i. magnin




vintage maxi from i. magnin 
&



i don't know if any of you remember the i. magnin department store.
there was one near us when i was growing up and a visit to that store was a real treat.
there was a stillness and air of elegance the minute you walked inside the doors.
i remember going there once with my parents to pick up a black chiffon dress and jewelry that my mom had purchased for a special event.  i still have that jewelry.

and when i was first living on my own and working as a secretary, i bought a red velvet christian dior robe from i. magnin.  i put that robe on as soon as i got home in the evening and pretended i was glamorous.


so when i found this vintage maxi from i. magnin at the *epic estate sale* it brought back a lot of memories.

i did a little research on the department store and found a fascinating article here.
the original i. magnin store was located in san francisco and built in 1876.
it had 10 floors - one of which was dedicated to negligee's and corsets.

the website is a wealth of information on old department stores but the comments below the i. magnin post were so interesting.
i miss those old department stores, don't you?







xo
janet

57 comments

  1. You look like a million bucks...the first picture made me do a double take I wasn't sure if it was your or Vogue's Anna Wintour!!!

    Did you ever get around to redoing your husband's office? I know you mentioned it sometime last year and I can only imagine how great the makeover is! If you've already finished it please post pics!

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  2. You do look like a million bucks...that dress pretty and super cool.

    I do miss the old department stores. It a shame that everything's jammed in a super mall now. We had one here called Brandeis and it was a real treat to go. Especially at Christmas time...the whole 10th floor which was a grand ballroom normally, would turn into the north pole. I can remember window shopping downtown with my mother right before it closed. It's now condos unfortunately.

    anyway, you look lovely darling. :)

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  3. I have a silk robe from Chinatown that I put on to pretend that I am elegant!
    That epic estate sale must have been exceptional...you look amazing in that gown. Elegant is a much better descriptor.
    I magnin sounds dreamy, too bad it's closed as it would be fun to browse their wares in style.

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  4. Oooh Janet you look gorgeous! So elegant and chic.... Love old department stores.. Remember being taken as a child to one in the south of England called "Bobby's" and we had afternoon tea with my grandmother there whilst the fashion shows went on around us... Models would walk around showing the latest fashions in the stores. I LOVED it. Thanks for bringing back old memories. S x

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    1. oh sarah i miss that part too. i loved the fashion show at lunch or tea. so elegant.

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  5. I miss Bullock's Wilshire so much at times. I used to go a few times a year with my mother and grandmother for shopping, lunch, fashion show on a runway at lunchtime included. It was so elegant, and the building itself an art deco masterpiece. They even had a beautiful antiques department where we'd finish off our day.

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  6. Galeries Lafayette... ;)

    We still have department stores but they are probably tiny compared to the US version. However, there are two in Zurich and Berne that are still considered quite posh and have little old ladies dripping in gold that come and shop, despite the trendier selection these days! The one in Berne has the best haberdashery department in Switzerland.

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  7. Love this on you! So funky and elegant all at once! I miss those old dept stores too - that's why I always have to stop at Macy's in NYC and ride the old escalators! You look just beautiful!

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  8. I lived in San Francisco in the mid-sixties and seventies, a super time to have lived there, and I. Magnins had uniformed and gloved ladies in the elevators who requested your floor as you stepped in the elevator and announced the floors and their contents.......Wonderful! Those were the days.

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  9. Love it! It's interesting to see a maxi in sort of "unmaxi" colors. I'm sure the quality is impeccable as well. I can't wait to read the details of the *epic estate sale* :)
    PS-4 months vegan yesterday!

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    1. oh stephen andrew i'm so proud of you! you deserve a prize or something!

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    2. Haha thanks! Inspired by you! Maybe an oreo. Haha!

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  10. An I Mag maxi dress! You look swell.

    The long ago department stores of my memories are Garfinkel's, Woodward & Lothrop ("Woodies") and, later, Lord & Taylor of Washington, D.C.

