Bonnie Cashin, Vintage Long Suede Jacket and Suit
Bonnie Cashin (1908-2000) became a famous American fashion designer most active between the 1940s and 1980s. Her work has been worn by scores of American women as well as exhibited in shows and museums across the United States. Over 40 American museums have collected her pieces and written about her impact on American fashion--and all of her items in this auction have a museum provenance. Cashin coined the term (and created the concept) of "layering," and most of her outfits are made of 3 or 4 (or more) layers. Some of her signature accoutrements to these sets of clothes include a mix of leather and/or mohair details and often include heavy-duty hardware clasps and other bold innovations. She created high quality, versatile, innovative, practical and fundamentally uncomplicated clothing pieces for avant-garde females of her time. During WWII she designed uniforms for females working in the armed forces, and she later created a flight attendant uniform for American Airlines. She opened her own business in the 1950s (Bonnie Cashin Designs) and also designed many handbags with distinctive hardware touches for Coach.

Bonnie Cashin powder blue two piece suede suit style #5054 and #5055, green long suede jacket with corresponding pattern, style #882. The long green jacket goes with a pair of matching green pants (offered in another lot here today). Be sure to pick up the pattern to the long jacket catalogued at 1985.9.3c.