Lilly Pulitzer 1931-2013
Biography
Lilly Pulitzer was born in Palm Beach, Florida in 1931. She was born into a family of privilege and wealth, and lived in Rosyln, New York as her home town, before eloping with Peter Pulitzer back to Palm Beach in 1952 (Livingston) . As she moved back to Palm Beach she decided to open up her own juice stand, she noticed that her job was messy so she a patterned fabric to camouflage the stains. Pulitzer created herself a shift dress from the material, and later found that customers loved the dress so much that she made more and began selling them, this was the birth of the "Lilly" dress (lillypulitzer.com). Her fashion then became popular around her whole community, people in Palm Beach loved her youthful, eccentric, and unique style. Pulitzer's career shot to international fame when then First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy was photographed wearing a "Lilly" while on vacation. After seeing the dress people went frantic over her sunny designs, and she officially became part of the fashion industry. Pulitzer's designs were sold and put in major department stores and boutiques throughout the nation, she has been dubbed with the title, "Queen of prep" (Nolen).
Critical Analysis
Lilly Pulitzer reflects the zeitgeist of her time by capturing the essence of true American preppy style that was sought after during this time. Her entrance into the Fashion Industry was purely incidental, During the early 1960's women were looking up to first lady Jaqueline Kennedy as a style icon, they loved her upper class, sophisticated yet youthful and simple style. Andy Warhol's eccentric art design also popularized bold and bright colors, Pulitzer's bold prints go along with the same theme of pop color (Rosenberg). Pulitzer's prints have also been influenced by the sunny climate and feel of Palm Beach.
Pulitzer once said, "Mustards, poison greens and dark colors per se aren't good. I could sell them to a few women who don't know any better. But it wouldn't last. The public wants clear, bright, non-muddy colors. It tells me. I don't tell them" (Langer). This quote explains why she believes in her selection of prints and why they have been so popular and successful. Her aesthetic of simple structure and silhouette was influenced by the preppy trend that was already a Palm Beach staple, but she was able to this to an entire different level by simply adding these tropical designs. Pulitzer changed the "It" style from the classic upper-class polished look, to this American resort and youthful and bold style. Pulitzer was able to make clothing with the most contradictive qualities and have them come together: playful yet sophisticated, American yet exotic, and polished yet casual. Her look was ageless, and was designated for any age group. It was worn by women, children and teenagers. The Lilly look was so diverse, as she expanded her to to Men's, her name in fashion was strong enough for to branch out to other lines and become just as popular. The look that Pulitzer created became the image for the upper class, polished families of Palm Beach.
Pulitzer once said, "Mustards, poison greens and dark colors per se aren't good. I could sell them to a few women who don't know any better. But it wouldn't last. The public wants clear, bright, non-muddy colors. It tells me. I don't tell them" (Langer). This quote explains why she believes in her selection of prints and why they have been so popular and successful. Her aesthetic of simple structure and silhouette was influenced by the preppy trend that was already a Palm Beach staple, but she was able to this to an entire different level by simply adding these tropical designs. Pulitzer changed the "It" style from the classic upper-class polished look, to this American resort and youthful and bold style. Pulitzer was able to make clothing with the most contradictive qualities and have them come together: playful yet sophisticated, American yet exotic, and polished yet casual. Her look was ageless, and was designated for any age group. It was worn by women, children and teenagers. The Lilly look was so diverse, as she expanded her to to Men's, her name in fashion was strong enough for to branch out to other lines and become just as popular. The look that Pulitzer created became the image for the upper class, polished families of Palm Beach.
Influence on Future Trends
Lilly Pulitzer will always be an icon for creating such a fun, youthful look that become a staple to many in the early 1960's. The look she created was unlike anything they had worn before, completely original to Palm Beach. Pulitzer will always be known for popularizing the resort wear and 'chic beach' (Lillypulitzer.com). Some major trends that she had used in her designs, where the shift dress, color blocking, and matching two pieces. These trends have stayed in the fashion industry for years and have been reinvented many times. Many resort wear lines by current designers future a few of these trends, and and especially the classic shift dress. The Lilly Pulitzer brand was able to make a revival in the 1990's (Elle), where they brought back the classic printed looks continuing the brand brought back the same trends. They continued to create pieces that still stayed true the Lilly look with some modern modifications, one of which was creating a simplified version of the print to be more wearable for these times. The Pulitzer legacy continues through the newest renditions of the line, and will always be remembered for these designs, and for being able to create such a distinct signature style. Emily Langer of The Washington Post describes Pulitzer's style as, "unmistakeable shift with plain lines, and palette of fuchsia, lime, chartreuse and orange - had become one of the most celebrated tales in the fashion world" (Langer). This quote proves that Pulitzers fun take on polished and distinguished fashion was a staple to America's fashion history. It was an fun, youthful, an exotic look for such an iconic time for America, and because of that it will never be truly forgotten.
Works Cited
Cowles, Charlotte. "See Vintage Slim Aarons Photos of Lilly Pulitzer." The Cut. Ny Mag, 8 Apr. 2013. Web. 26 Aug. 2014. <http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/04/see-vintage-slim-aarons-photos-of-lilly-pulitzer.html>
"Lilly Pulitzer." Britannica Book of the Year, 2014. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 26 Aug. 2014. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1926116/Lilly-Pulitzer>
"Lilly Pulitzer Nostalgia." Pink Cloud. Web. 22 Aug. 2014. <http://www.pinkclouds.com/vintage-blog/lilly-nostalgia/>.
"Lilly Pulitzer Pictures and History Laura Robbins - Lilly Pulitzer Fashion History." Elle. Elle. Web. 21 Aug. 2014. <http://www.elle.com/fashion/spotlight/lilly-pulitzer-flower-power-laura-robbins#slide-5>.
Rosenberg, Jennifer. "The 1960s at a Glance." About. About. Web. 20 Aug. 2014. <http://history1900s.about.com/od/timelines/tp/1960timeline.htm>.