    On the rare desperate occasion when I must race through a mall department store now, the competing 'soundscapes' from each department is so obnoxious, I long for the quiet bustle of the old department stores. Gone are the days of enjoying the looking, lingering and considering. I flee as quickly as possible.

    I'm lucky I have more than memories of the old department stores. Some of the ancient heart pine beams in the Memphis Lowenstein Brothers 1886 department store were salvaged after a fire. The beams were cut into floorboards and are now in my apartment. Love them.

    History Reborn: Lowenstein's Renovation
    http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/mar/18/history-reborn/

    Old Memphis department stores:
    http://historic-memphis.com/memphis-historic/departmentstores/departmentstores.html

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    1. I got a job at one of the suburban branches of Garfinkel's the summer I graduated from high school. I had transferred to a couple of other locations and ended up at the one in Georgetown by the time the company went bankrupt and closed. I still miss working there. Went to Neiman Marcus after that but, while it has the elegance of a place like I. Magnin's or Garfinkel's from the customer's perspective, it ain't a fun place to be in management. Thank goodness I escaped.

      Very cool story about your floorboards.

      And, yes, Janet-- You look terrific in that dress!

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  11. LOVE that dress! You look fab as always! Oh I. Magnin was a store I adored. I grew up in La Jolla and the I.Magnin there was a favorite of mine.

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  12. I worked in San Francisco in the early sixties. I. Magnin was on Union Square near the St. Francis Hotel and the City of Paris, another gorgeous department store. You should have seen them at Christmastime! Unbelievable.
    An era so different from today, I sometimes wonder if I lived in some alternate universe. Quietly elegant. As I recall, I. Magnin, City of Paris, and Macy's always had lots of fresh flowers in their lobbies.

    Thanks for the memories.

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  13. That dress is perfect on you Janet. Thanks for the link to the Department Store History site. It was a pleasure to remember the elegant old department stores in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

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  14. Must be '60s, right? Reminds me of my mom back then if you had a whiskey sour in your hand.

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  15. I loved I Magnin's and Joseph Magnin's. They were brothers who really knew retail merchandising and style. Our I Maginin in Oakland CA had the most beautiful white carrera marble bathrooms, just like the ones in San Francisco, with individual doors, not stalls. Thank you for the lovely reminder and I enjoyed the website! Great find!

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  16. Another terrific find, Janet. You look great! I love the dress with those sandals! I love department stores but do get overwhelmed with all the choices...on one floor, never mind 9 floors.

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  17. You look great. I would love to see a close-up of the print or material.
    Do you think you could add a picture?

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  18. The first episode of "Mr. Selfridge" aired Sunday night on Masterpiece

    "At the unfashionable end of Oxford Street in 1909 London, an American retail tycoon arrives to jettison fusty British tradition and open the biggest and finest department store the world has ever seen: Selfridges."

    Mr. Selfridge airs Sundays, March 31 through May 19, 2013 at 9pm ET (check local listings) on PBS' MASTERPIECE Classic.
    http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/programs/series/mr-selfridge/

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  19. In the 20's and 30's my grandfather managed the oversea operations for the Marshall Field's Co. of Chicago. Back then they made all of their own fine linens [bedding, table, etc] and he would travel by ship to meet with the management teams of their operations in Asia.

    My grandmother went with him in 1935 on what would be his final trip before the Depression and McKinsey reorganization of the company eliminated his role. They were abroad for a year; sailing around the world to spend time in China, Japan and the Philippines. My Nana bought mementos that we still have today and always wore a gorgeous kimono she brought back every Christmas morning which I thought was so fabulous.

    Those years in Chicago were of the best of their lives and something that they spoke of nostalgically for the 50 plus years after.

