Category Archives: preppy lifestyle

LL Bean, Brooks Brothers & Vineyard Vines rolled into one with a slap of Goyard for fun!

The Vitals Preppy Guidebook & Another Preptastic Collaboration

Hello-Hello, welcome to a Wednesday here at The Prepatorium. One that started out with some unexpected excitement (more on that momentarily).

We are brief today, with only two tidbits to share.  The first involves something that somehow escaped me, a book called “The Vitals Preppy Guidebook“.

The Vitals Preppy Guidebook via Alex Grant

The Vitals Preppy Guidebook via Alex Grant

Once again we turn to our pal Skip over at the Alexander Grant blog, for more info:

Five years before Lisa Birnbach decided to update The Official Preppy Handbook with True Prep, Rosecrans Baldwin and co. of the now elusive Vitals magazine penned an updated version that still holds true today.

Skip shares scans in his post about the Guidebook.

The Preppy Guidebook via Alexander Grant

The Preppy Guidebook via Alex Grant

Vitals had a short tenure on the magazine rack, which was too bad, I remember reading several issues, it was a solid product. The Vitals Preppy Guidebook was published eight years ago, in the spring of 2005. No one will be surprised at the number of heritage brands shown in the Guidebook that remain with us yet today, like Nantucket Reds, Brooks Brothers, Barbour and others.

The Vitals Preppy Guidebook via Alex Grant

The Vitals Preppy Guidebook via Alex Grant

There were sections on “Where to be seen,” “Where to spend money” and other tongue-in-cheek topics.

"The Vitals Preppy Guidebook" via Alex Grant

“The Vitals Preppy Guidebook” via Alex Grant

Decor images included the Preppy’s Study.

"The Vitals Preppy Guidebook" via Alex Grant

“The Vitals Preppy Guidebook” via Alex Grant

From the description of one’s study, “It’s his solace and his right. It is, if given the option, where he’d be buried. In J. Press plaid.”

"The Vitals Preppy Guidebook" via Alex Grant

Photograph by Matthew Hranek – “The Vitals Preppy Guidebook” via Alex Grant

Does anyone remember this one…..? It looks like such a fun read.

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We also have another collaboration news to share, this time with a decidedly preppish slant.  Stationers Dempsey and Carroll and J. McLaughlin have partnered on a collection of correspondence cards.

Dempsey & Carroll

Dempsey & Carroll

As many readers already know, Dempsey & Carroll’s cards are simply wonderful. They’re all-cotton heavy stock with hand-bordered edges, accompanied with exquisite lined envelopes. There are three J. McLaughlin designs available: from left to right, the Marrakesh, the Olana (yes, after the Frederic Edwin Church home) and Moroccan Paisley.

Dempsey & Carroll

Dempsey & Carroll

The Correspondence Cards are $55 for a set of 10 cards and matching envelopes. There are also coordinating Gift Tags.

Dempsey & Carroll

Dempsey & Carroll

The tags are $7 each, $35 for a set of 5. The paper goods are available online at both Dempsey & Carroll and J. McLaughlin, as well as select J. Mac stores.

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Back to that early a.m. excitement, it involved this.

TPP InnterGalactic HQ

TPP InterGalactic HQ

Someone who shall rename nameless (although you could always touch base with The Consort) wanted to “sanitize” a dishcloth. How else would one do that other than popping it in the microwave for a full 2 minutes??? Did I mention it was basically dry when it went in the microwave?

Actually, there were lots of popping embers going, and no damage to anything other the dishcloth, so we’re in a major attitude of gratitude.

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Filed under Collaborations, preppy, Preppy clothing & brands, Preppy Fashion, preppy lifestyle, preppy stationery

Lilly Pulitzer, 1931-2013 “Anything is possible with sunshine and a little pink.”

The world is a little less bright today. Lilly Pulitzer died this morning at her home in Palm Beach.

More from the Lilly Pulitzer Facebook page:

Early this morning, Lilly Pulitzer Rousseau passed away peacefully in Palm Beach, surrounded by family and loved ones. Lilly has been a true inspiration to us and we will miss her.

