Is this Blouse from the 40s and IZOD too? HELP!!

Ok I have only medium skills at dresses and I have finally started going through this ladys blouses (yes part of that estate I bought WAY back)

Any who.... I have NO CLUE on blouses but based on "dresses" this has a 40s? look possibly 50s? I don't know but even more interesting is to find an IZOD label... do you think it was part of a suit? I have more pics if needed, deffinatly thick shoulder pads and all the little design feature I am used to of late 40s early 50s

Its deffinately Rayon and in rather good condition minus soiling issues.....

So the questions are
1. Is this 40s or 50s
2. does it being Izod make it collectable at all?
3. ..... I have quite a few blouses (dont worry yall will see them all as I need major dating help lol) and I was going to list them together in a 40s / 50s lot but do you think this would be worth listing individualy?

Thank you all!

Jennifer

 

it says "American Reproduction by David Crystal"

and just above that under the logo it says "By Appointment"

 

The VFG has a brief history of the Izod label mentioning designs by David Crystal (apparently a company and not an individual's name) but doesn't say what year, or decade, the connection began. I found a mention on Tangerine Boutique's website of the David Crystal company beginning in the 1930s, but the earliest reference I find to its connection with Izod is the 40s.

Another interesting label puzzle! Jluthye, once we dig up more info on your label it would be great if you were to post it on the label thread. We don't have that one, and it looks pretty old. Don't know what to make of the "Reproduction" info on the tag.

Beautiful sweater! Love that blouson silhouette in the back.

 

Oh, and Google gave me a link to an article about the origins of American sportwear on Lizzie's site, mentioning David Crystal and Izod, but when I went to the page I couldn't find a reference to either one on that page, darn it.

 

That blouse is gorgeous!!!!!

At one point I had several David Crystal pieces, and I remember doing quite a bit of research. For some reason, I seem to recall that the David Crystal Inc. name came first, then they either formed or bought Izod and Haymaker. LaCoste came later than the other two, in the 50s. But I "thought" the Izod connection was made later than the blouse would appear to have been made. I can't remember, and can't find, the date for So, was this a later reproduction of a 30's or early 40's piece? Or did Crystal own Izod back that far? That label seems much older than anything I've seen "in person."

More questions than answers here... Sorry! I think the David Crystal line, with its evolution, is quite an interesting story.

 

thank you all... and yes I too am confused note the post lol I do know that the blouse is a rayon that has been finished to be more silky, there is no question in my mind its rayon, there are also the sewn into the sleeves shoulder pads and the look and feel are all of older construction..... Ithink 40s but I am not the best but no way later than the 50s so thats all I know lol.... would pictures of the seams help? and yes it has a bloussant fit... snug around the waist and puffy in the back,.... buttoned tight up on the mannie

oh the front closes wth snaps and hook and eye and there are little brass like? meatal buttons on the sleeves as closures.

 

Oh, of course it's a blouse, not a sweater. And I agree with your dating conclusions, Anne, just didn't make myself clear.

 

I think this is a blouse from post-1966 and looks more 70's- 80's - the Dynasty shoulders. Reasons? The label has 'By Appointment' to the Prince Of Wales (The Royal Arms are the feathers). The title Prince Of Wales is given at the age of 18. Assuming this is the present HRH The Prince of Wales that would date the warrant for using The Royal Arms from 1966 when HRH became 18.

The previous Prince of Wales would have been Edward V111 who came to the throne in 1936 and the following information doesn't make sense of this.

David Crystal was designing for Lacoste who amalgamated with Izod in the 1950's. He was well known for his sport shirts.

The blouse has a fly front does it not? Showing the buttons or fastenings is important. The label however has been re-attached and may not be original to the blouse. Is there a fabric care label? If you unpick a shoulder pad to reveal the padding that would also help to date the blouse.

I actually thought it might be crepe de chine.

 

MC, it is me who was so unclear... I could not remember what David Crystal brands came exactly when. In any event, this kept tugging at me, and I found an article from Women's Wear Daily, May of this year, that indicates that Crystal did buy the Izod name quite a bit earlier than I had thought. The Izod brand was around in the early 1900s, and though the article didn't say exactly when Crystal bought it, it sounds like it was much earlier than I had thought.

I lost my entire post (lost my internet connection, and all my work was lost with it), but I'll see if I can find the reference tomorrow and post it. I find it amazing that the history of the David Crystal company is so well documented, going back so far. But with all its past brands (including the marriage of the Izod/LaCoste ones) it gets confusing. And now that Philips Van Heusen owns (all or part of, I'm not sure) Crystal Brands, which now makes women's lingerie and itself owns some of the big name costume jewelry makers, it can be devilish....