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    1. I worked as a secretary to a guy who was head of a TV station; his wife had formerly worked at Marshall Field's. I knew nothing about the Midwest nor the fine reputation of Marshall Field's; never been to Chicago (Calif. girl here). I loved to hear her stories about customers as well as some of the product. When they'd go back to Chicago to visit their kids and vacation, she would always bring me back some lovely thing from Marshall Field's. She was such a refined lady, impeccably dressed. I have a beautiful pin of a griffin (sterling) from her, and she gave me a fab silk scarf to go with the pin. Whenever I hear the name of Marshall Field's, I always think of Mary.

      I loved hearing your story. Indeed, a remarkable time and such an interesting life! Sometimes I think that in my world today, we've just lost a lot of class, you know?

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  20. You (and the dress) look spectacular. Great find! It's a bit eery to see you writing about Department stores... I was just thinking about them over this past weekend. High-end stores aside - remember Buffums in Newport Beach? Robinsons? and even The Broadway at Inland Center...In the late '60s they still had beautiful collections and wonderful service.

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  21. Your dress looks beautiful! And I do miss those huge department stores. I remember going school clothes shopping and having tea in what seemed like a huge room lined with tables covered in white linens. I loved how they delivered your packages the next day so you wouldn't have to carry your parcels with you all day. Those were the days.

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  22. Oh my gosh Janet I so remember I. Magnin...we had one here and we also had a Joseph Magnin. I always assumed they were related. Yes, there was something special about those old department stores. I remember Bullocks that way...always so quiet inside...very fancy. Fun memories! And your new vintage dress is awesome...and looks great on you :)

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  23. Petersen Harned Von Maur was THE department store when I was growing up. All the ladies were so elegant and as girls we felt so special having sundaes in the "Tea Room'. Their windows were so beautifully decorated at Christmas time. Christmas shopping was never complete without a trip downtown to shop there. Years later I worked at the store myself. The name had changed to just Von Maur by that time but there was still the elegance. I had to wear a dress and nylons, no slacks or bare legs were allowed or open-toe shoes and all the men had to wear a tie and jacket. A strict dress code that still exists. I imagine that I. Magnin was much the same. I enjoyed dressing so nice. Now I enjoy dressing so casual and it's much cheaper on my budget! So, thanks for the nice memory. And as always, you look lovely.

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  24. Cool dress Janet!

    There used to be an I. Magnin when I worked in La Jolla in my twenties. I used to love to go in there too, I was sad when they closed. I do remember Joseph Magnin as well. All those stores are gone...Buffums, Bullocks...I lived at Bullocks, one of the clerks knew me by name. Not a good thing.

    Linda
    xo

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    1. Yeah, they knew my name, too...not at the big stores, but at the great little small-business owners' places, AKA as the Main Street shops. Maybe they still exist, but not in my town. I'd get a call from the shop owner when a new shipment of clothes or handbags came in and then run down on my lunch hour from work to drool and buy; the ladies in the stores would learn what you liked and keep you in mind, those of us who were the "regulars." I'd also like to shop on Saturday mornings, hitting the individual shops as I strolled down the Main Street sidewalks, window-shopping along the way. We had everything you needed on our Main Street...5 & Dime, bakery, dry cleaner, appliance shop, plumbing shop, printing/stationary store, furniture shop, fabric/notions store, jewelry shop, men's stores, the cobbler/shoe repair, watch & clock store, drug store with great makeup/perfume counter, newspaper office, banks, shoe stores (NOT the chains), florists, gift/card shops, seamstress/tailor, garden store, grocery/deli, cafes/coffee shops, barber and beauty shops. Where did all that go? To Walmart, Kmart and Target, I guess. Across small-town America, we've lost so many Main Streets. I miss those stores a lot. Life was different then. Better.

