Simply NEL

Fashion History: Early 1960s

Sixties fashion was not just about hippies, world peace, and drugs; it was about class. Hippie fashion didn’t hit the scene until the late 1960s, and it was the early 1960s when women everywhere copied the Jackie O look.

Yes, the first lady of the United States was a fashion icon. Jackie Kennedy wore large square or round sunglasses, the pillbox hat, and dress suits. It was Jackie O who popularized the Chanel suit and embodied the class and elegance of the early 60s.

Much of early 60s fashion was slowly weaning away from the 1950s. Yet, you could still spot a dress with a circle skirt and pinched in waist line, but in the early 60s the skirts were not as full and not as long. Shift dresses were always seen in the early 60s, as well as capri trousers and stiletto heels.

No one knows these early 60s styles better than Janie Byrant, the costume designer for AMC’s Emmy award winning show Mad Men. The show has sparked an interest in vintage fashion and has given the fashion world new inspiration. Michael Kors 2008 fall collection was derived from Mad Men, and Banana Republic has launched a Mad Men inspired collection as well. 

The fashion-forward women of the early 1960s had Jackie Kennedy as a reference. Today we have Mad Men referencing a bygone era, while offering inspiration for modern fashion-forward women everywhere.  

Designer of the Month: Isaac Mizrahi

The only fashion designer you’ll ever see wearing a red bandana is Brooklyn born Isaac Mizrahi. A connoisseur of color and a diviner of inspiration, Mizrahi flamboyantly shows women everywhere how to have style.

Mizrahi began giving style advice to his mother and her friends as a small boy and was given a sewing machine at age ten. His first succuss was in 1987 at a Bergdorf Goodman trunk show, where he received praise from fashion editors and orders from top retailers.

In the 1990’s Mizrahi created his own seasonal collections for the runway, from 2002 to 2008 he created his own line for Target, and Mizrahi was hired as the creative director for Liz Claiborne in 2008.  

In the last couple of years Mizrahi has shown collections for New York Fashion Week, including his latest Spring 2012 collection.

Fast Facts about Isaac Mizrahi:

• He was born into an Egyptian Jewish family
• At 15 he launched his own label, IS New York
• In 1992 the French fashion house, Chanel, bought a stake in the company, but pulled out in 1998 due to financial losses
• In Fall 2005 the Isaac Show debuted on the Style Network
• He will appear as a judge, later this year, for the new Lifetime show Project Runway: All Stars.

Must read Mizrahi book:

How to Have Style

Must see Mizrahi film:

Unzipped (1995)