On occasion; I receive emails from Irene fans and collectors. What a joy to get these notes and read what others appreciate most from Irene’s work. Sometimes, folks will share memories of how they, a parent or grandparent knew Irene, worked with Irene or know of her work. Sometimes they will share photographs of their personal collection of Irene’s designs. Winifred is one such woman I’ve had the pleasure of communicating with recently.
Winifred lives near Chicago, is working toward her fashion merchandising degree and enjoys sharing her love of vintage garments with others, especially her young daughter, who apparently already started a vintage jewelry collection of her own. How fun!
Many thanks to Winifred for sharing her sweet sentiments with me and these photos with all of us. Winifred, I hope your Irene collection continues to grow and that your passion for vintage brings you and your daughter joy for many years to come.
These images are the property of Winfred and not to be used elsewhere. Thank you.
Click on the images to view full size.
Photo shared by & copyright by owner, Winifred - dress purchased online, was in thrift store in Lincoln Nebraska.
7 Photos
Photo shared by & copyright by owner, Winifred - gown purchased from a vintage clothing store in Iowa, formerly sold at the estate sale of a husband and wife who were well known in radio and retired to Dubuque, IA.
6 Photos
Malibu Beach Home for Irene, Elliot and Michael (the beloved dog)
Another view of the Malibu Beach home being built.
Irene, already getting comfortable in new home..
Irene, posing, as Michael looks on..
Another view of Irene, I'm pretty sure Elliot was taking these photos..
.. Meeting some new neighbors perhaps..
Beach view, with Irene in new Malibu Home..
I would like to see what this home looks like today..
My mother remembers staying here for mini-vacations. Unfortunately, she recalls that she could never sleep well because the waves were so noisy. I love the sound of the ocean. Apparently Irene did too. She loved the beach and had always wanted a beach home.
Hope you enjoyed the photos.
Clicking on them will show you a larger view by the way.
Have a great day!
Last week, I posted Irene Inc, which included a photo of Irene in front of her studio. I thought that getting an updated view of the building would be fun, but I couldn’t remember the name of the street! My mother reminded me it was Hayden, so I looked it up on Google Maps. Don’t you love technology? I don’t know the building number, otherwise, I may have been able to find out what business occupies that space now. I’ll work on that. For now, the photos:
This is a recent picture Hayden Ave (courtesy of Google Maps).
Click for larger view.
.. and 1950′s Irene Inc.
This is a photo of Irene leaving her studio, Irene Inc. in Culver City.
“Once the designer for Los Angeles’ swank Bullock’s-Wilshire store, Irene, who is married to Hollywood Writer Eliot Gibbons (brother of MGM’s art director, Cedric Gibbons) went to M-G-M in 1942, where she heads a staff of more than 200. She will now cut down her M-G-M designing to eight or ten major pictures a year, delegate the rest to her assistants. MGM, anticipating profitable publicity tie-ins from the department stores, is entirely happy about the setup.”
Read the full article from TIME, originally written Aug. 25, 1947.
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