Thursday, June 21, 2007

MODEL'S LIFE

I've been reading a book about Paris fashions and one of the chapters was written by Penelope Portrait who modelled for Carven in the early fifties. Her measurements were 34 inch bust, 22 inch waist and 35 inch hips, please compare to the walking skeleton in the previous post. In the fifties, one's shape determined which designer the model would work for.

I loved this bit of old world advice.

"There was no room for complexes at fitting sessions. We were treated and talked about like objects. Heaven knows what the Women's Lib. ladies would have thought of it, but they didn't exist then and I loved every minute of it. I learned all sorts of odd things that were really nothing to do with fashion at all, but which have stayed with me, and, I think, served me well since.
One day, for instance, after hours of standing and being stuck with pins, I flopped down into a chair beside the man who designed the extravagant, beaded embroidery used on the evening dresses. He was a charming old man, sympathetic and invariable good tempered.
"Oh Lord, my feet are absolutely killing me," I moaned, rubbing them. "My dear", he replied, "never, ever say "My feet hurt", it's squalid. If you're tired and want to stop, say "My foot hurts". It gets the same results and makes a man think of a delicate, flower-like little foot, too fragile to take another step".

I happened to look at my delicate little feet after I read that, sitting flower-like in down at heel, chewed up motheaten last year's slippers and thought to myself, the romance has definitely gone out of these tootsies. What a delicious word is 'squalid'. One immediately thinks of blondes.

9 comments:

Steph said...

Hey! I may be a lot of things. But squalid I aint!! *smack* :P

R.H. said...

How disappointing.

Then what are you doing here?

Alexis, Baron von Harlot said...

"The Women's Lib. ladies"! That's delightful.

JahTeh said...

Not you Steph, the ex husband pissed off with a squalid blonde and then there's Paris. I forgot I had that last sentence and you're such a 'tard', you're overqualified to be a blonde :p

Cad, Rh.

Alexis, the fifties model got out of bed for a lot less than $10,000 but then one was expected to find a kindly gentleman to foot the bill for Maxim's.

Shelley said...

As a blonde I'm quite happy with squalid.

Shelley said...

Damn, not I'm not.

Some of us are quite nice and don't run off with husbands.

Shelley said...

Now, even.


I think I'll shut up and go away now.

JahTeh said...

Believe me Nails, even if you were the type of blonde to nick off with a husband, you would have had more taste than to take my imbecile. Geez blondes are sensitive little creatures.

Shelley said...

I didn't want to be rude and disparage your ex-husband. Even if he deserves it.

And giggles to me being described as a little creature!