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  25. I am SO with you on the old department stores. Shopping was an experience to be remembered in those times. An all-day event and journey. When I was a little kid in the early 1960s, the young moms would take a day, dressed up like Jackie Kennedy...with gloves on no less...and go shopping in Santa Barbara. I. Magnin was particularly ritzy but I also remember the more-trendy Joseph Magnin stores; but both always elegant and pricey. My treat was the Broadway stores; I liked a line which I think was called Bobbie Brooks (cute tees) when I was a teen. In the late 1950s, I can remember going to JC Penney with my mother in our small town and the ladies' underthings were in pull-out wood drawers because it was, in those times, inappropriate to display them for the whole "world" to see (i.e., MEN/boys!). I took a downtown walking tour of downtown L.A. once...so much fun...and I was mesmerized by some of the stores of the 1930s or so. One was a men's shop and they, too, had walls of burnished wood drawers where I guess they had socks or undershirts or whatever for gentlemen. There was decorative glass in the doors/windows and it was Lalique/French. My mother just passed away and I was reviewing some of her oral and written history so I could write the obituary. She was born in L.A. in the 1920s. Even though most everybody was poor in The Great Depression, you could go downtown and find some kind of entertainment. Broadway (the street) had great department stores like Bullock's off Seventh and also May Company; wonderful window displays at Christmas with not just clothes but also amazing mechanical toys which would enthrall children. These were the big anchor stores. The whole Broadway district was all about shopping and entertainment, with great theatres like the RKO or Million Dollar Theatre. In between the movies, there'd be live stage acts/musicals with ornate stage props. When Mom was a teen, she bagged goldfish at Woolworth's in Downtown. Then, in her later teens and early 20s, she worked at a bank in Downtown at 5th & Spring, taking the street car everywhere, which was very convenient. She also worked at one of the bank branches inside the Bradbury building at 3rd & Broadway, close to the once-wealthy Bunker Hill, reached by Angel's Flight. She didn't like the Bradbury's rickety "lifts" and would opt for the stairs. She and her office friends liked to go to Clifton's Cafeteria lunch counter, which was a sort of honored institution over many, many years. I seem to remember stopping there on a high school field trip myself; it was around a long time even then, in the 1970s. Mom & Friends also had a tradition of holiday breakfast at the posh Biltmore at Pershing Square on Christmas Eve morning; a once-a-year treat. I've been there; it's so beautiful, built in 1923. I love L.A.; I was born there, too, just like my mother, although I grew up in the burbs. So fun to ride horses in Griffith Park; so much to do in L.A. Mom also had a blast dancing and listening to big bands in the 1940s at the Palladium on Sunset in Hollywood.

    Oh, gosh, I got off topic. We were talking about the beautiful, big stores. I'll look forward to reading the article you found. I love your "maxi" find. We all wore those, you know. I was short and never looked very good in them. Maybe if I could have worn really high heels, but we weren't wearing those either in that era. I liked the maxi jumpers that were split, like palazzo pants; great summer-wear in about 1971 or so. I had a favorite one which was sleeveless orange/hot pink (NEON) plaid, can you imagine. You're bringing back my memories, Janet...I think my comments here got too long...

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    1. Vicki,

      Sorry you lost your mom recently...she sounded a lot like my mother. Before they built the first big mall here in San Diego, we would walk to the J.C. Penney in town for clothes. When the mall finally opened, we would take the bus to May Company until she finally got her driver's license when I was six. And when they opened Fashion Valley here we HAD to go to the Robinsons store on the first day. My mom loved to shop and being from Chicago she loved Marshall Fields so the couple times we visited Chicago, she would take me there.We didn't have a lot of money after my parents divorced but she continued to take my sister and I to department stores. Taught me quality over quantity.

