Trivia Tuesday: Jay Jaxon

This week in Sports has been a good one. Wizards vs Cavs game was beyond amazing. I am not sure how Lebron was able to pull off that shot that he made but he did...  Congrats to the Cavs on their win... Congrats to the Wizards for doing an amazing job as well.

Today black history lesson is about Fashion and Costume Designer Jay Jaxon( 1941-2006). 

Born in Queens, NY, Jay Jaxon was " an accidental fashion designer" he was introduced to fashion by his seamstress girlfriend.  His rise in the fashion industry began at the age 24. He was able to start training in Paris at the house of Yves St. Laurent, Christian Dior and Jean Louis Scherrer to help with the failing line. 

With this accomplishment he became the first black couturier in Paris and also the first American. 

 French and American press emphasize his race over his nationally and it would often frustrated Jaxon. He often had to remind himself that his work was the coming together of all people.  

In the year 1970 he became  one of the leading 7th Avenue Designers of haute couture in New York City during that time. He continued most of his designing and work during the latter part of his career for numerous television productions like "Motown 25, " Ally McBeal, " The Division" and "American Dreams". 

He also worked on the famous movie " Mr & Mrs. Smith". 

His pieces are sold in high end luxury department stores named Bendel's and Bonwit Teller. 

With his well known recognition he became a personal designer and fashion consultant to many well known celebrities. 

In July 19, 2006 he died from complications from prostate cancer. He was remembered in the New York Times.  

Monday Blues: Mildred Blount

Happy Monday!!!
Congrats to the Superbowl Champs New England Patriots!!! The game was beyond amazing....

Today I wanted to start the week off with the wonderful Mildred Blount ( 1907-1974).

Mildred Blount was an widely recognized leading milliner in the 1930's and 1940's. Her interest in millinery slowly left her once she started working at Madame Clair's Dress and Hat Shop in New York City. Her and her sister, who was a dressmaker opened their own dress and hat shop which aimed towards serving the wealthy New Yorkers.

By the year 1939 her designs were shown at the New York World Fair and by then her career took off. She was asked to design hats for the films Gone with the Wind and Easter Parade as well as for the cover of the August 1942 issue of the Ladies Home Journal.

Later in the year 1940 she ran an hat shop in Beverly Hills. She had A-list clients like Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Gloria Vanderbilt, Marian Anderson and many others. Among all of her accomplishments she was the first African American member of the Motion Pictures Costumers Union which allowed her to work in film studios.

In the year 1974 she passed away in Los Angeles, California.

Happy Friday!!! - Meet Zelda Wynn Valdes

                         HAPPY FRIDAY !!!!

Apparently President Donald Trump  renamed " Black History Month to " African American History Month" ....... Why fix something that doesn't need fixing........ Let's fix the real issues...


Today lesson is about Zelda Wynn Valdes- ( June 28, 1905- September 26,2001).

Growing up in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania Zelda began her professional career working in her uncle's White Plains, New York tailoring shop. During that time she began working as a stock girl at a high-end boutique and eventually she worked her self up to selling and making alternations with these accomplishments she became the shop's first black sales clerk and tailor.

With all the knowledge that she learned while working at her uncle's boutique she was able to open Chez Zelda which was her own  boutique in Manhattan on Broadway and West 158th St in 1948.

Within that year she dressed the entire bridal party for Marie Ellington and Nat King Cole.

By the year 1950 she moved " Chez Zelda" to 57th st in midtown.

She became the designer of the original Playboy Bunny Costume although it is still not clear if she was the sole creator of the costume. She also was one of the founders of the National Association of Fashion Accessory Designers which is an industry group that intend to promote black design professionals.

In the year 1970, Arthur Mitchell asked her to design costumes for his new company known as the Dance Theater of Harlem.  With that recognition under her belt she designed for eighty-two productions in the year 1992.  She eventually closed her boutique in 1989 but she continued to work with the Dance Theater of Harlem until she passed in 2001 at the age 96.

Fashion Designer: Ann Cole Lowe

Congrats to Queen Bee once again for breaking the internet yesterday with her wonderful news of expecting twins with Husband Jay Z what a great way to start off Black History Month...

Today for our black history lesson I would like to share with you.....
Fashion Designer Ann Cole Lowe. (1898-1981)

Ann Cole Lowe was born in Clayton, Alabama, the great grandmother of a slave woman and an Alabama plantation owner. She had an older sister named Sallie. Lowe's interest in fashion came from her mother and grandmother, both of them worked as seamstress for the first families of Montgomery and other members of high society. When Lowe's was 16 her mother passed and at the time of her death she was in the process of working on four ball gowns for the First Lady of Alabama, Elizabeth Kirkman O'Neal. With the skills that Lowe learned from her mother and grandmother she finished the dresses.

