“The Origins of Preppy” Exhibit

Hello-Hello, welcome to a new week here at the Prepatorium.

We just share one topic today, a look at a new exhibit, “The Origins of Preppy: John Meyer of Norwich“.  Some readers will recall the brand, for those not quite as ancient seasoned (ahem) as your trusty scribe, John Meyer made the most fabulous clothing. Below, a print ad from the brand.

Elise Meyer Pinterest

The exhibit is at the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury (CT), more from the exhibit description:

The Preppy style was born on the campuses of America’s Ivy League colleges but it was manufactured using the resources of Eastern Connecticut. Origin of Preppy explores the style’s transformation from campus fad to innovative fashion by pioneering purveyor John Meyer of Norwich.

An installation from the show as well as the woman who created the grouping, Maddie Chapman.

Mattatuck Museum Facebook

I love both the John Meyer button and that tweedy blue and green fabric.

Elise Meyer Pinterest

The exhibit has been put together by Elise Meyer, the founders’ daughter. More from the Norwich Bulletin:

The exhibit is more than just about the clothing trend that became the rage for the most fashionably dressed sporty women of America. For the Northeast and Norwich it was a demonstration of innovation , know-how and determination.

The Vintage Traveler blog shared some delightful John Meyer ads.

John Meyer via The Vintage Traveler

Is anyone else feeling a déjà vu vibe? The “I swear, I wore that!” reaction? In reality it is unlikely I wore any of the pieces shown here, they are from 1967 and 1968, a little mature for someone who was but a wee Princess at that time.

John Meyer Norwich via The Vintage Traveler

We return to the Museum’s description of the exhibit.

The John Meyer of Norwich label provided a certain status and confidence to stylish women from the 1950s through the 1970s. Meyer’s daughter, Elise, has compiled an archive of the groundbreaking businessman including photographs, stories and vintage clothing.

I enjoyed reading Elise Meyer’s blog post about what she learned in putting together the exhibit.

In the project I found profound lessons about hard work and inspiration, about strong communities, about decency and fairness, about American values, about American ingenuity, and most of all, American manufacturing.I learned the value of “good manners in behavior and in dress”, and how that makes everyone a bit more comfortable.

For some reason Ms. Meyer’s good manners reference resonated.

The Vintage Traveler’s perspective on the brand:

If you were around in the 1960s and early 70s, chances are you were in love with the clothes from John Meyer of Norwich.   In my little corner of the world, there were only two shops that carried John Meyer, and both of them were the best stores in town.  Not every girl was lucky enough to own clothes from John Meyer, but the influence of the brand was huge, and one could buy cheaper versions of their beautiful heathery tweeds at places like Sears.  As they say, imitation is the highest praise.

John Meyer Norwich via The Vintage Traveler

The Vintage’s Traveler shares a reaction to the exhibit as well.

…gives a good account of how many girls and young women were actually dressing in the period that is more associated with the mod look and then the hippie look.

Elise Meyer has a partial archive of John Meyer pieces on her Pinterest page, including this classic.

Emily Meyer Pinterest

Remember the old style price tags?

Elise Meyer Pinterest

I imagine a few of our pals in Virginia will also recognize the department store, Miller & Rhoads.  Below, three more styles, these date to 1966.

Elise Meyer Pinterest

Bermuda bags.

Elise Meyer Pinterest

There is even a Pin showing Barbie and Skipper in John Meyer of Norwich.

Elise Meyer Pinterest

You my view Ms. Meyer’s Pinterest archive here. For anyone in the Waterbury vicinity this weekend, the Museum is hosting a party.

Mattatuck Museum Facebook

Don your Madras shorts and Lilly Pulitzer summer dresses and head down to the Museum, on the green in Waterbury for an evening of casual summer fun

Guests will have the opportunity to bid on fun summer experiences including creating your own ice cream flavor, being Museum Curator for a day, naming a martini at a local restaurant and much more.

It looks like a lot of fun. For more on the Fling, click here.

About That Lilly Warehouse Sale & Stephen Bonanno Sandals

Hello-Hello, it is a glorious Friday here at The Prepatorium, we hope you are enjoying warm breezes and sunshine at your Palace.

Today we have a follow-up on our quick preview of the Lilly Pulitzer Warehouse Sale last week.  Not only did Racked Philly do advance coverage of the event, London’s The Daily Mail covered the sale.

The Daily Mail June 7, 2013

The Daily Mail piece borrowed heavily from a Racked story about the sale. The Racked article featured text and lots of wonderful photos from Julie Davis, below, the line waiting for the sale as of 5am Thursday morning, the day the Sale started.

