About Gustave Tassell

As I was so distracted by:

(that's me in the bikini)*

I realized I forgot to write a little bit about Gustave Tassell, the designer of our fab coat.

Gustave Tassell was an American designer whose work was recently celebrated in the Brooklyn Museum Show 'A Passion for Perfection: James Galanos, Gustave Tassell, Ralph Rucci'.

Tassell opened his own firm in Los Angeles with the encouragement of James Galanos.  His clients included Jacqueline Kennedy and Princess Grace of Monaco.  After Norman Norell's death he moved to New York to take over design at Norell.  So just think: Norell and Tassell.  Two great American designers.

*wishful thinking...

American Woman!

One of my favorite 70s rock-n-roll songs is American Woman by The Guess Who:



I know, I know, the song American Woman has nothing t'all do with fashion but as the American Woman is our theme for the next few posts on the RARE blog I thought why not.   Our American Woman is a little bit sex, a little bit rock-n-roll and a little bit Ali MacGraw.  Ali MacGraw means Steve McQueen which means:  "Oh.  My.  God."  (so said Ali MacGraw and so do I!)

Steve McQueen.  OMG.

Calvin Klein said, "Ali MacGraw exemplified this great American style".  She was a Wellseley educated girl who as a teenager checked out Nijinsky's biography 16 times out of the Pound Ridge library!  She had a bohemian glamour that made everyone from Diana Vreeland to Steve MacQueen fall in love with her.  Okay, indulge me while I post just one more photo of Steve McQueen...

Steve McQueen in LIFE magazine 1963.  Damn!

Gustave Tassell was, oh who cares!  Let's just look at Steve McQueen one more time:

I have the same Le Mans jacket that I bought more then a few years ago at the Historical Grand Prix in Monaco.  Good times.  And my favorite jacket.

Anyhoo!  Gustave Tassell!  An American designer.  A fitted 1960s coat in cream with gold and silver metallic thread.  Glamorous.  Sexy.  Sixties.  

With flecks of red...

1960s Tassell fitted coat.  Size 4.

PURCHASE

INQUIRY