      Sounds like you have some wonderful memories. :)

      Linda

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    2. thank you vicki for sharing your memories. x

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    3. You guys are very sweet to indulge all my rambling comments and thank you for the condolence. Interesting about the moms...growing up near to Downtown, and especially in the Depression when a lot of people couldn't afford to buy or maintain a vehicle (and then later in the war years when you couldn't get tire tread or fuel)...my mom also didn't learn to drive until I was age 5, about 3 years after we moved out of the city. There had been no reason to drive in L.A. when there was such great public transportation with the street car system. Getting her driver's license in her mid-30s didn't make Mom the most adventurous suburban driver like a fearless 16-yr-old might have run with it, but it was sort of ridiculous and expensive to keep taking a cab to the doctor or a grocery store so it was something she did out of necessity. They should have never gotten rid of good public transportation in L.A.! I love how in the Northeast, you can live in Jersey or Connecticut and just take a train in to visit New York City for the day. I just checked out a blog the other day where the blog owner took a train in to Grand Central so that her little boy, who was off from school for the Easter break, could go to FAO Schwartz to look at the toys and then they also went to a museum exhibit; seemed like a fun and easy day, no hassles in clogged traffic trying to maneuver a car around. I'd love that! My husband worked in Culver City for years and had tried to work out taking the commuter train from a neighboring town but the schedules were limited and the stops were distant from his office. Driving to L.A. these days is such a royal pain (and so NOT GREEN). I've heard the trek from L.A. to San Diego has gotten equally horrendous. Same with Santa Barbara; you've got to get out of there by 2pm on weekdays or even the coast highway is jammed. Never used to be like that 25 years ago. Sigh...

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  26. I liked reading all the comments on this post! More than one commenter mentioned the QUIET of the old-time department stores. I do remember that! We were on our best behavior; everything was hushed and polite; customer service unparalleled with beautifully-dressed clerks to wait on you. They all seemed so professional and well-informed. Did we walk on carpet, too; was that why it seemed so quiet, even with customers on the same floor? Even in the late-1980s, I loved to go to Robinson's, especially at Christmas...they had the most gorgeous, decorated holiday trees inside the store; Christmas ornaments I still treasure today. The section for holiday party dresses was almost like a separate room and it was heaven-sent...the prettiest, fun dresses. I bought a well-made silk black tube dress one year, sleeveless, the bodice of black satin almost like a cummerbund and, in the following year, it was a black velvet dress, pulled together at the waist in the back with a big black satin bow. It was a toss-up between that one and another black velveteen which had a scattering of tiny rhinestones like stars across a night sky. I worked hard for my money, there were a lot of parties, I was a Size 6, young and attractive and I loved to shop. This is not me today, but it's not a bad memory either!

    The other thing I loved about department stores of the past was that they weren't so crammed with inventory. It was pleasant shopping, not exhausting. We had a lot of choices, but not TOO many. It wasn't glut; it was glam.

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    1. Department stores really were quieter back in the day. This was before the electronics industry hornswoggled department store management into believing store wide loud speaker systems were essential for sales.

      At an accelerating pace, audio and video media are becoming ubiquitous on planes, trains, buses, cabs, street corners, building lobbies, elevators, offices, stores, bars, restaurants, hospitals, doctors’ offices, banks, gyms, malls, downtowns, coin laundries, even restrooms — in short, every setting in which we conduct the business of our lives.

      In his book 'Noise Wars: Compulsory Media and Our Loss of Autonomy,' Robert Freedman examines the explosive growth of “compulsory media,” which is now everywhere. He looks at the role of media in society by focusing on the emerging trend of audience captivity: the relocation of TV, stereo and other intrusive electronic media from our home, where we have personal control over it, to all the settings outside the home in which we don’t have control. The growth of captive-audience platforms are on the rise as is resentment and anger at being made captive to electronic media we haven't asked for and from which we can't escape without personal cost.

      One of the few stores that hasn't fallen for electronics industry propaganda is Target. Years ago Target implemented the policy to can the canned music.

      Target is a world away from the department stores of yesteryear but in one way they are similar. Customers can pretty much shop in peace.

      In his blog, Media by Choice, Robert Freedman puts in a "Plug for Target: A Store that Understands the Quiet"

      http://www.mediabychoice.com/?p=1173

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    2. Oh, I so agree with you! Interesting comment you made here. I might want to read that book.