Julie Davis/Racked Philly

I was confused by the Daily Mail story, it spoke about people camping out ahead of time, talking about info posted on Lilly’s site.

The site revealed that shoppers had been lining up outside the 240,000 square-foot venue in Oaks, Pennsylvania, since last Sunday so they could snap up the best bargains when doors opened Thursday.

Julie Davis/Racked Philly via The Daily Mail

The confusion comes because I thought camping out ahead of time was against Lilly’s “rules” for the Sale.

At any rate, Julie’s photos show that once inside there was a lot of merchandise available Thursday morning.

Julie Davis/Racked.com

Things looked well-organized by item, size, etc.

Julie Davis/Racked Philly

And prices seemed clearly marked.

Julie Davis/Racked Philly

From the Daily Mail:

Dresses started from $79, marked down from $178 to $348, and wedged shoes were discounted from $198 to $99.

The section for ‘seconds’ really had people ‘going nuts’ as merchandise dropped as low as $10.

But not everyone was/is happy. Why not? The headline from another story about the sale should give you an idea.

Racked Philly

Julie Davis also wrote this story, asking if those purchasing sale merchandise solely for the purpose of re-selling it have ruined things.  It is a solid follow-up piece, noting two primary themes among those responding to stories and posts online about the sale:

1) People were aghast that anyone would wait in line for five days for bargain bin clothing (“Nope, nope, nope. This makes me rashy and panicky just to think about,” said a commenter on Jezebel, who picked up on the story); and

2) Swarming eBayers are the devil for hoarding the event’s merch with the intention of resale, keeping the goods from Lilly’s “real” fans.

There were also multiple threads on Facebook on the topic. Some were happy with their experience at the sale, others were not.

Additionally, there was a third group of comments from those who prefer a return to former warehouse sale practices, like invitation-only shopping. Many reacted to photos like the one just below, noting that some customers were clearly not “Lilly lovers,” and were purchasing only for purposes of reselling.

Julie Davis/Racked Philly

Back to the follow-up story by Ms. Davis:

Multiple commenters left accounts of run-ins with resellers, including this tale of woe on our sister site: “Woman came out with 10 trash bags basically trashing Lilly saying they were dizzy and wanted to vomit with all the color of the horrible clothes, my friend asked why they bought so much and they said they were ebayers. My friend said it was horrible because she had to leave without getting in and the woman handed her a card saying you can buy from me I’ll only charge you 2 times the price I paid.”

There were also many who felt that Racked and other media “ruined the sale,” clearly not the case. The Lilly Pulitzer brand continues to generate enormous revenue for its corporate owner, Oxford Industries and the reality is that Oxford/Lilly is primarily interested in selling merchandise.  The company, and the Warehouse Sale, have moved (by design) beyond the more collegial days of yore.

Oxford Industries

As noted in a previous post, Lilly sells an awful lot of goods on the Rue La La flash sale site. I see more and more discounted Lilly inventory on Rue La La each month, not less. It is a far more cost-effective means for disposing of merchandise than renting and staffing a warehouse.  This is the first year in quite some time LP is limiting itself to only one warehouse sale, I wouldn’t be surprised if we continue to see it kept to one a year moving forward.

The online-only Endless Summer sale is due to be repeated this year. There was some sentiment expressed in comments on the Racked story suggesting this be the only type of sale in the future, below we share a sampling of those comments:

• “I hope Lilly wises up and cancels the warehouse sale and makes it an online sale instead so we all get a fair shot at the goods.”
• “I have to agree with the poster above, move the sale online and discontinue Warehouse Sales if it is not going to be fair to all.”
• “They should can the Warehouse Sale and take those funds and put the money into the Online Sales and everyone will have a fair chance at the Lilly. Limiting items in online shopping carts can deter the Resellers.”
• I”f Lilly corporate doesn’t want to lose their core customers and still wants to preserve their “cash cow” the smart move would be to have Rue La La handle their sales. Let the liquidation experts handle it.”

Back to the Racked Philly story:

Even if it can be successfully argued that resellers have put a damper on this event, we doubt Lilly Pulitzer will revert back to inviting VIP shoppers via mailer only. True, the mailer kept resellers at bay—but it also prevented the sale from becoming the cash cow that is today. And while signs posted around the warehouse noted that the brand reserved the right to limit shoppers’ purchases, but we never saw (or heard of) anyone being flagged. What do you think? Has the Lilly Pulitzer Warehouse Sale jumped the shark?

No one with whom I spoke could report any instances of Lilly limiting purchases.  What are your thoughts…? Have we moved beyond the days of the Warehouse Sale, would you prefer it all be moved online?