In the days and weeks ahead we will celebrate all that Lilly meant to us. Lilly was a true original who has brought together generations through her bright and happy mark on the world.

Courtesy Photo

Courtesy Photo

Most friends here know how Lilly became a fashion entrepreneur, but I always learn something new whenever looking back at the amazing tale of Lilly’s life. More from Women’s Wear Daily:

In search of a hobby after suffering a bout of depression in her late twenties, Pulitzer at first opened an orange juice stand in 1958 and then began developing brightly colored and boldly patterned shifts and blouses to help hide the stains created by her new enterprise.

Via

Robert H. Houston/AP via The NY Times

From the NY Times:

Pulitzer’s dresses hung behind her juice stand and soon outsold her drinks. A boutique featuring the company’s dresses — developed with the help of partner Laura Robbins, a former fashion editor — soon replaced the juice stand.

Below we see Wendy Vanderbilt and a friend wearing their Lilly shift dresses in 1964.

Assouline Palm Beach viaPost

Assouline via Palm Beach Post

This offers a better view of a vintage Lilly dress.

nelsonbridge etsy

nelsonbridge etsy

The dresses became a big hit in Florida and other resort communities.

Lilly Pulitzer Pinterest

Slim Aarons via People Magazine

From WWD’s story:

….the accidental designer began selling the dresses for $22.50 apiece and couldn’t keep up with demand, aided by a designing couple at Key West Fabrics who helped conceive the lively colors, tropical print themes and other bits of whimsy that would become the brand’s signature.

The fabric was made in Florida at Key West Hand Print Fabrics, TQM was fortunate enough to visit and watch textiles actually being created.

Florida Memory

Charles Barron/Florida Memory

Below we see a 1962 photo of a woman in a bespoke Lilly silk dress, in the background, Lake Worth.

Via Life Magazine

Via Life Magazine

Lilly in a seashell dress.

Henry Grossman/Timepix via Women's Wear Daily

Henry Grossman/Timepix via Women’s Wear Daily

But the famous frocks weren’t really a national phenomenon until Jackie Kennedy was photographed wearing one on the Cape.

LIFE Magazine

LIFE Magazine

Back top the Times story:

Pulitzer’s tropical print dresses became a sensation in the 1960s when then-first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, who attended boarding school with Pulitzer, wore one of the sleeveless shifts in a Life magazine photo spread.

And things really took off. Below, some early ads shared by on the Lilly Pulitzer Pinterest page. At the bottom of the photo lower left you might just be able to see that fabric was available for $5 a yard.

Via Pink Pelican Pinterest

Via Pink Pelican Pinterest

Many early pieces were embellished with lace.

/Posh Girl Vintage/

NelsonBridge etsy/Posh Girl Vintage/

This offers a more detailed view.

Flashbax etsy Shop

Another example.

SweetLittle etsy Shop

I like this part of a 2008 W Magazine story describing how Lilly stuck to her guns:

Though Rousseau credits a confluence of timing and luck for her success—with the Kennedy clan vacationing in Palm Beach those days, “the light was shining in this spot”—an unflinching stubbornness clearly served her label well. Told by one retailer that she had to start making fall clothes, Rousseau replied, “Oh, but you don’t understand, it’s always summer somewhere.”

Thus she introduced what just may have been one of the first resort collections, a year-round summery lineup that grew to include men’s, children’s and swimwear…

Two vintage menswear pieces.
First Dibs

First Dibs

A 1968 ad for the men’s line of clothing via Lilly Pulitzer’s Pinterest.
1968 Advertisement via Lilly Pulitzer Pinterest

1968 Advertisement via Lilly Pulitzer Pinterest

From a 2003 piece in Vanity Fair titled Palm Beach’s Barefoot Princess:
The Lilly Pulitzer product grew like a family. A Lillyputian version of the shift called “the Minnie,” named for Lilly’s elder daughter, was made for little girls—a great marketing move. Clothes for men took off, too: pants, swim trunks, ties, and a line of batiste nightshirts….”

Square with Flair

And what men liked their Lilly? People magazine’s story has an answer.

