vintage memories
KATHY rasmussen vintage VOGUE by calli green photos tiffany n. cody, smashglam
VKC Who was your fashion icon? Kathy “My fashion icon would be
VKC What is your earliest fashion memory? Kathy “My earliest memory is probably my senior year of high school, which was 1964. The first article I ever bought for myself was a Lilli Ann coat — a winter coat (seen at right). It was red with three-quarter-length sleeves and had this huge, huge white fox collar. I actually wore that for 10-15 years. It was my favorite because I paid for it out of my own earnings, so it was really special to me; it was a beautiful piece.” VKC What newsworthy events were influenc- ing fashion at that time? Kathy “Well, The Beatles, they were huge in ‘64; they had just come to the U.S. They impacted the way everyone felt and dressed greatly during their time. In high school, we weren’t allowed to wear jeans or slacks, we were only allowed to wear skirts and dresses. High heels were ‘in’ of course with the really pointed toes. We all stuffed our toes in those narrow, narrow shoes. I loved it. Through high school, I just loved to dress up, which is why I loved Lilli Ann designs. We always wore gloves, too, and really seemed to look older because we were always dressed up and dressed really nice.”
‘says’ quality. Her pieces, and especially this one, make me feel so dressed up and special when I have them on.” VKC How are clothes in modern stores today different? Kathy “Oh goodness! The quality of the fabric, the quality of the stitching, there is no longer bound button work or hand detail work. The only time you would find quality now, which would be comparable to ‘normal’ quality in the 40s, 50s and 60s, would be shopping Couture clothing. Pieces bought for thousands of dollars, and that’s why there are still dresses from the ‘60s we find today that still look as good as they did back then. It’s the quality. Definitely the quality.” VKC When did you open Vintage Vogue? Kathy “I started Vintage Vogue about 18 years ago, here in Independence. I started
Edith Head. Her designs were spectacular in films in the ‘20s, ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s. She won all kinds of awards for films like ‘The Ten Commandments’ and just about any large film you could think of. She made me grow to love fashion; she got me excited about fashion.” VKC What is a favorite vintage piece you still have today? Kathy “It’s another piece by Lilli Ann (shown on next page), she was a very fa- mous designer especially in the Fifties and Sixties. Her pieces were top quality with a lot of hand stitching and bound button holes; she used a lot of fur in her work. This particular piece is a double-knit two piece coated dress. It is cream colored with a big black stripe across the front, and it has an Ermine fur collar. It is from the 1960s and is one of my favorite pieces that I own. I have gotten a lot of wear out of it. Lilli Ann just
VintageKC << Fashion 2014 46
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