      I can't stand all the techno music they play in some of the stores now. Even Nordstrom! What happened to the person playing the piano? I think their theory is that one will buy more but it has the opposite effect on me. All that noise just makes me irritated and want to get out of the store as fast as I can or better yet, shop online. At least at home I can have some peace and quiet! I even quit 24 Hr. Fitness 5 years ago because they wouldn't quit playing very loud techo music, even after I complained many times. The last time I set foot in there I left with a migraine. Now I work out at home and can listen to what I want to!










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    3. Hello LRS4AMANDA and all,

      Y'all might be interested in the UK organization Pipedown.

      Pipedown was formed to counter one of the scourges of contemporary life: PIPED MUSIC.

      Also called muzak, muzac, acoustic wallpaper, elevator music or canned music, piped music is made possible by systems which allow a constant supply throughout a building or other public place.

      It is the misuse of this in public areas which Pipedown has been formed to fight, encouraging and giving a voice to millions of people who hate piped music but at present often feel totally powerless to do anything about it.

      Piped music does not refer to any particular type of music but to music piped or relayed around a building or room which people have not chosen and which they may not be able to escape. In short, it is involuntary music, forced on listeners.

      Amid the many claims and counter-claims made about piped music, objectively researched facts about piped music’s effects and its real popularity can be very hard to find. Here are some examples:

      More people hate piped music than like it
      Musicians of all sorts hate piped music
      There are important health aspects to piped music

      Pipedown campaigns tirelessly against piped music. For more information, visit:
      http://www.pipedown.info/piped_music__the_facts

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    4. Wow, what a lot of interesting information! I never stopped to think about it but, yes, you are of course right...TARGET...if you hit it in the early morning on a weekday, it's very, very quiet and peaceful.

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  27. Oh that's stunning! I would love to go to an estate sale, are they held in the person's home? Next time I'min SoCal, you will have to tell me how to find out about them.

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    1. next time you are in LA i'll take you to one tabs! then you have to give me a tour of the bel air or whatever swanky hotel you are at. deal?

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  28. Looks really nice your post! :-)love the first pic, thanks for sharing!

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  29. Macy's carries on the lovely tradition...
    http://social.macys.com/flowershow/?cm_mmc=Carat-_-mar_mpeg_flower_show_display-_-1408328-_-03212013_04072013

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  30. Vicki - so sorry for the loss of your mum... And many thanks for your interesting comments. My mother grew up in Durban, South Africa in the same era and had similar stories to tell on wonderful department stores, office lunchtimes, and dance halls that enthral me still.

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    1. Oh, I've always wanted to go to South Africa! One of my favorite blogs is written by a woman in Cape Town, the Mother City I believe they call it. I enjoy hearing about local traditions of food, art, festivals, etc. Fascinating mix of cultures. The seaside landscape is so beautiful and there are a lot of wineries/vineyards not too far away I think. When I was a kid, there was this documentary film maker named Bruce Brown who shot an early video about these two surfer dudes who went all around the world catching the waves, "Endless Summer" (gosh, I might be wrong, but that's the name coming into my mind). I can remember when they were in South Africa and Durban being mentioned. I have this vision from that film of glorious orange/gold sunlight tinting the sky and sand. My grandfather was born in The Netherlands and my geographic/history knowledge is limited but I seem to have read there is Dutch influence/heritage at least in the Cape Town environs from past centuries. I should look it up again and properly inform myself. Thank you for your expression of sympathy.

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  31. In the late 70s I worked for Lord and Taylor in Chicago. We had to wear a dress, no slacks and there were no cash registers. We each had are own sale book and cash drawer. Every sale wss written out by hand and you had to know how to add and make change. Have you ever seen how flustered a clerk gets today when the register is down? No body knows how to make change today.I also worked at Marshall Fields in Chicago. It was so much fun. I worked on the first floor so I always saw the "stars" come in. One day I looked up from my counter to see Barry Manilow, sold his back up singers some makeup. I love Steve Martin's movie "Shop Girl" about a girl working at Saks. It was spot on!

