queen of oscars

At the manor, we like to call out the name of a favorite actor,
director, or designer we might happen to see in the opening credits
of a film. The name I end up calling out most often, is Edith Head!
Did you know this powerhouse American costume designer's long
career in Hollywood garnered her more Academy Awards than any
other woman in history? She was nominated a whopping 35 times
and actually won a total of eight Oscars.

I adore that stunning off white cashmere coat she designed for Kim
Novak in Vertigo. And what about that classy wardrobe of Patricia
Neal's in Breakfast at Tiffany's? All those gorgeous dresses for Grace
Kelly in the Hitchcock films were also designed by Head.

She is one of those people I would love to have for dinner. Fascinating
conversation would take place, and there would be a paper table cloth
and lots of pencils near her place setting for sketching, during that
after dinner coffee. It would be fun to hear all the inside scoop on all
the iconic stars of old Hollywood. I would like it almost as much as
stopping in for a chat with Pop Leibel in the Argosy Book Shop.

Here's a list of Ms. Head's fashion commandments, listed in her book
The Dress Doctor, Prescriptions for Style, from A to Z. Amazingly
enough, her rules for dressing are still applicable today, only she
doesn't mention anything about woolly socks.

Don't let your clothes be fitted too tightly.
Even a perfect figure looks better if it doesn't
resemble a sausage. Only bathing suits
should be tight.

Don't wear a date dress when you're arriving
for a day's work at the office. The dressy
dress, the low-necked lacy blouse, the glitter
sweater, all of the glitter category belong to
after dark.

Don't be too different. You don't want to dress
like the heard, but you don't want to look like a
peacock in a yard full of ducks. Being too
much an individualist is not being well dressed.

Don't feel that when you're going to a party
you must look "dressed up" a simple dress is
safer if there’s a question of what to wear, and
you will be much more comfortable simply
dressed than over dressed.

Don't be afraid to wear a becoming costume many, many times. It's
an old fashioned idea that you have to have a new dress for every
occasion or party. Even if you have the money to do so, it isn't
necessary. The modern approach is to change accessories.
.

Life is competitive;
clothes gird us for the competition.

.

Edith Head

.

.

bewitching woolly-socks flick

When I put the tree up last weekend, I brought out my little library of holiday films. I had forgotten Bell, Book and Candle had been tucked away with the others. It's the 1958 romantic comedy based on the hit Broadway play by John Van Druten. Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak are once again paired, after their success as a duo in Hitchcock's Vertigo.

Set during the holidays, Novak plays a Greenwich Village witch, who casts a love spell on the unsuspecting Stewart. Elsa Lanchester and Jack Lemmon add lots of hilariously quirky humor to the cast. Rumor has it, that this movie was the inspiration for the TV series Bewitched. There are too many striking similarities, including Lanchester's betrayal as a bumbling witchy aunt, of the Aunt Agatha variety.

This is a stylish film with great mod sets, and Novak's fabulous clothes. Although, not quite as elegant as Edith Head's creations for Vertigo, they are still a joy to behold. There is one stunning black evening dress which is so Madame X. My favorite is a deep red velvet hooded cape, with a matching rosy red fur muff. Though out the film, she wears tons of wonderful garnet jewelry. (Which reminds me, it's the season for my favorite vintage Prague garnet earrings.)

There's lots of snowy shots of lovely old 1950's New York, including a spare aerial shot of Central Park. Plus, to top it off, Novak owns a shop dealing in African art, which is right up my alley. Yup, you guessed it. This is most definitely a woolly-socks flick, so kick 'em up and enjoy. You're going to want to add this one to your traditional holiday collection.

And, it's impossible to mention garnets, any time of year, without being reminded of this beautiful poem by Janet Frame .

In a Garnet World


In a garnet world
something troubles the rock
--a rash, an itching dazzle
that will not sleep or be soothed,
a night sky of stars without sky
or night; and stars that sting.

This rock once unseen
in its river of ice, is now sick.
A man climbing cloud-high
caught human sight of it
brought to it this blood-colored incurable
infection of light.