Most recently known for her costume design work on AMC’s Mad Men, Janie Bryant has long loved fashion. She now introduces an entire lifestyle collection inspired by the dramatic TV series. Shop Janie’s interpretations of wardrobe pieces from the show as well as her original pieces.

www.qvc.com

Janie Bryant, the Emmy-nominated « Mad Men » costume designer has created a collection of items for QVC that would fit right into the ’60s-themed show.
Styled to look like vintage pieces, the 20-piece collection is jacket heavy – with a faux fur animal-print jacket and matching pillbox hat, a reversible raspberry satin swing coat, boleros, and capelets.
In addition, there will be 10 to 15 pieces of jewelry including necklaces and pins. Items in this collection are priced from $26 to $138.
« Janie Bryant is known for her iconic style and classic elegance which is why it is such an honor to have her design a collection for QVC, » Rosemary Murphy, director of merchandising for QVC told StyleList. « Vintage is such a strong trend right now and we feel confident our shoppers will embrace her collection. » (www.stylelist.com)

Oleg Cassini, his influence on fashion.

In 1960 Oleg Cassini became the Principal State robe designer chosen by Jacqueline Kennedy, who knew him for years. His solid training in art and his long experience in Hollywood served him well. Cassini created the new image for the First Lady, which became the first memorable fashion line to emerge on TV sets across the world. Cassini’s experience with Hollywood cameras gave him the important knowledge of how the clothing would look on the screen, being photographed from a distance. That’s how Jacqueline Kennedy’s wardrobe was created by Cassini with the emphasis on geometric clarity of lines, pronounced color, sumptuous fabrics, and even the big buttons.

For the President Kennedy’s Inauguration in 1961, Cassini dressed the First Lady in a fawn beige wool coat with a small sable collar and a matching pillbox hat. Cassini may have seen pictures of the First Lady of Mexico wearing a pillbox hat a year earlier, but Mrs. Kennedy was the first one to be seen on every TV in the world. Soon, it seemed, women all over the world followed the First Lady’s image. In 1963 the world saw another pink pillbox hat by Cassini on Mrs. Kennedy, when she was next to the President when he was assassinated. In less than 3 years Cassini created about three hundred outfits for the First Lady. His creativity was inspired by Russian, Italian, French, Oriental, and Native American cultures.

Cassini is credited for such design accomplishments as the sheath, the A-line, the little white collar dress, the knit, and the military look for women. He claimed credit for introducing the Nehru Jacket in 1966-67, based on a traditional Indian jacket and named after the Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Cassini also designed a Johnny Carson line of men’s suits. His collection of Jacquelin Kennedy’s dresses was displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2001. Some pieces of her wardrobe were sold at auction houses.

Oleg Cassini died on March 17, 2006, on Long Island, New York, where he had an Oyster Bay home. He was arguably the oldest famous fashion designer in the world.

(Tanx to S.Shelokhonov  - IMBD)

by CLAUDIO DE ROSSI

English Modernism, American Ivy League, Italian cool – this is what has influenced my designs over the years and is what I’m dedicated to. Fashion was never what I sought, as it is Style that has always been my obsession.. Since 2001 Dna has been bringing it’s Italian made quality clothing online, making us the first all-Italian label selling men’s clothing on the world wide web.
Limited edition, attention to detail, sharp styles, quality garments made by small, family – run Italian artisan companies, the true Manifattura Italiana. Roll collar button down shirts, fine merino wool unscructured slim cut Italian suits, flat fronted detailed trousers, fully fashioned quality knitwear, slim soled chisel toe quality leather shoes, cashmere chester coats, hand folded silk ties – a total look both for the discrete Gentleman and for the carefree Dandy.

Working with ethics has also been of great importance to me. I have always refused to work with sweat shops, re-cycling is constant, ways to avoid unnecessary waste are always kept in consideration, and have made customer care and satisfaction my priority.

I have now moved north of Barcelona, Spain, where I work from my showroom, often travelling to Italy to supervise production. A visit here is always welcomed so email me for arrangements. Girona airport is a huge Ryanair hub and is minutes away and there are regular trains to and from Barcelona.

dnagroove.it

London Shopping:
Flagship UK store for this classic American Ivy League outfitters, famous for pioneering the button-down collar and for dressing the likes of Cary Grant, John F. Kennedy, Clark Gable, Katharine Hepburn and countless modern jazzers. A nice range of their famous button-down shirts are offered (as well as the occasional tab collar) and there is also a made-to-measure service offering a multitude of other options.

If buying men’s shirts off-the-peg, make sure you go for the « slim-fit » range, which despite the name I would actually describe as semi-fitted rather than slim fitting. (thanx to JEAN-PAUL SÉCULAIRE).

brooksbrothers.co.uk