Want to buy or sell something? Check the classifieds
  • The Fedora Lounge is supported in part by commission earning affiliate links sitewide. Please support us by using them. You may learn more here.

Esquire’s Complete Golden Age Illustrations:

Fastuni

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,277
Location
Germany
Agreed! Fortunately the makers can't keep the costumer of good and discerning taste from picking apart and combining otherwise the matching sets.
 
Last edited:

Flanderian

Practically Family
Messages
833
Location
Flanders, NJ, USA
Agreed! Fortunately the makers can't keep the costumer of good and discerning taste from picking apart and comibining otherwise the matching sets.

Frankly, I had just not considered that simple and useful solution! :oops:


MIMIW-TU.gif
 
Messages
16,814
Location
New York City
...
The coat below is handsome, but more of interest because of the particular blend of fibers used in the spinning and weaving of the cloth. Alpaca is a marvelous natural fiber possessing a good deal of the softness and warmth of cashmere, but providing greater breathability and better wear. Alpaca worsted suiting was once less uncommon. Mohair wears like iron, is wrinkle resistant and has an attractive sheen, these two fibers combined with quality sheep's wool might yield a very useful cloth.

The merchants brand name is also of interest since during roughly the same period a cloth with the brand name of Alpagora was also advertised. A blend of alpaca and angora with other fibers?...

Everything you said makes sense and is educational, what is odd is the disclaimer, "Alpacuna, a registered trademark, is not to be construed as describing fiber content, contains no vicuna."

Basically, WTF. It seems intentionally deceitful: they create a name that sounds like a blend of fibers and then put, in fine print, a disclaimer that says the name doesn't reflect fiber content. This is why we are all cynics.

But I agree, nice looking coat. The clothes in the Eagle ad are also quite nice looking.

Esq104905.jpg
 

Flanderian

Practically Family
Messages
833
Location
Flanders, NJ, USA
Everything you said makes sense and is educational, what is odd is the disclaimer, "Alpacuna, a registered trademark, is not to be construed as describing fiber content, contains no vicuna."

Basically, WTF. It seems intentionally deceitful: they create a name that sounds like a blend of fibers and then put, in fine print, a disclaimer that says the name doesn't reflect fiber content. This is why we are all cynics.

But I agree, nice looking coat. The clothes in the Eagle ad are also quite nice looking.

View attachment 302402

The name doesn't disturb me. While deceit is the glory of advertising, ;) I read it more as suggestive that the alpaca fiber content created cloth with a vicuna-like hand. Though all of my familiarity with actual vicuna is confined to a touch, my limited understanding of its properties suggests it might tend to impart some undesirable fragility to a coat.
 
Messages
16,814
Location
New York City
The name doesn't disturb me. While deceit is the glory of advertising, ;) I read it more as suggestive that the alpaca fiber content created cloth with a vicuna-like hand. Though all of my familiarity with actual vicuna is confined to a touch, my limited understanding of its properties suggests it might tend to impart some undesirable fragility to a coat.

 

Flanderian

Practically Family
Messages
833
Location
Flanders, NJ, USA
At last, we finish out the glorious year of 1949, roughly 15 years after Esquire's maiden issue of September 1933. The term Golden Age is more evocative than defined, and depending upon subjective preference might have concluded a half decade earlier, or continue further into mid-century modern. Certainly each sartorial epoch has at least some features that are generally appealing.

But my feeling is that fashion has already departed significantly from my personal preferences, and that the number of lush illustrations that once defined this publication has declined. And knowing Esquire's future course, sartorial style will continue to become an even less significant part of its content.

So I will conclude the posting of each successive month's illustrations here, with December 1949's. I've found it both enjoyable and enriching to be able to do this for the reasons explained in my initial post, I.e., I feel they're both inspirational and instructive, and offer something of great value to the fabric of American life, which should not be lost.


Esq124904a.jpg



Esq124904b.jpg



Esq124903b.jpg



Esq124903a.jpg



Esq124902.jpg



Esq124906.jpg



Esq124901.jpg



Esq124907.jpg



Esq124905.jpg
 

Flanderian

Practically Family
Messages
833
Location
Flanders, NJ, USA

Forum statistics

Threads
107,031
Messages
3,026,767
Members
52,533
Latest member
RacerJ
Top