Question about label in a fab 40's suit

ClubVintage

ClubVintage

VFG Member
Question about label in a fab 40\'s suit

I have another 40's suit to list but I have been trying to figure out if this was a sample or what exactly this label was for.<p>One good thing is that it identifies the fabric... it's natural silk pongee. It also has what looks like a date of 1949 along with a notation...copy price..$350.00.<p>The store label is I Magnin as were 3 other suits I picked up at this estate sale, she either worked for or just loved I Magnin.<p>Here are some quick snaps(not for the auction) and a scan of the label in question.<p>Thanks in advance<p>Cat<p><img src=http://members.sparedollar.com/Tomcat/2005_1111ivorysuit0004.JPG><p><img src=http://members.sparedollar.com/Tomcat/2005_1111ivorysuit0011.JPG><p><img src=http://members.sparedollar.com/Tomcat/2005_1111ivorysuit0009.JPG><p><img src=http://members.sparedollar.com/Tomcat/2005_1111ivorysuit0014.JPG><p><img src=http://members.sparedollar.com/Tomcat/silksuitlabel.jpg>
 
Hmm....

well since its "importers" under i magnin maybe it was price tag/inventory tag combined. There is depts etc, But that is awfully steep in 1949 money.

Copy price could be suggested retail, could be price of some sort of unit of them???
 
maybe it was the cost to copy and prepare them for manufacture? Not the price of the individual items... but the cost of the service to copy it?

I've never heard of pongee silk.. interesting :D
 
According to my Better Homes & Garden sewing book:<p>Pongee-plain woven fabric from raw silk, comes in light & medium weight. Natural color is light tan, now printed and dyed many colors.<p>Also what terms can I use to describe the dramatic v-shaped back detail? <p>Cat
 
Hmm.... i don't know...

definitely accentuates the nipped in waist, creates that classic "V" shape of the 40s jacket sihouette/figure style...
 
Gorgeous suit!

Kristine, you may have hit the nail on the head with the copy price.

Sue
 
My personal experience with vintage silk is that I only ever find it in either shantung or in that very fine-ribbed silk with a sheen (jap silk?). I've never had a vintage piece in pongee, and can't afford any silk in new, thus my comment about "when you can find it," 'cuz I can't!
 
GEESH

You have a FRENCH COUTURE garment that I. Magnin's bought to make copies from!!!!!

(I'll bet my first born child on that!)

WOW, I am stoked.
I have never seen one 'in person' before.
There is just no other explanation for the price and notations.
The design room at I.Magnins was well known for their line-by-line couture copies.

If it is a prototype, this could be a museum piece--the next step is to determine who the designer was: check 'Vogue' for 1949 to see who this may have been. With the 'import' label, it is not American.

The other option is that it was not a prototype, but imported to sell. In that case it was a special order copy of a designer's piece (again, probably French).

Well, whatever. This is worth the effort to figure out who the designer may have been.
Good luck!
Jennifer
 
What come to my mind witht he word copy is the copy you would write for an article or ad. Perhaps this was to be the published "copy" price. I would think that this suit was imported for I. Magnin in its form rather than brought in to copy here. Does that make any sense?
 
If you check out Vogue Magazines of the 40's, you see I.Magnin mentioned quite frequenty, and with steep price tags, too! I remember using the cost of living calculator and some of the gowns (by other designers) were in the thousands by today's standards. Vogue has always been expensive. I have one I Magnin sweater and the quality is impeccable.

I did a search for I Magnin and the first thing that popped up was this thread on a message board. I think some of what they are saying is quite interesting from a historical standpoint:
http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=00BOCc
 
EUREKA

I found exactly the same label listed in the book: "New Look to Now: French Haute Couture, 1947-1987",by Rizzoli. Page 26 shows a copy of a similiar tag. It is from a YSL dress c. 1965.
The book tells more about what this is, and I will give you a brief description:
I. Magnin, located in San Francisco and L.A., had a major couture salon that would create line for line copies of French couture. They would buy a model in France, then show it in their salon. The customer would order a copy for herself after viewing the original gown.
With that in mind, this garment that you have here is an ORIGINAL French couture fashion. Although the designer is not listed, with some research, that should become apparent.
And yes, copies cost $350 each in 1949. The salon would be sure that customers did not order copies if there was a possiblilty that they would be seen together (how civilized!)
After the season was over, I.Magnin would sell their original models. This is how your gown left I.Magnin--probably was bought and worn by a customer who fit the model and didn't need a copy to be made for her.
It is important to add that only I.Magnin provided this service on the West Coast, and the salon was famous for their couture copies.
The Fine Arts Museum in San Francisco has one of these French couture models used by I.Magnin.
Your garment may have value to a museum, and you may want to try to sell it that way before trying other venues.

Congratulations on a great find,
Jennifer O.:eureka::eureka:
 
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