Wednesday, March 7, 2012

De De Johnson, California Fashion Designer: Patio Prints from the 1950's

De De Johnson, 1950s yellow outfit

With a growing popularity in outdoor living, California designers during the 1940's and 1950's developed a fashion niche to meet the needs of that lifestyle.  Easy to wear separates were very popular with innovative shorts and skirts as part of these looks.  Designer De De Johnson created outfits perfectly suited to the outdoors life style of California women.  This fresh yellow outfit has a whimsical patio print for visual interest, making it perfect for entertaining and resort.

DeDe Johnson


DeDe Johnson


The shirt and shorts set shown below is by Joseph Zukin of California.  This set is a rayon blend from 1945. The print shows an ariel view of New York city with a balloon motif that is accented by little red ball buttons that repeat the balloon shapes in a novel way.  This set shows the popular look of matching both top and bottom to create a 'romper' or one-piece shorts look with an easier fit.

Joseph Zukin desginer, women's resort California designer

Joseph Zukin



Both outfits were on display at California Design: 1930-1965 in June 2012 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.