Men, too, got Pulitzer-ed, among them: author George Plimpton, comedian Bob Hope and football star Joe Namath, in wildly flowered pink-and-blue PJs (Pulitzer Jeans).

Vintage Lilly menswear continues to be popular even now, this is a March post by the Necessary & Proper blog.

Necessary & Proper Blog

Necessary & Proper Blog

But it was the womenswear that fueled the company, this is from a 1977 catalog.

Lilly Pulitzer via Pink Pelican

Lilly Pulitzer Pinterest

Lilly surrounded herself with color.  Rich, vivid, vibrant colors.

Via

Via

That remained true for womenswear, be it bell bottoms or a mini-dress.

First Dibs/Chictopia

First Dibs/Chictopia

Despite Lilly’s relatively high profile she preferred life out of the spotlight. From Vanity Fair:

Lilly is private. Even her closest friends complain of how tucked away she keeps her feelings—“a sphinx,” one calls her. “Scorpio” is what she calls herself. “They do everything in excess,” Lilly explains, “but keep things very close to the chest. I’m not into horoscopes and all that, but it is telling. Scorpios hold everything in.” Just like the Lilly. When that whimsical shift is on, you can’t tell what’s happening underneath.

The Pink Pelican has a wonderful Vintage Lilly Pinterest board.

Pink Pelican Pinterest

Pink Pelican Pinterest

The business grew for many years but then things started to slow down, we return to W Magazine’s story:

By the early Eighties, however, the working-girl wardrobe and a neutral palette had taken over fashion; sales were flagging, and Rousseau shut the whole thing down in 1984.

And then in 1993, the year her husband died, Rousseau was visited by Philadelphia businessmen James “Brad” Bradbeer Jr. and Scott Beaumont. There had been a generational shift, says Bradbeer, and the daughters and granddaughters of Lilly lovers were eager for those snappy prints and flatter-every-shape frocks.

The love of Lilly did pass from one generation to the next. This photo from a 2009 Vanity Fair story shows Kathleen Kennedy and Rose Kennedy (L) in their Lilly, on the right we see Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s daughters Kick and Kyra Kennedy in Lilly’s “Not So Crabby” print.

Vanity Fair

Vanity Fair

Lilly remained an active part of the re-launched brand, providing consulting services to the rejuvenated label.

Lilly Pulitzer 2004 via Palm Beach Post

Lilly Pulitzer 2004 via Palm Beach Post

Lilly’s design ethos speaks to her approach to life. Back to the Times story:

“I designed collections around whatever struck my fancy … fruits, vegetables, politics, or peacocks! I entered in with no business sense. It was a total change of life for me, but it made people happy,”

“Style isn’t just about what you wear, it’s about how you live,” Pulitzer said in 2004.

Via

Via

Lilly loved spending time with family and friends. Below, we see the entrepreneur in 2004 with her granddaughters, (l to r) Lilly Leas, Charlotte Pulitzer, and Emma Pulitzer, after presenting the brand’s 2005 spring runway show.

Genaro Molina, Los Angeles Times

Genaro Molina, Los Angeles Times

Today the colors remain rich and spirited as seen in a group of Lilly Murfee scarves.

Lilly Pulitzer

Lilly Pulitzer

From today’s coverage in Women’s Wear Daily :

“Today we celebrate all that Lilly meant to us and come together as Lilly lovers to honor a true original who has brought together generations through her bright and happy mark on the world,” James B. Bradbeer Jr. and Scott A. Beaumont, who bought the Lilly Pulitzer brand in 1992, said in a statement.

James Bradbeer Jr., president of Lilly Pulitzer, noted, “Lilly would always say, ‘It’s all about happy.’ There aren’t many places in our industry where happy is at the core. That has transcended time and generations, and it tells you a lot about the kind of special person that Lilly was.”

Via Pink Pelican Pinterest

Via Pink Pelican Pinterest

I like Kathie Orrico’s description of this one of a kind treasure:

“She sprinkled fun and pixie dust everywhere she went and was joyful right until the end,” said Kathie Orrico, a partner at C. Orrico, the specialty retailer that operates three Lilly Pulitzer stores and carries the line in its other four stores as well. “I saw her just last week and, just like always, she had cute phrases and words that inspired us to be bright and happy.

