Tuesday 31 May 2016


From The Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, 12 July, 1962- 'Fall Fashions Take Form'
This illustration shows a lovely blue wool suit, with a  long jacket and a plain, straight skirt. The sleeves are three-quarter length, and the jacket has large pockets at the waist.

Sunday 29 May 2016





This is a fantastic Ben Zuckerman suit, dating from the early 1960's by my best guess. It's made of wool in a beautiful purple, with black buttons down the front of the jacket. The suit is such a classic that even 50 year after it was made, it still looks modern and fresh. It is beautifully tailored and the shoulders in particular are very well set, which is an aspect of tailoring that is very difficult to get right.
This suit was sold at I Magnin, which was a very high end department store with a number of stores on the west coast of America.
Photos courtesy of Cherlock's Fabulous Finds.

Thursday 26 May 2016

 
 

From The Chicago Tribune, 19 October, 1961- Fashions are Enchanting.
'Luxurious tuxedo of fashion fur of the season- fisher- gives elegance to Mrs Bruce Norris' town costume of soft nutmeg wool and mohair by Ben Zuckerman. (Chas A. Stevens, Co).
Chas A. Stevens was a Chicago high end department store, founded in 1886. Its flagship State Street store was the hub of fashion during the 1940's, 50's and 60's in Chicago. It featured six floors of exclusively women's clothing . The top floor housed a beauty salon named The Powder Box, and employed more than 50 operators. The salon was noted for catering to visiting celebrities and dignitaries
Mrs Bruce Norris (nee Patricia Anne Sheppard) was the second wife of NHL pioneer Bruce Norris. He was the owner of the Detroit Red Wings hockey team.  She was a noted Chicago socialite.

Friday 20 May 2016








This is a Ben Zuckerman suit, dating from the early to mid 1960's. It is made of a pale beige wool, and features a straight skirt and a single breasted jacket with a slightly nipped waist and fantastic gold buttons.
This suit would have been worn during the day, a sort of uniform that would have been appropriate for most activities a woman would undertake at this time.
Photos courtesy of Maggiebo 123.

Wednesday 18 May 2016






What a great suit! So feminine and lovely! It features a beautifully tailored jacket, with  3/4 length sleeves, a tiny waist and a wonderful attached scarf. It probably dates from the early 1950's.
The suit was sold at John Bishop Doyle, a department store opened in 1950 in Seattle by Mr. Doyle. He was a well known local who was so popular with his customers that over 70% bought exclusively from his store. By 1980 his store had closed.
Photos courtesy of Lucky Dry Goods.

Monday 16 May 2016






This is a Ben Zuckerman suit, in heavy brown wool, that would have been a wardrobe basic when new, as most women in the 1950's and 60's wore suits frequently.
This suit has a double breasted jacket and a half belt to the rear. The skirt is a typical simply styled Zuckerman skirt, designed to allow the jacket to shine.

Tuesday 10 May 2016


From February 1964 Harper's Bazaar- Ben Zuckerman on the cover.
This is a really unusual suit from Ben Zuckerman. It is a sleeveless jacket, double breasted with a curved seam on the front of the jacket. Large mother-of-pearl buttons decorate the jacket as well. Worn underneath the jacket is a blouse in a khaki colour, probably also by Zuckerman, as well as a matching skirt.

Thursday 5 May 2016

 

Harper's Bazaar, September, 1952, features Suzy Parker wearing a Ben Zuckerman coat in tan wool. The coat has a large collar and is in the swing style- the coat has a large 'skirt', all the better to wear over the New Look dresses with their large crinolines.