By the year 1912, Lowe married Lee Cohen and they had a son together. After her marriage her husband wanted her to give up working as a seamstress. She complied for some time and eventually she left him after she was hired to design a wedding dress for a woman in Florida.

Lowe and her son moved to New York in the year 1917 and she enrolled in S.T. Taylor Design School. Since the school was segregated Lowe was required to attend class in a room alone.

She graduated in 1919. After Lowe graduated she moved to Tampa, Florida. The following year she opened her first dress salon " Annie Cohen". Her salon catered to members of high society only. The salon was such an success that Lowe was able to save $20,000 from her earnings and she returned back to New York in 1928. While living in New York she worked for commission for stores such as Henri Bendel, Chez Sonia, Neiman Marcus, and Saks Fifth Avenue.

In 1946 she designed the dress that Olivia De Havilland wore to accept the Academy Award for Best Actress for To Each His Own, although the name on the dress was Sonia Rosenberg. Since she noticed that she wasn't getting credit for her work she decided to open a second salon, Ann Lowe's Gowns in New York on Lexington Ave in 1950. Her one of a kind designs made from the finest fabrics were an success and she attracted many wealthy, high society clients.

Throughout her career she was known for being very selective about her clientele. She used to describe herself as " an awful snob".  This quote below would show why she felt that way about herself.

" I love my clothes and I'm particular about who wears them. I am not interested in sewing for cafe society or social climbers. I do not cater to Mary and Sue. I sew for families of the Social Register"

With her high clientele she was hired in 1953 to design a wedding dress for future First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier and the dresses for her bridal attendants for her September wedding to Senator John F. Kennedy. Lowe was chosen by the bride's mother Janet Auchincloss who had previously commissioned Lowe to design the wedding dress she wore when she married Hugh D. Auchincloss in 1942.

The dress she designed was amazing it consisted of fifty yards of "ivory silk taffeta with interwoven bands of tucking forming the bodice and similar tucking in large circular designs swept around the full skirt. The price of the dress was $500 back then but in today's time it is approximately $4,000. Even tho the wedding was a highly publicized event, Lowe did not receive public credit for her
work.

Eventually Lowe continued to work for wealthy clients who often talked her out of charging hundreds of dollars for her designs, After making sure her staff was paid she often didn't make that much of a profit from her designs she was basically broke. In 1962 she lost her salon in New York due to not paying taxes and within that same year she experienced major health issues.

Once her health was taking care off she opened another store in 1968, Ann Lowe Originals on Madison Avenue. After this store opening she retired in 1972. After an extended illness she past away on February 25,1981.

Her legacy lives on throughout many museums throughout the country. A collection of five of her dresses are held at the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Three of them are on display at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington,DC. Several of her other dresses will be included in an exhibition on black fashion at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan in December 2016.

Black History Month: Elizabeth Keckley

With February being the month of love and the celebration of our black leaders I would like to share with you a black history fact each day of the month. I would normally recognize the normal leaders that everyone is aware off which is Martin Luther King, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Malcolm X and etc but this year I wanted to shine light on the famous African American designers during slavery.   

Today I would like to honor and share Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley( February 1818- May 1907)

Elizabeth Hoobs Keckley was a former slave who became a successful seamstress, civil activist, and author in Washington, DC. She was best known as the personal modiste and confidante of Mary Todd Lincoln, the First Lady. She moved to Washington in 1860 after buying her freedom for her and her son in St.Louis. She created an independent business in the capital based on clients who were wives of the government elite. Among the elite were Varina Davis, wife of Jefferson Davis; and Mary Anna Custis Lee, wife of Robert E.Lee. 

After the civil war she wrote and published an autobiography, Behind the Scenes: Or Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House in the year 1868. It was both a slave narrative and a portrait of the First Family, especially Mary Todd Lincoln, and it is considered to controversial for breaking privacy about them. It was also her claim as a businesswoman to be part of the new mixed-race educated middle class that was visible among the leadership of the black community. 

