Fashion & Jewelry

Social Life in Phoneix

With the end of the WWII in 1945, the new decade brought beautiful hourglass women’s fashions. From tea length swing dresses to pencil skirts, saddle shoes, twin set cardigan sweaters and swing coats, JEWERY became a must have accessory to complete any woman’s outfit found in any Phoenix department store at the time.

Big brooches, grand bib necklaces, massive chokers, wide bracelets and hair ornaments were the rage. Stones were cut in fancy shapes emphasizing the flowing lines of the design. What was once the reigned supreme “all-diamond look” for jewels, color in jewelry came by storm and dominated by the mid-1950’s into the 1960’s and beyond.

But it was thanks to Hollywood, “costume jewelry” became a “must have” trend. With movies such as Marilyn Monroe’s “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend” and Audrey Hepburn’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, jewelers found themselves designing “fabulous fakes” due to demand of the “modest means” woman. Diamonds and precious stones were replaced by specialty glass stones mostly produced by the Austrian and Czechoslovakian stone makers.  Tailored designers such as Kramer, Monet, Trifari, Eisenberg, Hollycraft, Bogoff, Cartier, Coro, Albert Weiss, Miriam Haskell, DeLizza & Elster Company, and the ever intriguing Hattie Carnegie transformed their collections creating a market of sparkle and glamour worn and loved by all.

Hattie Carnegie (March 15, 1886-February 22, 1956)

Henrietta Kanengeiser was the second of seven children Jewish born to Isaac and Hannah Kanengeiser in Vienna, Austria. She immigrated with her family to the United States settling in the Lower East Side of Manhattan and attended school until 1902.  By age 13 she was a messenger at the famous Macy’s where she earned the nickname “Hattie” to help support her family. By 15, Hattie modeled and trimmed hats at a military manufacturer then later left joining Rose Roth by 1909 to design women’s hats. By her early 20’s she took the surname “Carnegie” as homage to the great Andrew Carnegie, the richest man in the United State at the time.

With a working capital of $100,000, Hattie Carnegie would soon be a sole business proprietor, traveling back and forth to Paris buying original dresses to sell in her boutique along with expanding her own designs. With profits climbing as her style and clothing lines expanded, she would soon own her own building off Park Avenue in New York by 1925.

It would be the then unknown Lucille Ball who would work as an in-house model for Carnegie. Ball would later admit, “Hattie taught me how to slouch properly in a $1,000 hand-sewn sequin dress and how to wear a $40,000 sable coat as casually as rabbit.” By 1929 her sales were $3.5 million a year even though she could not sew or cut a pattern. Designers such as Jean Louis, James Galanos, Norman Norell, Pauline Trigère and Clare MCCardell would be discovered under the Carnegie House.

Carnegie's specialty was "the little Carnegie suit" and in 1939 she started to create jewelry lines to compliment her collections. In 1950, she was invited to apply her design sense to the Women's Army Corps (WAC) uniform which would end up being adopted for wear in 1951. On June 1, 1952, Carnegie would receive the Congressional Medal of Freedom for the WAC uniform design and for her many other charitable and patriotic contributions.

Standing only 4 foot 10 inches high, Hattie flourished in the “cocktail jewelry” movement joining the likes of Elsa Schiaparelli. She would excel in the “little black dress” and leave her mark on fashion forever. Hattie Carnegie died in 1956 leaving an $8M business to carry on.

Signed, Hattie Carnegie 1950’s-1960’s - Dragon Egg Collection - Necklace, clip earrings, brooch, and matching clip bracelet

Additional Mid-Century Jewelry Designers

·      Originally known as The Hollywood Jewelry Company, Hollycraft was one of the few companies who dated their jewelry with the year of manufacture. Designing under their own name they also manufactured collections for both Weiss and Pakula. Known for their distinctive mix of small stones and particularly sought after for their pastel combinations, Hollycraft also created a massive collection of brooches.

