Ad Campaign – Claire McCardell for Canterbury, 1956

The stroke of a genius – Claire McCardell’s brilliant ideas on the sweater.  Canterbury tends to their knitting and full-fashions them to perfection.

I had to share just one last thought about Claire McCardell before I move on to the next obsession.  Her designs are the prefect examples of how “casual” does not have to equal “sloppy.”   In today’s severely dressed-down culture, it is so nice to see clothing that is comfortable but still attractive.

In the 1950s McCardell did several licensing deals, including this one with Canterbury.  She also did a line of shoes for Capezio, and gloves, jewelry, hats and sunglasses for various companies.   She also did quite a few product endorsements, including Clairol, Fuller Brush and Chevrolet.  Much of McCardell’s media success was due to the fact that she had a very good publicist – Eleanor Lambert.