1960s).

I was sitting in the living room playing with my sister. Then my mom appeared. I'll never forget the way she looked. She wore a white spiderweb crocheted shawl but what was under it was even more stunning! There she stood in a fitted brocade gown that hugged every curve. It was made from American Beauty rose fuchsia brocade and had a beautiful rose pattern woven in the fabric. It was like looking at a movie star. My parents kissed us all goodbye and headed out for the hospital auxiliary ball. I tucked that memory away, not forgotten, but put away to savor at a later date.

Mom and Dad in the 1960s


Years later after my folks passed away I was thinking about the impact they'd had on my life and the memory of that gown came back to me again. It's always been such a vivid memory for me. I finally put 2 and 2 together and realized just why I have always fallen for brocades of any color, weight and shimmer. I suppose you could say that the night of the hospital auxiliary ball was a decisive factor in what appeals to me in vintage clothing now. Other items may bring more financially but my heart will always yearn towards brocades.

Although my family moved away from Cold Spring, New York in 1969, I still have fond memories of Cold Spring. In fact I still have family members that live in the area and I visit Cold Spring, Garrison and Nelsonville several times a year.

Always on our visits we drive down Main Street past the stores of my childhood such as Palen's drugstore where my father would send my sister and I for ice cream cones (back in the day when it was safe enough to let your kids walk there alone). Palen's had a soda fountain counter where you could get a Breyer's ice cream cone in a dozen different flavors. The drugstore is now a collectibles shop.

My daughters especially like the Bijou Galleries shop on Main Street which has $5 grab bags for sale. You never know what's going to be in those grab bags and my girls love them. When I was a kid it was the Bijou movie Theatre and I first saw Mary Poppins there with my family.


Bijou Galleries Ltd.

We also go down by the Cold Spring railroad station and I point out the "subway" which is actually a pedestrian underpass that runs under the tracks of the railroad. I have memories of being midway through that underpass when I heard the train coming. I ran as fast as I could to get up to the other side of the underpass and out the door, leaving behind my younger sister to experience being in the middle of the tunnel when a Penn Central train rumbled overhead.

Then it's down and around the overpass bridge to the other side of the railroad tracks, around the corner at Market Street past the 3 story apartment building we lived in on Market Street. We lived on the third floor. My Aunt Louise (my dad's sister) and her family lived on the second floor of that same apartment building and my Uncle Charlie (my dad's brother) and his family lived catty corner from us in a two family apartment.

Uncle Carl and Aunt Angie (Aunt Angie was really my grandfather's cousin!) lived across the street from Uncle Charlie. Once we make that circuit we head towards the band stand which is right down near the Hudson River.

My memories include going down to the shores of the Hudson River and collecting "devil heads" which are actually water chestnuts (trapa natans) even though my mom always told me to stay away from the river.


Devil Heads

One of my most favorite memories though was the year I turned 9. I marched in the Memorial Day parade with my girl scout troop. I woke up very, very early and excited beyond anything that had happened in my young life up to that moment. I was going to march in the Memorial Day Parade!!

I could barely sit still to eat breakfast. I got ready way before it was time to leave. We marched from lower Main Street in Cold Spring all the way up Main Street and ended at the Cold Spring Cemetery.

Now for anyone who knows Main Street in Cold Spring it's pretty much straight up hill at about a 45 degree angle.


Cold Spring Main Street

May at that time of year in the Hudson Valley can be pretty hot and humid. But I was determined to march that entire parade route. We waved as we passed by our family members, cousins and friends that day. We carried a wreath to the grave of the founder of our girl scout troop to honor her. At that time I was too young to fully understand what Memorial Day was all about.


Cold Spring Cemetery

After the parade my family and I drove down to my grandparent's home on Nelson Lane in Garrison. My grandparents had a small pool set up for all of the grandkids and sometimes Uncle Dom (my grandmother's brother) would come running out from the house in his flowered bathing suit and jump in the pool with us.


My mom and I in the pool

We'd have my mom's famous (at least in our family!) potato salad, other salads, burgers, hot dogs, and sometimes chicken cooked on a state of the art charcoal briquette grill. There would always be Rheingold beer and cold orange and grape sodas and Coca Cola. We'd run around my grandparent's yard the rest of the day and then barbecue some more around dinner time. The ride home to our apartment in Cold Spring was always a quiet one as my sister, brothers and I would fall asleep in the station wagon exhausted from our day in the sun.


My siblings and some of my cousins

We moved away from Cold Spring when I was 10 years old but I'll always remember Cold Spring, New York, a wonderful place to be a kid in the mid 1960s.