Via Pink Pelican Pinterest

Via Pink Pelican Pinterest

That seems fitting, fun and pixie dust.

LINKAGE:

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Filed under Prepalicious, preppy, Preppy clothing & brands, Preppy Fashion, preppy lifestyle, Pretty in Pink

New & Cool at the Princess *and* On Sale!

Hello-Hello, welcome to a new week and our 5th Annual “I’m no Fool” Day here at The Prepatorium.

It’s a good day for us to share some of our new and cool treasures, because *everything* is 20% off. We begin with some nautically inclined items. Below, our personalized layered Anchor Keychains ($33.95, $27.16 today only).

PreppyPrincess.com

PreppyPrincess.com

With graduation, weddings and Mother’s Day on the horizon, a stellar gift idea: Personalized Engraved Pendants in multiple color combinations. Because so many of us already have too many chains to keep track of we offer the monogrammed pendants without the chain at $24.95 (today only $19.96), you can add a chain for $18 (with the discount today it runs $14.40).

PreppyPrincess.com

PreppyPrincess.com

You get to choose what color you want for both the background and the actual monogram, there are twenty-two outstanding color combinations.

Sticking with the personalization theme, this is just a sampling of items from our Fornash collection.

Fornash Personalized Jewelry at PreppyPrincess.com

Fornash Personalized Jewelry at PreppyPrincess.com

Two of my favorite giftables from Fornash are today’s Pretty in Pink (and green!), they are the Monogrammed Rings ($35, today only $28) that stretch to fit any size finger, and the Monogrammed Discs ($19, today $15.20), they come in such a broad array of color combinations you’re sure to find colors you’ll love putting together. The discs are ideal with the Fornash Charm Bracelet.

Fornash Jewelry at PreppyPrincess.com

Fornash Jewelry at PreppyPrincess.com

You know we’re going to mention our exclusive Preppy Planet Phone Cases, our Bottom Line version is regularly priced at only $24.50, $19.60 with today’s discount. Below, more Pretty in Pink and Green.

Preppy Planet Phone Cases

Preppy Planet Phone Cases

For those prone to dropping their phone, our Xtreme Tough Case offers a fabulous solution. A happy customer shared pictures of her pink chevron tough case.

Personalized Phone Cases at PreppyPrincess.com

Personalized Phone Cases at PreppyPrincess.com

Another great gift idea? Matching a monogrammed iPad/Kindle/Netbook/Phone case with one of our Tech Cleaning Cloths priced at $10, today just $8.

Preppy Planet Cases

Preppy Planet Cases

Of course we have the season’s latest Lilly Pulitzer treasures, including the Spring 2013 Drink Huggers (aka Koozies) in all the new prints, just $6. (That means they’re less than $5 on sale!)

Lilly Pulitzer Drink Huggers at PreppyPrincess.com

Lilly Pulitzer Drink Huggers at PreppyPrincess.com

Those same popular patterns are also available in Lilly’s spring iPhone 5 Cases ($28, just a bit more than $24 with today’s discount).

Lilly Pulitzer iPhone Cases at PreppyPrincess.com

Lilly Pulitzer iPhone Cases at PreppyPrincess.com

Many of the spring prints come in the iPhone Case with 2 Card Slot, regularly $27.50, with today’s 20% discount, $22.

There are several hostess gift ideas with the spring Lilly, including Coasters in Chiquita Bonita and Lucky Charms.

Lilly Pulitzer Coasters at PreppyPrincess.com

Lilly Pulitzer Coasters at PreppyPrincess.com

The coasters coordinate with spring’s new Tumbler Sets (with a third pattern in the mix, Chin Chin). At $15.50 the reusable (top rack dishwasher safe!) tumblers are already a great buy, at $12.40 with today’s special pricing you can’t miss.

Back to the personalization theme, all of our Clairebella goodies are 20% off, including the brand new Stadium Cushions, only $27.20 today.