She was the founder of the Contraband Relief Association( August 1862). She received donations from both Lincolns as well as other white patrons and well to do free blacks. In July 1864 she changed the name to the Ladies Freedom and Solider's Relief Association. She wanted to reflect it's expanded mission after blacks served in the US Colored Troops. Her organization provided food, shelter, clothing and emotional support to recently freed slaves and/ or sick and wounded soldiers. Her organization was based in Washington, DC but the funds distributed and the services provided helped families in larger regions.  

Fun Fact: In 1867, Mrs Lincoln was deeply in debt becasue of her extravagant spending.  She asked for help by disposing of articles and old clothes. She was criticized for selling clothes and other items associated with her husband's presidency. When Elizabeth donated her Lincoln memorabilia to Wilberforce College for its sale in fundraising to rebuild after a fire in 1865. Mrs. Lincoln was angry with her action. 

In 1868 Elizabeth published Behind the Scenes , to "attempt to place Mrs. Lincoln in a better light before the world" and to explain the motives that guided her decisions regarding what became known as the "old clothes scandal". Elizabeth good friend Frederick Douglas helped her edit and publish her book. Her book received negative publicity so she wrote numerous letters to newspaper editors to defend her serious intentions. 

Elizabeth continued to  attempt to earn money by sewing and teaching young women her techniques even tho her white clientele stopped calling she eventually was in a great need of money. In the year 1890 she sold the Lincoln articles which she kept for thirty-five years. She sold twenty-six articles for $250 but it still remains a mystery how much she really received. 

In 1892 she was offered a faculty position at Wilberforce University as head of the Department of Sewing and Domestic Science Arts and she moved to Ohio. Within a year of her at the university she organized a dress exhibit at the Chicago World's Fair. By the late 1890's she returned back to Washington, DC and in May 1907 she died. 

Her legacy lives on throughout many museums.  The dress she designed for Mary Todd Lincoln to wear at the husband second inauguration is held by the Smithsonian's American History Museum.  Also a quilt made of scraps of materials left over from dresses she made for Mrs. Lincoln is being held by the Kent State University Museum. 

With the first day of Black History Month I would like to honor Elizabeth Keckley for her bravery and her amazing skill of dressmaking. 

SAG-Screen Actors Guild Awards- Best Dressed

The 23rd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, which honors the best achievements in film and television performances from the year 2016, was presented January 29, 2017 on TNT and TBS. The red carpet was filled with smiles, creativity and most importantly the fashion.  Below is my top picks for the best dressed.....

1. Tarji P Henson
    Designer: Reem Acra
    Accessories: Nirav Modi Diamonds

Winner: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture( Hidden Figures)

2, Janelle Monae
    Designer: Chanel
    Accessories: Stuart Weitzman sandals

Winner: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture( Hidden Figures)

3. Kerry Washington
    Designer: Roberto Cavali
    Accessories: Big Safety Pin - ( "I'll be wearing one of these tonight. On my arm. To show solidarity. We will not stop fighting for our safety & the safety of our fellow citizens and human beings. #NoBanNoWall#safetypin" )





















4. Caleb McLaughlin
    Designer: Mango Suit Jacket/ Dolce & Gabbana shirt
    Accessories: Fly Loafers
  
Winner: Outstanding performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

5. Michelle Williams
    Designer: Louis Vuitton
Nominee: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role

6. Octavia Spencer
     Designer: Tadashi Shoki
     Accessories: Turquoise Hued Tear Drop Earrings

Winner: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture( Hidden Figures)

7. Yara Shahidi
    Designer: Naeem Khan
    Accessories: Abe Samuel Shoes; Onna Ehrlich; Jane Taylor and Swarovski jewelry

Nominee: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series

8. Chrissy Teigen
    Designer: Undetermined
    Accessories: Lariat Necklace

 
















9. Naomie Harris
    Designer: Lanvin
Nominee: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
                  Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role

10. Evan Rachel Wood
      Designer: Altuzarra
      Accessories: Salvatore Ferragamo shoes

Nominee: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

           
               Congratulations to all the winners!! 

Women to the Rescue!!!!