Still not sure of the date on the blouse, but have more clarity on the timeline of the DC labels!

 

Vertugarde has a very good point about the Prince of Wales emblem - but using that information I'm going to conclude that it's '30s. It just looks too damn old to be '80s, and the shoulder line isn't right either.

Schiaparelli first started using shoulder pads in the early '30s and although they're associated more with the next decade, they were in use (although these are big pads for a blouse which is usually designed to be worn under a jacket). The collar looks too small to be '40s.

To decide the matter Jennifer, can you answer the questions about shoulder pad composition or any other labels? What material are the buttons made of?

Nicole

 

Vertugarde - thanks for the idea of looking at the contents of the shoulder pads to help with dating.

Research turns up the darndest things -

The Izod line with the alligator logo was named after the firm A.J. Izod of London. AJ Izod agreed in 1937 to design a woman’s shirt line for the firm, David Crystal.

The Lacoste label with the alligator was patented in 1933 by Rene Lacoste, a french tennis star who was known as “le crocodile.” In 1926 he asked Izod to design a short-sleeved cotton knit shirt with an alligator on it, rather than the standard stretch white shirt. He shocked the tennis world and so began that whole alligator/Izod thing began.

In 1951 “the alligator crossed the ocean.” Vincent Draddy, who headed the NY firm, David Crystal, purchased a few thousand of the french made shirts. At $8 he couldn’t move them despite sending them out “to the likes of the Duke of Windsor, John Wayne ...”

Then president Ike Eisenhower turned up wearing a white lacoste shirt and the alligator suddenly became au courrant. Draddy created the Izod line to produce the men’s shirts.

The above information is from a 1982 newspaper article from Elyria, Ohio

And here is an ad in Feb. 21, 1945 “Naugatuck News." The small print in the left hand corner says “All created by IZOD American reproduction by David Crystal.”

 

OK, here is the excerpt from the WWD article I referenced last night:

"...regarded as a heritage brand at PVh, the izod moniker dates to london in the early 1900s, when david Crystal Co. acquired the exclusive rights to use the name izod from Jack izod, “shirt maker to the King.” in 1951, in the u.s., famed tennis player rené lacoste partnered with the Crystal company to market a tennis shirt made of a new piqué fabric, and the popularity of the brand jumped with celebrities and sportsmen. the izod-lacoste polo shirt with the alligator emblem became an american fashion icon in the eighties. in 1995, PVh acquired the izod brand from Crystal Brands inc., separating the name from the lacoste brand."

From this piece, it would appear as if the Crystal/Izod connection dates much earlier than thought. And what I think confuses a lot of people, including me, is that Izod & LaCoste have become so indelibly linked that it's easy to put them both into the 50s, when they became related. But Izod alone goes back so much earlier.

So, it seems that the blouse could indeed be 30s.

 

Lol IO love the debate that I have stirred and what I am learning too.... I am taking more detailed "better" pictures now to help.....

I might even burn test (i don't think I can though) to confirm rayon but it feels as if it is but has a "shinier" look than most Rayon....

I can attest to this. Even if reproduction I know it is not from the 60s... it came from her attic (the estate) and EVERYTHING in the attic was 50s and below she stored it up there when she ran out of room. One side of the label is unattached and I will examine the other side more closely, however if it has been reattached I am sure that she put it back in the correct shirt. This woman was quite the socialite, he husband was the brigadier general who pretty much formed the Air force division out of the Army, This won't be her first piece to stir controversy lol I had quite a few 30s shirts and 2 coats from her the were Neiman Marcus.... which I later found out form the family friend that she was personal close friends with the family going to many of their "events" and gatherings to support them........ So I am not saying how old the blouse is because I have NO IDEA that's why I asked lol but all the clues that I have (including the size) let me know its 1950s or earlier

Thank you ladies off to take more pictures lol in natural light so I can get clearer pictures ;-)

 

I was watching a TCM movie last night and the blouse looked like a blouse in that movie, it was a 1939 movie. I am going to say late 30s early 40s.

 

Ok I had a booked typed explaing the pictures but my pc crashed and Im too lazy to retype lol,,, here are the pics ill explain later!!!

 

Yep, that's a 1930's blouse. Thanks for the picture details and for the knowledgeable posts on David Crystal. I think the journey was worth it. And thanks Golden Age for some clarification on royal titles. Until his investiture I believe the present Prince of Wales held an honorary title. I think probably the title is necessary for royal warrants.