·      Chicago-based Eisenberg started marking their “Eisenberg Original” collection in 1935; however, changed to differing signatures such as the “E” and “EISENBERG” by the late 1960’s. Rhinestone jewelry, with both clear and colored stones were popular, and the use of the pave (small stones that were paste set in lines or entire parts of a design) became a norm. Eisenberg began using styles that had paved "curliques" and "wings" that gave its pieces a distinctive look. The Weiss company mimicked this look which is why you may find pieces that are signed Weiss but resemble Eisenberg.

·      Kramer, founded in New York City produced intricate and artistic pieces out of gilt metal, rhinestones, glass, and enamel. Started in 1943, Louis Kramer was be later joined by his brothers Morris and Harry and became a force to be recon with in “costume jewelry” industry.  Favoring flowers, Kramer also produced such masterpieces dripping in vibrant colored rhinestones such as blues, reds, and the ever popular topazes. Through the 1950’s to the 1960’s, Kramer would produce costume jewelry for Christian Dior distinctly marked "Christian Dior by Kramer," “Dior by Kramer,” or “Kramer for Dior.”

·      DeLizza & Elster, Inc. (D&E) began in 1947 producing their own collections but also for Weiss, Alice Caviness, Celebrity, Hobe, Hattie Carnegie, Kenneth J. Lane, Karu, Kramer Sarah Coventry, Tara, Gloria, and Madelaine. Known for their beautiful rhinestones, simulated stones, and pearls in metal plating of gold and silver, D&E created their unmarked, multi-color and multi-layer collections labeled Juliana in 1953. Because D&E never signed their collections, collectors have found differing ways to identify their pieces.

·      Hobé was founded by Jacques Hobé in France however it was his son, William, who established an American offshoot of the company in 1927. When William, arrived at New York, before he started his company, one of the his first assignments was to make costumes and jewelry for the "Ziegfeld Follies." By the 1940’s and 1950’s, Hollywood stars such as Bette Davis and Ava Gardner wore Hobé. Sold in up-scale department stores and boutiques, Hobé jewelry was marketed under the slogan “Jewels of Legendary Splendor”.

(Special thanks to the generous donation of photographic display from the DL Hrynyk Estate.)

Sources: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/95490454570108169/?d=t&mt=login, https://www.pinterest.com/cvanhoover/kramer-vintage-jewelry-ads/, https://www.pinterest.com/missymorton92/vintage-weiss-jewelry-ads/

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AZJHS is deeply grateful to all our donors and sponsors for their generous support and gifts throughout the year. Because of you, we are able to continue providing to the public at no cost our many programs, events and exhibits.

Mid Century Exhibit Key

(Please choose from the links below to enter the exhibit room of your choice.)

1. Exhibit Entrance

   1. Welcome to Mid-Century Jewish Life in Phoenix

2. Featurette

   1. Korricks Department Store

3. Social Life in Phoenix

   1. Purim Carnival and Queen Esther

   2. Jewish Festivals, Plays, Dances

   3. Fashion & Jewelry

4. Community Enrichment

   1. Kivel Nursing Home

   2. Jewish Community Center

   3. Youth Organizations

   4. Social Service

   5. Social Calendar

5. Religious Life

   1. Temple Beth Israel

   2. Beth El Congregation

   3. Beth Hebrew

   4. Har Zion, Temple Beth Shalom, Beth Joseph, Temple Shalom, and Temple Beth Sholom

   5. Rabbi Albert Plotkin and Sylvia Plotkin

6. Jewish Engagement in Civil Rights

   1. Camelback Inn

   2. Establishment of the State of Israel

   3. Civil Rights

7. Activities Corner

   1. The Poodle Skirt

   2. Paper Dolls

If you have Mid-Century Jewelry from 1945-1975 and would like to add to our photographic collection of jewels, please fill out the below and submit. Our Special Collections Curator will be in contact with you. Thank you.

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