Monogrammed Clairebella Stadium Seats

Monogrammed Clairebella Stadium Seats at PreppyPrincess.com

Next, a sampling of more monogrammed giftables. The Acrylic Monogram Earrings are just $39 today, the Personalized Pillows run $33.60 today and the Filigree Earrings start at $78, today only.

Heartstrings Monogrammed Pillows & Earrings

Heartstrings Monogrammed Pillows & Earrings

With Father’s Day just a bit more than 2 months away it doesn’t hurt to at least start thinking about giftables with a masculine slant.

PreppyPrincess.com

PreppyPrincess.com

We show:

Our Ready To Go cases for iPhone 4 and 5 are just $14.80 with today’s discount.

Preppy Planet 'Ready To Go' Cases

Preppy Planet ‘Ready To Go’ Cases

And one final gift idea.

Pink Pineapple Jewelry at PreppyPrincess.com

Pink Pineapple Jewelry at PreppyPrincess.com

The ever so nautical jewelry from Pink Pineapple.

We want to share a look at our complimentary gift boxing.

PreppyPrincess.com

PreppyPrincess.com

We are also happy to wrap packages at no charge, with any style paper you like, from Lilly Pulitzer to Jonathan Adler to more conservative papers.

That’s it for today’s shameless self promotion, happy day to all!

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Neiman Marcus Says Goodbye to eBay, Targét + Lauren Bush Lauren = Collaboration

Hello and happy start of a new week.  Is anyone else dragging just a teeny bit?

Via CopyPress

Via CopyPress

On to our news of the day, remember the big announcement that many luxury brands were opening stores on eBay? We wrote about it back in September of 2011, the “eBay Fashion Outlet Mall” had many popular companies signed up to participate, the following is from that 2011 post:

Brands taking part in the new mall that may be of interest to our crowd include Brooks Brothers, Hanes, Elaine Turner, Hanky Panky, Lacoste, Tommy Hilfiger, Hickey Freeman.  eBay claims almost 200 other brands however (more on that number later), most of them ‘household names,’ from off-price department stores like Neiman Marcus Last Call to run of the mill retailers like Elie Tahari, Bruno Magli, Fossil and Hush Puppies.

A story last week from Reuters got me thinking about the undertaking, it’s titled “Last Call for Neiman Marcus’s eBay Store“:

Luxury department store operator Neiman Marcus is shutting its eBay Inc store, a setback for the e-commerce company, which has been trying to lure large retailers to its online marketplace.

Neiman launched a store on eBay.com in 2011 for its Last Call outlet brand. It was one of a slew of large retailers that eBay has attracted to its online marketplace in recent years, an important part of the e-commerce company’s effort to compete more with Amazon.com Inc.

The story notes Neiman’s will be selling deeply discounted merchandise on its own Last Call site. The retailer has upgraded the Last Call website substantially, so it makes sense to sell via their own means. eBay gets a cut every time Neiman’s sells merchandise via eBay’s site, why keep putting money in eBay’s pocket?

As it turns out, many of the upscale brands initially associated with the ‘Outlet Mall’ no longer seem to be participating. For example, this is what one saw when visiting the Brooks Brothers’ eBay store back in 2011.

Preppy Princess Blog 9.20.11

Preppy Princess Blog 9.20.11

A quick check for the Brooks Brothers store turns up nothing, they no longer seem to be part of the eBay Designer Outlets. Nor could I find Lacoste, Elaine Turner or several other “luxury” names. However, Bobby Jones and Calvin Klein are still present, as are Bruno Magli and Tahari. My guess is that there will be fewer and fewer brands remaining as part of the eBay endeavor, it just doesn’t make sense to pay eBay when you can dispose of the goods yourself via your own means without handing over part of the profits to a third party.

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Our other item of note, Target has announced its next partnership will be with Lauren Bush Lauren’s FEED project. More from USA Today:

With FEED, Target is going the more minimalist, feel-good route with a collection launching June 30 that includes tote bags, kitchenware and blankets. Proceeds will benefit Feeding America, a non-profit with more than 200 food banks across the country.

Two of the items in the collection.