The day we left Cold Spring

What do you do if you're a plus size gal and know what you want in a dress, suit or maxi dress but just can't find it?

You buy a pattern, pick out some fabulous fabric and notions and make what you want.

Now you say finding plus size vintage patterns is frustrating and time consuming. Well it doesn't have to be.

Born Too Late Vintage Patterns specializes in plus size patterns. Currently our stock includes plus size patterns from the 1940s all the way up to the 1990s. All our patterns are counted and complete including the instructions.

We also stock vintage patterns for children, men and additional womens sizes so when you get the urge to be creative come check out the variety of vintage patterns at Born Too Late Vintage Patterns!

If you're looking for a bargain come check out Born Too Late Vintage!

Pick out your item(s) and make me an offer. You just never know what I'll do!

So what are you waiting for? Let's go shopping!!

I've never been one to jump down the throat of a seller when an item has not arrived in a timely fashion. Sometimes real life interferes such as the sudden death of a loved one, a traffic accident, a snow storm, etc. Normally a couple days after I haven't received my item I'll send a politely worded email to see what's happening.

I received such an email from a wonderful customer of mine in Canada. Three weeks after I shipped out her item international priority mail (not in a flat rate box) she had still not received her item. Now this disturbed me greatly as I had upgraded the shipping on my dime to international priority mail to the tune of $19. I assured her I would investigate and get back to her that day. I first tracked the package on the post office website. It only showed that I had printed a shipping label on 2/19/10.

So I drove down to my local post office and spoke one of my favorite postal clerks. He tried to track my package but got the same information that I already had.

Stumped, I went home, got back on the post office website and emailed asking for an update on my package. Two days later I received an update that my package was in customs in New York. The following day the package had been shipped on its way to Canada. Two days after that the package was in my customer's town and the following day I was advised via email that the package had been delivered.

So tell me this. Why is it that from February 19, 2010, the date I printed the postage and mailed the package to March 13, 2010 when the package was scanned in customs there were no internal scans on this package. Normally when I send a package international priority mail the package goes to the Lehigh Valley, PA post office facility and then it goes to either the New York international facility or the Secaucus, NJ facility and is scanned in the day it arrives there.

I took my information back to the post office again to one of my favorite clerks who informed me that it looked like customs had had my package for 3 weeks. I felt that was not a satisfactory answer so I filed a claim for a refund of my $19.

I waited patiently for the postal supervisor to make a decision. A week went by and still no decision. So I went to the front counter at the post office and asked when they were going to make a decision. My favorite clerk told me to give the supervisor another day or two as she had been very busy. So I waited. Two days passed and I decided I had waited long enough. I didn't go to the post office this time as I was not very happy and did not want a face to face confrontation. So I called and spoke to the supervisor. I was told that my request for a refund was denied and that the package had sat in customs for 3 weeks. I was told that the post office had no control over what customs does or how long they hold a package.

Still not satisfied, I filed for a refund on the post office website. Three weeks went by (the site says someone will email you back within 2 business days).

Well I decided to call today to find out what the post office had decided to do. Their decision was no decision. Since the local post office denied the claim the people who respond to claims on the website did nothing including not responding within the appropriate time.

So there you have it folks. Another example of a formerly great service deciding not to be accountable. As there are no internal scans on file for my package I have to presume that my package sat in a postal warehouse for 3 weeks before the post office deigned to look for said package when I sent in my email request for them to look for it.

Thank goodness my customer was a peach and gave me glowing feedback even though it took a month for her item to arrive.

My suggestion for anyone sending out packages is to request an update on the status of your packages via the USPS website. That seems to have finally gotten my package going in the right direction. I can only guess where that package would be had I not done that.

However, that said, the post office sure does know how to make a great commercial!





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Spring has sprung and it's time to brighten up your wardrobe. What's that? Short on cash but have loads of fabric laying around? Then get over to Born Too Late Vintage Patterns and grab some great vintage patterns.

While we have all different sizes of patterns, we specialize in plus size patterns. So come see what's new in vintage patterns at Born Too Late Vintage Patterns!

Marked down from $125 to $95 for this Vintage 1950s VLV Good Girl Sun Dress & Matching Sweater B36 W28 H42

If you're going to Viva Las Vegas you have to have this Vintage 1950s VLV Good Girl Matching Sun Dress and Sweater!

The dress is a sun dress made of cotton fabric. The skirt portion of the dress has a 12 inche metal zipper. The dress has a floral pattern and the colorway includes light blue, pink, gray, white and green.