As the days got closer to the inauguration of our new President Elect many Americans across the nation feared what may come in the next four years.  We were unsure if there would be a nuclear war, LGBT couples feared their rights would be taken away, women were unsure if they would still have the right to choose what happens to there bodies and many Latino families worried about loved ones being deported.
  With all of this into play what do we do as Americans to get our voices heard?  Since going to the election polls weren’t enough; we can rally, protest; write and call our local congressman and officials to express how we feel, or we can all unite as one.  Throughout the week my friends and I discussed this topic in our normal group chat. The highlight of our discussion centered around the upcoming event for Saturday January 21, 2017, the Women’s March on Washington. We all voiced interest in attending and planned to go together.  While making our plans, we came across different articles expressing different views towards the March. I remember sending an article from Elle, which discussed how many white women were behind the planning and purpose of the March.  The article went on to explain their reasoning for the march on Washington.  After a couple of days went by one of my friends shared an article in the chat posted by a young lady, named Jamilah Lemieux. Jamilah writes for Colorlines.com. She stated in her article that she would not be attending the march for numerous reasons, some of which included the lack of sisterhood when it came to the election, how she learned that 53% of white women voted for Trump, and that a majority of the women marching would be white women. Her article expressed her opinion about the name of the march.    She concluded that the name “Women’s March on Washington” was derived from the 1995 and 1997 Million Mom March and Million Woman March organized by Minister Louis Farrakhan.  These two events were organized Marches attended in majority by black women with no support from white women. Her article went on to state that the marches organized by Minister Louis Farrakhan was being co-opted and erased by clueless white women that went out and voted for Trump.  Her article made some very valid points. After reading this article, did it change my mind?  Yes it did. It changed most of our minds about attending. Homegirl was stating some real facts and she was speaking to us.  I share the article with my mother.  She read the article and the response I received from her change my mindset completely about attending.   My mom commented, “That is Jamilah’s opinion, she is entitled to it. But when I march on Saturday I am marching for my daughter, sister, nieces, and mother and for all women rights regardless of color.” Back in the group chat each one of us shared our different views on what the article expressed and we thought to ourselves lets continue with our plan to march on Saturday. Remembering the struggles black women have had for years and as young black women we can also let our voices be heard.  So, the Women’s March on Washington was still on our calendar. The day arrives for the march; we had our signs and were ready. We made sure we dressed in layers. The train was packed, with many different generations of women. They had their pink pussy hats on and they were excited. You could feel the excitement in the air when we got off at Judiciary Square. Women and men everywhere and I mean so many women of different ages and races it was amazing to see. Once we started walking towards the rally people had their signs up in the air exercising their first amendment rights and expressing their thoughts on the newly elected President. Women had signs that read, “I am a nasty woman” which is what President Trump called Hilary during the campaign. Many had the slogan “keep your tiny hands away from my p***y” which is referring to the comment that President Trump made a sometime ago about grabbing women by their private part. Seeing all these signs and all these women made me realize that I made the right choice by attending. While waiting for the march, everyone walked around on the National mall just viewing and admiring everyone signs.  One sign(s) that really caught my eye was the faces of our famous black women who lead the civil rights movement. . Now in our minds we are thinking that one of our black sisters are carrying the signs, but to ur surprise there were four white women carrying the signs.  We thought to ourselves why are these women carrying these particular signs? We realized that they are carrying the signs because they realize how many black women have paved the way for certain things that occurred in America. As the crowd got bigger we started to get cold and hungry so we decided to stand in the line to get food. Of course in the line we met different people and we noticed how many people were really out on the national mall. While we were in line we met two women Kentucky. They came all the way from Kentucky just to be apart of this experience. As we joked about how many people attend the inguaration versus how many were at the women’s march we noticed that the time was approaching to start the march.  As the march started people were walking in many different directions some going in the middle, some going to the right and some were going to the left. We followed the crowd in the middle marching on the national mall with our signs held high in the air and chanted “HEY HEY, HO HO, DONALD TRUMP has got to GO” as loud as we could and it felt good. Once we reached the street and we approached a new crowd of people that were marching, we joined them and we started chanting with them.   I just felt so amazed and proud that I was apart of something that was history in the making. We finally made it to the train station and it was amazing to see as we walked towards the train we could still see all of the crowds of people marching, chanting with their signs way above their heads. As we approached the train station we noticed that people started to leave their signs on the ground creating a collage.  Placing our signs with the others, gave an amazing emotional feeling that provide an incredible ending to our day. As I watched all the marches across the world form with many different women, from all ethnic backgrounds and ages.  It confirmed within my spirit that what I did on Saturday 21, 2017, that was beyond amazing and we had made the right decision.  I was honored to share that expeiernce with my mother and friends.   But most importantly, I was honored to share it with all the young children that came out with their parents to witness history. We as women have to stick together and we have to remember that we control everything in the world. No matter what any man says; we hold the power. We have to continue to let our voices be heard and remember that we are just as equal as men. If you don’t stand up for anything, you will not get anything in return.                                             Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the marches all over the world….