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  32. You look incredible, Juanita! I adore that maxi on you. xxx

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  33. Janet, Love your maxi on you. So many memories with I.Magnin! It was a very glamorous store to me as a girl. I felt the same as you. My mom usually shopped at Joseph Magnin which was a hipper and smaller store. I.Magnin was my favorite place to shop in San Francisco when I first had a job. My first big wardrobe purchase was from there- a full length, wool, navy trench coat with a wrap belt. I only just gave it away a few years ago, in taters. I still long for the old store which is now sadly a Macys... Maxi's also remind me of being 7 and getting my first maxi dress and wearing my hair in a bun with it and feeling so special. Anything found from I. Magnin is a treasure!

    xo
    Kim

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  34. You look magical in that lovely maxi dress! Stunning!

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  35. Did you live near the I.Magnin on Vermont or in Beverly Hills? I do miss those stores. I loved going for lunch at Bullocks Wilshire. They had not only beautiful clothes but also wonderful antique jewelry. There is nothing like those beauties anymore. I mean they even closed Takashimaya in NYC. I don't think the stores today will bring back those gracious elegant memories.

    Thanks for reminding us about wonderful times.

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  36. I used to go with my grandmother to I.Magnin's on Wilshire....I was very young but I seem to remember a beautiful steepled oxidized copper roof. It was a grand lovely store. We would always go to Bullock's as well and sit on the mezzinine level at Desmond's for lunch....I loved their big crystal chandeliers and was sure they had once hung in a fairytale castle. Sometimes we would lunch at Bullock's because they had fashion shows and the most wonderful popovers with their chiken salad. Sometimes I would order the "lady's lunch" which was my favorite because each little tea sandwich had a different filling. My grandmother bought her furniture and accessories at Haggerty's...a large store with a separate floor for each furniture type....and yes everyone knew my grandmother by name.

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  37. This is a tribute to my older sisters who taught me everything about elegant style and looking beautiful. Back in the late 1960's when my sister was a "career girl" working in the court systems of Phoenix, AZ as a court reporter, she came home one day, totally excited about this dress she'd just bought for $70 at I. Magnin's. This was when the store was located in the Biltmore Fashion Park. It was a burgundy high-waisted and long sleeved gown made of a soft slinky jersey knit fabric. It had a neckline that scooped pretty low, not too revealing with typical lingerie and a little sexier with a push-up bra to reveal a little cleavage. Of course, she modeled it for us - I was just a little girl at the time. My three older sisters were excited about the beautiful dress and bargain she'd found. My mother rolled her eyes at all the fuss! My sister wore that dress to a graduation ball, then another event, then another. A few years later I remember seeing photos of my oldest sister wearing the dress in her early pregnancy (because it had the high waist, but not empire). Then, the next sister came of age and was wearing it to formal events all around town. And, it's such a beautiful and elegant dress. I remember one of my sisters responding to the ooh's and ahh's over the dress, and, "Where did you get it?" She held her head very high and said, "It's from I. Magnin's." Wow, that made quite the impression. When it was my turn we were finally into the 80's and my boyfriend, later my fiance and husband, was attending one of the service academies. I was at the nearby women's college. My sister came over one evening carrying a dress bag. I was home for the Christmas holiday. She said, "I can't believe this dress has been everywhere and, I guess it's going out on the town again." She unveiled that beautiful coveted dress that I thought I'd never have my turn at wearing. I was so excited. And, I wore it to Hanging of the Greens, The Superintendent's Ball, later to "Ring Ball" and so many other events. It was too warm to wear during June Week but I did wear it as a young Lieutenant's wife. All the while, I felt like a princess and each time someone would ask, "Where did you get that dress?" And, I'd hold my head up high, just like my sisters did, and reply, "It's from I. Magnin's."

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    1. what a beautiful tribute to your sisters, their style and to i. magnin. i've got tears in my eyes!

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