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Our other tidbit today involves Stephen Bonanno, the sandal maker and seller.

Stephen Bonanno

All is not peace, love and happiness for the fabled company. Apparently the company was overwhelmed by the volume of orders received during its one-day 50th anniversary sale. Customers have been waiting almost five months for the sandals purchased at 50% off during the sale. Below, a graphic from the Stephen Bonanno website:

StephenBonanno.com

The company’s Facebook page is filled with posts from concerned/perturbed/irate customers. The company says the orders will be filled, more from WPEC-TV:

“Everything will be delivered, it’s just going to be delivered late,” said Lisa Simone, an employee of the sandal company and the owner’s fiancée.  Simone says the company was flooded with orders during that one-day sale with some women buying 8 or 9 pairs.

The company had a whopping 4,000 orders in just one day. Simone says in an average day they get 50 to 75 orders for sandals. She claims they were so overwhelmed they got behind.

For more information, the Bonanno Facebook page may be found here.

Until next time, may everyone enjoy a simply splendid weekend!

Of Weekends & A Royal Wedding

Hello-Hello, what a weekend it was, the royal wedding in Sweden just knocked my socks off.

Formal events got underway Friday night with a dinner at Stockholm’s Grand Hôtel for family members. Princess Madeleine is fourth from the right; the groom, Christopher O’Neill, is on her right (our left).

Brigitte Grenfeldt, Royalcourt.se

A better look at the elegant Elie Saab dress worn by the Princess, it is from the designer’s Resort 2013 collection, on the right we see the Jenny Packham gown worn by Crown Princess Victoria, it is from the spring/Summer collection.

Elie Saab/Swedish Royal Court/Jenny Packham/Swedish Royal Court

Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece used her Instagram account to share photos from the wedding weekend.

Princess Marie Chantal Instagram

She was in an Oscar de la Renta gown from the designer’s spring 2013 collection. We show it below as worn by model Karlie Kloss in the runway show.

Style.com

The wedding itself was one elegant event, with glittering tiaras, shimmering gowns and some serious party frocks. It was also a significant gathering of European royalty.  Below, Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, as well as Princess Charlene of Monaco. Princess Charlene was one of the few titled women not wearing a tiara.

Leif R. Jansson/ScanPix – Swedish Royal Court

Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit and Crown Prince Haakon as they arrive for Saturday’s ceremony.

Maja Suslin/Scanpix via Swedish Royal Court

The bride’s sister, Crown Princess Victoria and her husband, Prince Daniel, and the couple’s child, Princess Estelle.

Stellapictures/Swedish Royal Court

Victoria wore a gown by Fadi al Khoury.

Via

More on Princess Victoria’s gown from the Swedish Royal Court news release.

The Crown Princess wore a greige rosé dress with aubergine accents. The dress is made from hand-dyed double-sided silk organza with layers of hand-dyed tulle in three shades, silk threads, Lurex threads, pearls and Swarovski crystals in amethyst and pale grey opal.

The Crown Princess has worn the designer before, and attended his show as she opened Stockholm Fashion Week in August of 2012.

Below, the mother of the bride, Queen Silvia arriving with her son, Prince Carl Philip.

Maja Suslin/Scanpix via Swedish Royal Court

The Queen’s gown is described as “a jade-coloured dress with a train. The dress is silk organza with embroidered silk lace and Swarovski stones.”

Below (left to right) we see Crown Prince Frederik & Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Norway’s Princess Märtha Louise, Crown Princess Mette-Marit and Crown Prince Haakon, also of Norway.

Royal House of Norway

The Queen’s husband was not available to escort her to the wedding because he was walking the bride up the aisle. Below we see King Gustav and Princess Madeleine, he wears what would be formal evening attire for the military, he is an Admiral in the Swedish Navy.

Sandberg/ScanPix via Swedish Royal Court

The Swedish Princess wed the British-born financier in the Royal Chapel at the Palace.

Anders Wiklund/Scanpix via Swedish Royal Court

On the altar, Princess Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotta’s crown, it was at the baptismal font when Princes Madeleine was christened. The crown dates to 1778.

Swedish Royal Court

The bride was exquisite.

Swedish Royal Court

From the Court Chaplain’s remarks to the bride and groom during the service:

“And the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinth. 13,13). Of faith, hope and love. Of these love is the greatest. But also greater than power and riches. Such is the greatness of love.

Yes, right now we find ourselves in a room of faith and of the heart. The Royal chapel encloses the two of you in God´s loving care, and it gives space as well as direction to your life together.

What is really great, however, is also what is created when all the little words and the warm, tender glances form a web of security and rest in your everyday life. Every day. The numerous moments are joined together into a life, your shared life. Take care of the moments!

