Here's a goddess I love to worship...the goddess
Diana...
Diana Vreeland, that is! For her daring vision...her impeccable taste...her eclectic eye...her sensational style sense...her
chutzpa! Back in the 30's-40's, when she wrote for
Harper's Bazaar,
D.V. created an exceptionally popular column called
"Why Don't You?" Her suggestions were colorful, outrageous, and uninhibitedly glamorous!
Not long ago I found a rare
Bazaar photo/article anthology ~ copyright 1913-1967 ~ at the
Children's Orthopedic Hospital Thrift Store. This lovely volume...bound in purple!...features:
"100 years of the American female - the sumptuous - the expensive - the precious - the moneyed - the luxe - the tasteful - the opulent - and the amusing woman from Bazaar"...and includes an entire
page of
D.V.'s trendy tips! Charming as ever, but some of her suggestions were
rah-thah provincial, dah-ling!
I decided to channel the glamorous ghost of
Mrs. Vreeland for her blessing, and having done so, I've now taken her suggestions one sensational step further by enhancing a few of her wonderfully original visions to suit today's tastes! And so...with no further ado, may I ask...
Why Don'tcha?...
..."
sweep into the drawing-room on your first big night with an enormous red-fox muff of many skins?"
G.G. suggests stopping everyone in their tracks by showing up in a snazzy red
faux-chinchilla wrap!
..."
remember how delicious champagne cocktails are after tennis or golf? Indifferent champagne can be used for these."
G.G. suggests not settling for indifferent...how about some potent potables with
Pinky Vodka instead?
..."
knit yourself a little skullcap?"
G.G. hears that crocheting is easier than knitting and suggests creating a pair of
dainty pink gloves like these: (or
D.V.'s favorite:
violet mittens!)
..."
tie black tulle bows on your wrists?"
G.G. thinks you'll cause a helluva lot more excitement by wearing rhinestone-encrusted
brass knuckles instead!
..."
put all your dogs in bright yellow collars and leads like all the dogs in Paris?"
G.G. suggests Fido flaunt his furry fashion sense in a bright orange
jogging suit!
...and to top it off, howzabout one of these colorful,
snappy caps? These are certainly nothin' to sniff at!
If you don't know much about the divine
Mrs.V but wish you did..."
Why Don'tcha?" check
this article out? xo
