The Poster Dress

 In 1968, American graphic artist Harry Gordon fabricated mod-pop "Poster Dresses" in a series of five different designs. The shift dress designs included the 'Mystic Eye', 'Giant Rocket', 'Rose', 'Pussy Cat' and 'Hand' (which featured "Uptown N.Y." by Allen Ginsberg on top of a rather shocking hand gesture). The five different dress types came in one package, so you could wear whichever suited your current mood. The manufacturer stated "Toughness is woven into the non-woven fabric for long, l-o-n-g wear, and should you tire (which is doubtful), just cut open all the seams and hang it on your wall as a poster, or cover pillows." In the turbulent creativity of fashion in the sixties, this is just one example of innovation. The fact that the simple dresses were created by a normal person as opposed to a designer supports that, as William Zinsser of Life magazine said, "Overnight, fashion has turned from a humorless cult, ruled by a few fashion priests, into a game that anybody can play, any way they want to play it."

(Photos from vintage 1968 ads and Radical Rags. Last photo from My Mom, the Style Icon.)

Top Ten Award

 I've gotta thank the fabulous, not to mention gorgeous, Alexis of Dolly Rocker Girl for giving me the Top Ten Award! (If you aren't following her blog already, make sure to go check it out NOW! Nothing but pure unadulterated retro amazingness over there.)

Here's what the award entails:
- Thank the person who tagged you and link to their blog
- Put the Top 10 Award logo on your blog (here's the original size)

- List your top ten favorite cosmetics
- Choose ten bloggers to tag, link to their blogs, and let them know about their award!

I'll admit, I am no glamor girl (in fact at the moment I am not wearing a bit of makeup as it is summer and I have a terrible sunburn). But my mother has bred a great love and appreciation of Sephora and Ulta in me, so I'm no stranger to makeup. Here's my top ten (I'm sure you're at the edge of your seat):

1. Neutrogena SkinClearing Mineral Powder in Natural Ivory - Sometimes it's the only makeup I wear.

2. Palladio Baked Eye Shadow Trios in The Blues - Usually blue shadow on blue eyes is frowned upon. What can I say, I'm a rebel.

3. Buxom Big & Healthy Lip Polish in Katie - I love the feel of this stuff! I also usually use a nude/light color for lips if I'm gonna use eye makeup. This adorable little German makeover-expert lady showed it to me once and I was hooked.

4. Maybelline Great Lash Mascara in Dark Brown - Classic mascara, and I use brown because I have light coloration.

5. John Frieda Frizz Ease Secret Weapon Flawless Finishing Creme - My friend gave me some once. Actually, I stole it... :) The stuff is seriously magical!

6. Ulta Pressed Mineral Blush in Tulip - What can I say, I'm a sucker for minerals.

7. Ulta Eye Liner Pencil in Deep Brown - Again, I've gotta use brown eye makeup as opposed to black. I have a love/hate relationship with liner, but a regular brown pencil is my go-to.

8. Bath & Body Works Aromatherapy Orange Ginger Energy Lotion - I've loved this stuff for a few years. It's definitely my favorite B&BW scent!

9. Buddha Balm in Mandarin Orange Ginger - I'm proud to say that I discovered this fabulous lip balm in my old hometown's "hippie dippy" store. This flavor kinda reminds me of a Creamsicle, and the packaging and name are WAY more interesting than your generic Chapstick.

10. Yves Saint Laurent Parisienne - My current 'signature scent'. Unfortunately, it doesn't transform me into a glam leather-clad Kate Moss...

And the award goes to:

Jordan at Randomly Outgoing
Molly at Molly's Fancytastic Blog (cosmetics include perfume and stuff, y'know!)
Chrissie at Here, There, and Everywhere
Tonya at The Moptop
Dolly the Bird at The Knack... And How To Get It
Dizzy Miss Lizzy at And Your Cowboy Mouth
Naivebones at I'll Be Your Cannonball
Molly at You Know It's Cool (HA!)
Rhiannon at Ashen Lady
Leticia at Lovely Bohemia

Cathee

 Cathee Dahmen was a popular model in the '60s and '70s. She was half German on her father's side and half Native American on her mother's, but raised in Minnesota. She was the fourth of nine children. After her father died, her mother remarried. During her childhood and early teens, she was an overall good student until she became boy–obsessed, tattooing the name "Jim" in small blue letters six inches above her left knee when she was thirteen. She also tattooed her initials ("CVD" for Cathee Veronica Dahmen) on her left hand between her forefinger and thumb, and on each wrist she tattooed a tiny blue dot. She became pregnant at 17 but her mother gave the daughter (nicknamed Cricket) up for adoption in 1963. Cathee almost became a dropout, but she went to live with an uncle (artist George Morrison) in Rhode Island to complete school. She wrote poetry, modeled a bit, but was rather "plain" until she was discovered by Antonio Lopez (who became an acclaimed fashion illustrator) after he drew a cartoon of her, only with his own curly hair on her head. She liked the effect of the kinky hair and her own huge eyes, and decided to copy the hairstyle by getting a perm. She had to get a very low–brow beauty shop to perm her hair in the style of Clara Bow and Shirley Temple, which even Antonio (in an interview for Eye) admitted was a bit "ugly". Antonio introduced her to the fashion world in New York, starting with Eileen Ford and Richard Avedon. She hit the high point in her career in the late sixties, working for Ford Models and appearing in fashion magazines like Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Elle, and The New York Times. For a time, she was considered the main rival to Twiggy, but she refused this, saying "That's a touchy subject. I like Twiggy very much. She's very sweet and innocent . . . Twiggy's blonde, and her hair is straight. I have curly dark hair. And I'm taller. I'm 5 feet 7. They say she's 5 feet 7, but she's not . . . You know, she can't spell, and she's very... You know, she just needs Justin." Cathee's look advanced over the years, loosing her 'signature' hairstyle for a variety of looks, once even appearing without eyebrows.
  Cathee became very much a part of the scene in New York City, living in the East Side and hanging out at the famous Max's Kansas City and the Electric Circus nightclub throughout the seventies and into the eighties. She married British actor Leonard Whiting in 1971 and moved to London. They had a daughter, Sarah. In 1977 they divorced, and she married singer Alan Merrill, with whom she had two children, Laura and Allan Jr. Cathee retired from modeling in 1980, and passed away from emphysema 1997.
 Cathee on her look: "In real life, it's true I wear a mask just because I wear a lot of makeup. But psychologically, it's true also. People stop and look at my face. It's strange. It's a challenge. My hair, my eyes. It makes them stop and think. It makes them wonder. I guess that's why I wear a mask."

 With Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall

(Quotes from Eye Magazine, March 1968. Photos from Eye Magazine, Radical Rags, Youthquakers, and Cathee Dahmen Facebook.)