The sweater is made of pink orlon and the collar and cuffs are made of the same fabric as the dress. The dress and sweater are both unlined. The dress is displayed with a semi-full CRINOLINE WHICH IS NOT INCLUDED.

The dress can be worn with or without a crinoline depending on what you prefer.

There's a great pair of blue stilettos that would look perfect with this outfit in my store as well!

The condition of the dress and matching sweater is excellent. There is some paint loss on the belt buckle and belt holes, however, this does not detract fromt he dress and sweater set at all. Please see the VFG condition hart for comparison.

Measurements are:

Dress:

Bust: 36 inches

Waist: 28 inches

Hips: 42+ inches

Shoulder side to side: 14 inches

Length shoulder to waist: 18 inches

Length waist to hem: 31 inches

Length shoulder to hem: 49 inches

Sweater:

Bust: 38 inches

Waist: 30 inches

Shoulder side to side: 16 inhes

Length shoulder to waist: 20 inches

Sleeves shoulder to hem: 12 inches


If this outfit doesn't float your boat there are plenty of others that will! So what are you waiting for? Let's go shopping!

We're blowing out all our coats at Born Too Late Vintage!

Prices for mens and womens coats range from $10 to $50 and include dress coats, leather coats, lightweight jackets and suede coats.

So what are you waiting for? Let's go shopping!

Oh how the mighty have fallen. How have I come to this? Hanging on a rack in the local second hand store with a graduation gown, a ballerina tutu, an old baseball uniform and a pair of lederhosen!



Back in the day I was a star, a designer gown, sparkling on the rack just waiting for the discerning lady with very, very deep pockets.

I remember that day so well. The ambiance of The Green Room at Saks Fifth Avenue. The dignified ladies perusing the designer ware, looking for that perfect gown for that very special event. I proudly carried the label of Mollie Parnis. I saw her from across the room. She was tall and model slender. She wasn't a sweet young thing but as close to it as you can get to it at the age of 30. Her figure was to die for and toned within an inch of her life, although she was the mother of two very active children. She glanced my way and made a beeline towards me.

Seconds later she was in the dressing room oohing and ahhing over the cut of me and the sparkle of my green and silver lame' fabric. Her husband had just made partner in the law firm, a long vied for position he had slaved for and they had reason to celebrate. The firm was having their Christmas party at the Rainbow Room and she wanted to put her best foot forward. With a designer gown from Mollie Parnis, designer of the first ladies, you just could not go wrong.

Luckily for her I needed no alterations and I was carefully packed in tissue paper and off I went to her Scarsdale home. I was given the place of honor in her already crowded closet, with all her fashion finds from Loehmann's. But this time she'd not picked up a discounted designer item. She had purchased me in The Green Room at Saks!

Although she splurged and bought me there, her common sense still ruled her and she paired me with a pair of silver stilettos that were her favorites and well broken in. A silver clutch purse already in her closet was added and to finish her look off, she added a pair of art deco teardrop green glass earrings she had found in a quaint little shop in Greenwich Village. She was ready for The Rainbow Room and just could not wait.

Flash forward 49 years later. Here I am hanging on this rack in a second hand store. Save me! Doesn't anyone hear me!! I don't belong here! I'm a star!

Suddenly I began having this old but familiar feeling. Someone is looking at me from afar. An overweight rather frumpy looking woman was making her way towards me. Goodness she's not going to fit into me. What is she thinking?? She's picking me up and the look in her eyes is the same as my original owner. She strokes my fabric and she has gentle hands. She flips me inside out and finds my label. I see her smile light up her entire face. Why she's not frumpy! She's just hiding her light under a bushel. Grinning widely and very self satisfied we make our way to the checkout line. The cashier shoves me inside a used plastic Wal-Mart bag (the peasant!) and off we go. I don't remember the rest of the trip to her home as I fell asleep from the suffocating plastic smell of the bag.

I awoke abruptly as I felt myself being slipped over a mannequin. Then hot lights were turned on me and she started taking photographs. She moved the mannequin this way and snapped away taking pictures of my construction, fabric and my label. I knew then that I was being handled by a pro. This frumpy overweight woman with the twinkle in her eyes was a vintage clothing entrepreneur. She was just the person to find me a new home where I would be cherished. At last I would be happy again, not relegated to the second hand rack!

We're blowing out all our mens coats and womens coats at Born Too Late Vintage .

So what are you waiting for? Pick up a bargain on us!