Valentino Garavani Archives Facebook Page

She wore a gown by Valentino Garavani, founder of the eponymous fashion house of that name.

Valentino Courtesy Photo

More on the dress from the Palace news release:

The wedding dress is made from pleated silk organza with appliquéd ivory-coloured Chantilly lace. The upper section of the bodice is lace with a deep-cut back. Narrow vertical pleats open up from the accentuated waist, above the wide skirt, which ends with a four-metre-long train.

Ewa-Marie Rundquist, The Royal Court

It was a beautiful look. The designer has also created gowns for many other notable brides, including the afore-mentioned Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece and actress Anne Hathaway.

Valentino Garavani Virtual Museum Archive

Marie-Chantal shared a photo of herself on Instagram with Mr. Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti, his partner, as they flew to Stockholm.

Marie-Chantal Instagram

Both bride and groom looked beyond happy.

Janerik Henriksson/Scanpix via Swedish Royal Court

They beamed throughout the ceremony.

Swedish Royal Court/ Anders Wiklund-Scanpix

One of the official photos.

Ewa-Marie Rundquist/Kungahuset.se

And another.

Ewa-Marie Rundquist/Kungahuset.se

Here you see the younger members of the bridal party with the couple.

Ewa-Marie Rundquist/Kungahuset.se

The young bridal attendants carried Lily of the Valley. Floral decorations were inspired by an early Swedish summer, more from the Royal Swedish Court:

The colour scheme for the decorations is light green, white and pink, using beech leaves, cow parsley, pink and white peonies, white lilacs, foxgloves, delphiniums and lilies of the valley.

The bride’s bouquet.

Swedish Royal Court

After the ceremony Princess Madeleine and Mr. O’Neill proceeded by cortège to a location where where they boarded a boat for the reception.

Swedish Royal Court

Arriving at Drottningholm Palace for the reception, you can just about see the boat in the background.

Jonas Ekströmer/Scanpix via Swedish Royal Court

The Princess changed into another gown for the reception, it is a Nina Ricci creation worn by her mother to the Nobel Prize Awards in 2001. Madeleine also changed her hairstyle, wearing it down from the elegant updo seen at the ceremony.

Nobel Media AB 2006

And the song chosen for the couple’s first dance? Mr. Bojangles.

Friday Fun with a Royal Slant

Hello-Hello, it is a Friday. We hope you are about to enjoy a lovely weekend, June is one of my favorite months.

We wanted to share a few things that caught our attention this week, tidbits we thought might put a smile on your face. We begin with this photo:

BBC Facebook

Imagine you are an anchor at the BBC, reading the news. There is a live audience in the background, much like the morning news shows here in the US.  While reading the hits you sense a frisson of unusual energy in the studio, so you turn around to see what in the dickens is going on.

BBC News

The Queen of England was standing in the audience watching the news, just part of the crowd. Her Majesty was on hand to officially open the rebuilt and remodeled BBC Broadcasting House.

In other royal news, tomorrow is the big wedding in Stockholm when Sweden’s Princess Madeleine will wed Christopher O’Neill.

Swedish Royal Court

The couple live and work in the city: Princess Madeleine at the World Childhood Foundation, Mr. O’Neill at an investment banking firm.  The Princess is the youngest child of Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia.

Bruno Ehrs via Royal Court

The groom has dual US and UK citizenship, both parties will remain at their jobs in New York following the honeymoon. Mr. O’Neill has officially declined the offer of being titled as “Prince Christopher”.

Ewa-Marie Rundquist/royalcourt.se

Below you see the couple earlier this week at ceremonies marking Sweden’s National Day yesterday.

mm

Traditional Swedish costumes are worn for the event.

Official Princess Madeleine Facebook Page

Tonight there is a private dinner for guests, more from the Sacramento Bee:

The Royal Court said guests include the U.K.’s Earl and Countess of Wessex, Prince Edward and Sophie, Princess Takamado of Japan and princes and princesses from Norway, Denmark, Greece, Luxembourg and Monaco.

Other well-known invites include the CEO of fashion retailer H&M, Karl-Johan Persson, golfer Jesper Parnevik, Roxette singer Marie Fredriksson, Broadway’s “Phantom of the Opera” star Peter Joback and Colombian billionaire Alejandro Santo Domingo.

The ceremony is tomorrow afternoon in the Royal Chapel at the Palace in Stockholm. Following the ceremony there will be a dinner at Drottningholm Palace, where Princess Madeleine was born and raised.

