Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Who was Vera Neumann ??

If you like vintage scarves and linens like I do, you most likely will come across some that are marked Vera.  Most of them have graphic, cheerful prints and I think they are beautiful.  If you are going to wear a scarf, it should be something with a bit of personality.

Vera Neumann (1907-1993) was an artist turned entrepenuer and textile designer.  Vera and her husband George, who's family had a background in textiles, founded the company Printex in 1946.  They worked out of their NY studio apartment with a silk screen press on their dining room table and would cure the product in their oven.  The press was only big enough to make linen placemats but after securing an order with B. Altman department store they moved to a Georgian Mansion in Ossining, NY.

During WWII linen supply was hard to come by so Vera found some leftover parachute silk and thus the first signature scarf was born - Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly were fans.  Her designs are on sheets, tablecloths, linens, hand towels and clothing.  She designed fabric for Shumacher that Bess Truman used in the 3rd floor solarium in the White House.  She hired designer Perry Ellis to help with the sportswear line and he eventually struck out on his own.

Vera products are difficult to date but there are websites and blogs and books dedicated to her.  Her older work had a ladybug by her signature - for good luck.  You can find them online on Ebay and etsy....but I personally like to hunt for them and am excited when I find one.  So you know what I would say.... get out there and dig for a beautiful silk scarf for your unique look !!

Vera silk scarf $3.00 and napkins - unused $4.99 for 4.

3 comments:

  1. I wouldn't consider myself a scarf person. But the bio of Vera Neumann is fascinating. Who knew? Love the blog. Dr Yo

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  2. Thanks for the support Yo...I think you could rock the Eddie VanSant look...

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  3. ok, ok....it's Stevie Van Zant....What kind of Jersey girl ( kind of ) am I .....and you can totally rock that look by day and be on the Sopranos at night. Cool.

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