Via People StyleWatch

Via People StyleWatch

There will be 50 pieces in the line, including iPhone cases, bags, more jewelry and kitchenware. The collection launches June 30.  Here’s a bit more on the collapsible bicycle shown above from that StyleWatch story:

And the bike is a personal favorite of hers: “I ride my bike to work and around my West Village neighborhood, [so] I love [it],” she says. “Plus, it’s foldable and easy to store if you don’t have a lot of space in your apartment.”

I like this one, it is good to see Target offering a collection specifically tied to a charitable initiative.

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Also today, a quick glance at the big winners of this year’s Cruft’s International dog show. Cruft’s is a little different from our annual Westminster show, among other things, they include additional competitions, like “Flyball.”.

Cruft's Flickr Feed

onEdition Photos via Cruft’s Flickr Feed

Two breeds we’re partial to, Scotties & Schnauzers.

Cruft's Facebook

Cruft’s Facebook

As always there were other events, many not involving the show ring. Below we see a Yeomanry Infantry group donating a big check to Hounds for Heroes, the organization provides dogs for disabled British military forces.

Cruft's Facebook

Cruft’s Facebook

Below we see the big winner, a Basset Griffon Vendeen (Petit) named Jilly, with handler Gavin Robertson.

Cruft’s Facebook

“Big winner” is an accurate appelation, more than 27,000 dogs were involved in this year’s show.

It must be the season for dog shows, we actually went to one ourselves a few weeks back.

photo

That is a giant schnauzer, like our boy Phred, the pooch we had before Silly Tilly. It wouldn’t be out of the question to see another schnoozer at The Prepatorium.

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Filed under Collaborations, preppy, Preppy clothing & brands, Preppy Fashion, preppy lifestyle, Preppy People

That Ivy Style Exhibit

Hello-Hello, happy middle of the week to everyone.

Today’s schedule mandates brevity, so we’ll keep the post to one topic. It is a subject I should have written about months ago, hopefully it isn’t tedious for too many readers.

Hickey Freeman Blog

Hickey Freeman Blog

We’re talking about the Ivy Style exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Technology Museum, unfortunately it closed in January. More from the Museum’s show notes.

“Ivy style” is one of the most enduring and recognizable sartorial modes in the world. It began as the “Ivy League Look” on the quads and in the libraries of elite, all-male, American universities, and consists of a small repertoire of classic items, such as Shetland tweed jackets and Oxford button-down shirts, plus the more casual madras shorts and khaki pants.

Yours truly is beyond chagrined at not having written about this sooner, at the very least before the exhibition closed, arrggh. Several pieces from the show: left to right, a Brooks blazer with 1923 Princeton insignia, another with Princeton’s 1919 insignia, and a 1916 Yale emblazoned blazer.

The Museum at FIT

The Museum at FIT

More from Hickey Freeman’s blog:

Many forget that the “Ivy style” as we know it began as a more formal way of dress on campuses like Harvard, Yale and Princeton, which eventually spread beyond those all-male universities. In blue blazers with gold buttons, madras prints, bowties and pocket squares, the exhibit proves this iconic way of dressing continues to influence today’s designers.

Three more pieces from the exhibition, a classic raccoon coat, a Chipp madras jacket and linen suit, correctly described by Art Info as Ivy staples.

ArtInfo.com

ArtInfo.com

Art Info’s story includes perspective from the Museum’s deputy director:

While the Ivy look is pretty democratic these days, with everyone from H&M to Hermes turning out brass button peacoats and embroidered smoking slippers, this wasn’t always the case. “If you look at pre-World War II images, you’re talking about more of an elitist group of people, people with more money who could send their children to college” Mears said.
More recent looks.
Via StyleSight

Via StyleSight

From The Journal’s review of the show:
Brooks Brothers, J. Press, Arrow, Hathaway and Gant—these are Ivy eternals. Chipp, an offshoot of J. Press, would expand and popularize the “Go to Hell” look, a mix of bright colors normally considered outside the masculine palette—coral, yellow, mint—and constituting a casual smack at the status quo.
Below, one of the tableaux from the exhibition via the Princeton Alumni Weekly.
Photo by Eli Schwartz, Princeton '60 via Princeton Alumni Weekly

Photo by Eli Schwartz, Princeton ’60 via Princeton Alumni Weekly

Back to The Journal piece by Laura Jacobs:

Ivy-style clothes need not come at great expense; they need not be new; but they must hit the ineffable balance between carefree, careless and correct. I have never forgotten the scorn of a young man commenting on Nantucket Reds that weren’t bought at Murray’s in Nantucket. They would never fade to the proper shade of shrimp pink and so they were impostors—”not our sort of people” pants. Getting the uniform wrong locks you out of the tribe.

