Shopping Through "Edie: American Girl"
No pants, Betsey Johnson, and Donald Brooks.
While on holiday last week (Curaçao!! You should go.) I devoured Edie: An American Girl. I have a first-edition lurking somewhere in a Texas storage unit, but recently invested in a fresh one from The Strand. Here’s a link to a new copy for you or the exact ancient one I have (vintage!!) here.
Edie Sedgwick was one of Andy Warhol’s It Girls, which meant a meteoric rise and and even more rapid fall from grace during the 60s.
I appreciate biographies that are deeply rooted in Manhattan now that I live here. It’s hilariously weird that first location of Andy Warhol’s the Factory was in midtown because midtown… is meh now. It also hurts when you realize incredible places like Max’s Kansas City have been reborn into Chase banks and Duane Reads. (Max’s is now a CVS, ugh.)
I read American Girl through the lens of a vintage collector, too.
Vogue and Time magazines loved Edie until her extra-curricular activities (aka addiction to speed and heroin) deemed her too controversial for the glossy pages. But, the book goes on and on about Edie’s signature style—a leotard, tights, and a t-shirt.
I don’t think it’d be an over-exaggeration to say Edie invented the no-pants trend we’re currently seeing on celebrities like Kendall Jenner. Enjoy it (and all of Edie’s incredible charm) on Merv Griffin Show, below.
For the tights, I’d go modern with an opaque pair from Wolford. The bolero jacket, though, can be all vintage of course. Try this one with a white fur collar (size medium), all-black Peter Pan collar (size medium), or a very-close match here (size medium).
Another one of Andy’s Factory Girls, Hearst heiress Richie Berlin, gave us a full rundown of her uniform at the time, and I would like to thank her for that.
“Darling, you have no idea what it was like, to get up, get into a Donald Brooks dress, put my Zuckerman coat on, get my gold shoulder earrings out, get my Margaret Jerrold pumps on, and go around with Edie.”
Well, you actually can put it on a lot of this on! And have an idea of what it could have been like.
Donald Brooks was the creator of “The American Look” (a style that was in conversation with Christian Dior’s New Look) and had his own label from 1963 to 1975. The prints and colors of the pieces I’ve purchased (or ogled online) so fantastic. Shop the butterfly maxi above here (size small), black wool with pearl embellishments here (size medium), also here for half the price?! (size small), and a boho halter here (size extra-small).
Most of what remains from Zuckerman (first name Ben) is prim-and-proper jackets of the wool variety. I’ve made a collection here if you’d like to take a look.
Edie was Betsey Johnson’s original fit model while she worked at Paraphernalia. It’s not easy to find BJ pre-Alley Cat (the cutest juniors knitwear line ever).
Edie lost her battle with addiction when she was 28 years old. But her impact on fashion clearly still remains.