Dick Norberg/Royal

The bride will wear a wedding gown designed by Valentino Garavani.  Methinks we shall see some serious party frocks in the next few days, and a tiara or two as well.

As of this writing guests have started to arrive for tonight’s dinner, below we see the couple arriving.

Aftonbladet. se

That Special Lilly US Open Print & Of Tennis & Logophobia

Hello-Hello, happy middle of a June week to you!

We have just a few tidbits to share today, beginning with a look at the new limited edition print Lilly Pulitzer has created for the USGA (US Golf Association).

USGA

This year’s US Open is being played on the east course at Merion GC in Ardmore, Pennsylvania.

Top 100 Golf Courses Blog

This is the sixth time the Open has been held at Merion, the Club is located on Philadelphia’s Main Line.  The course has a proud history, in 1916 Bobby Jones made his amateur debut at Merion when he was 14 years old.

USGA Archives

Here we see Jack Nicklaus, he helped lead the USA to the 1960 World Amateur Team Championship.

USGA Museum

Over the years it wasn’t always entirely serious during Championship matches at the course, here is Lee Trevino in 1971 during a practice round for the Open. The golfing great brought out a rubber snake he pretended to attack.

USGA Museum

Back to the special print Lilly has created, in addition to the Tote shown above, there are also two Murfee scarves available in the special print.

USGA US Open Shop

Racked Philly has a delightful post sharing “Four Secrets Behind Lilly Pulitzer’s Limited Edition USGA Print.” A spokesperson shared specific elements with the shopping site.

1. “Merion is famous for having wicker baskets top the pins as opposed to the usual flags, and they will be used in the US Open—so we put wicker baskets into the print.”
2. “We included the historic clubhouse because you couldn’t have a Merion print without it.”
3. “Tees are hidden throughout the print.”
4. “We put the ninth hole in the print because it’s a Par 3. Rumor has it that there will be lots of birdies at this U.S. Open, and we’re guessing the amazing golfers are going to snag a birdie here!”

USGA US Open Shop

Now, yours truly couldn’t locate the wicker baskets to save her life, so we weren’t able to isolate that part of the image.  All three items are $78 for non-members, $75 for USGA members.

On a side note, Racked also has a story with “8 Tips for Shopping the Lilly Pulitzer Warehouse Sale“.

Lilly Pulitzer via Racked Philly

The sale gets underway tomorrow at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center.

Lilly Pulitzer

Savvy shoppers will note that Lilly is only doing one warehouse sale this year. My guess is that it’s far more cost-effective to continue disposing of discounted merchandise via flash sale site RueLaLa, as well as the brand hosting its own online sales.

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Our other morsel involves a recent story in the Wall Street Journal about tennis fashion, it seems timely with the French Open underway. Titled “After Lacoste,” the article looks at clothing originally designed for wear while on the court and its integration into everyday wardrobes, as well as how on-court fashions have changed.

It was Frenchman René Lacoste —one of the top players of the 1920s, nicknamed the Crocodile—who reinvented traditional tennis whites when he started wearing open-necked, short-sleeved cotton shirts on court. His trademark polo shirt, bearing Lacoste’s crocodile logo, is still the basis for modern men’s tennis wear—and a must-have among the young French BCBG set.

Below we see Victoria Azarenka, she has played her way into the final four at Roland Garros this weekend.

Roland Garros

Back to Tina Gaudoin’s Journal story:

But today, a sport that once prided itself on conservative turnout and color blocking has become an excuse for an on-court fashion extravaganza—a logo fest that could give Coke and Pepsi a run for their money.

I blame Björn Borg for polluting the tennis-wear gene pool. If only the player many believe still to be the greatest of all time had been possessed of a dress sense to match his peerless tennis, then we might not be in the garish, vulgar sartorial straits we find ourselves in today.

Below, Maria Sharapova and Jelena Jankovic shake hands after today’s quarter-final match. Ms. Sharapova won in 3 sets.

Roland Garros

Rafa Nadal today after beating Stanislas Wawrinka.

Roland Garros

The piece goes on to examine different players and their styles, along with some of the pieces created for them by sponsors like Nike, Adidas and Sergio Tacchini. It is an interesting treatise, concluding with some tips for those of us mere mortals on the court.

When in doubt, regular mortals should keep it simple by wearing loose-fitting, but not baggy, shorts and polos (collars, please), and as close to white as possible—though flashes of color are permissible on shirts, shorts or socks.

Unless you are a county player or above, no Nadal-type kerchiefs. No baseball caps unless your name is Andy Murray and absolutely no black socks. Ever. The only reason for wearing sweatbands is if the temperature rises above 20 degrees Celsius.

The entire story may be read here.

G’bye until next time!