Below left, items circa the twenties, on the right, an Arrow shirt signed by Harvard’s 1933 Football Team.

MFIT Ivy Style Microsite

MFIT Ivy Style Microsite

From Women’s Wear Daily’s story:

Ivy League style permeates nearly every fiber of American fashion, and a new exhibition at The Museum at FIT delves into its history.

It explores the “decline and resurgence” of Ivy League fashion and the rise of the preppy movement.

George Chinsee/Women's Wear Daily

George Chinsee/Women’s Wear Daily

The WWD article quotes Town & Country’s G. Bruce Boyer, he was a collaborator on the show:

Boyer said the show is “very timely,” since “every Italian brand today is trying to do the authentic Brooks Brothers button-down. And look at Thom Browne and Michael Bastian — they take great traditional looks and make them hip and contemporary.”

I didn’t realize the origins of the polo coat, more from the exhibit microsite:

Many garments have been derived from the game of polo, including this camel hair overcoat that was originally used as a “wait” coat by British polo players during “chukkas” (the term for polo’s periods of play). In design, it was at first little more than a heavy bathrobe type wrap coat, but when British polo teams began making regular visits to the U.S. in the 1920s, it was modified and became popular on elite college campuses.

Ivy Style Microsite

Ivy Style Microsite

Details magazine offered this:

While traditional J. Press and Brooks Brothers gear features prominently in the exhibit, it’s fun to see styles loosen up and evolve over the years, from the formal evening ensembles of the 1920s to the preppy sweater-and-shorts combos of the fifties and sixties.

Details

Details

Even though I missed seeing the exhibit in person, there is a wonderful book of essays accompanying the exhibition, edited by Ms. Mears.

Yale University Press

Yale University Press

More on the book from its publisher, Yale University Press:

Ivy Style celebrates both high-profile proponents of the style—including the Duke of Windsor, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, and Miles Davis—who made the look their own, and designers such as Ralph Lauren, J. McLaughlin, Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Bastian, and Thom Browne, who have made it resonate with new generations of style enthusiasts.

Ivy Style is also available at Amazon and other outlets.

One of the best parts of the exhibit is the way curators drew upon the blogging community, several of my favorite blogs were involved in a variety of ways. Christian Chensvold over at the Ivy Style blog has an essay in the book discussed above, he has several stellar posts on the show. One offers a delightful video walk-through of the exhibit hosted by Richard Press.

Muffy Aldrich of Daily Prep renown is another author I admire tremendously and love reading, she donated items for use in the exhibit. I think you’ll enjoy this April post showing preps for the show. TDP was also featured in a Symposium affiliated with Ivy Style, for a real treat spend some time on this post, the entire slide show about Muffy’s blog is viewable.

John Tinseth writes The Trad, always enjoyable and a place where I have lurked for years, he was part of the Symposium as well. In this post you can see loads of photos from the exhibit, including the vintage dorm room shown below.

The Trad

The Trad

Dusty at Maxminimus is yet one more writer I regard with great admiration, he was also part of the Symposium and this post details that experience brilliantly.

The show may have closed in January, but hopefully you will be able to enjoy it virtually via some of the links included above.

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One more tidbit, anyone interested in a new personalized phone case might want to visit the always-wonderful Nautical by Nature blog. We’re just tickled to be sponsoring a giveaway for one of our Preppy Planet custom cases.

Nautical by Nature

Nautical by Nature

Even if you don’t need a case, pop in and say ‘hey’ to Kate, she is the bee’s knees.

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Filed under preppy, Preppy Fashion, preppy lifestyle, Preppy clothing & brands, Preppy People