Presenting his first collection in 1937, Jacques Fath was a self-taught designer who learned his craft from studying museum exhibitions and books about fashion.  A popular and innovative designer known for dressing "the chic young Parisienne," Fath famously utilized such materials as hemp sacking and sequins made of walnut and almond shells.  His 1950 collection was called Lily, and its skirts were shaped to resemble flowers.  For eveningwear, he advocated velvet gowns.  Fath often draped the fabric directly onto his models rather than sketch his designs. 

During World War II, Jacques Fath became known for "wide fluttering skirts" which, The New York Times explained, "he conceived for the benefit of women forced to ride bicycles during gasoline rationing". His clients included Ava Gardner, Greta Garbo, and Rita Hayworth, who wore a Fath dress for her wedding to Prince Aly Khan.  Fath designed a wedding gown for his wife that today is one of his most notable designs.  Among his models was Lucie Daouphars (1921 or 1922–1963), a.k.a. Lucky, a former welder who eventually became the top house model for Christian Dior.

Jacques Fath hired a number of young designers as assistants and apprentices, some of which later went on to form their own Couture houses, including Hubert de Givenchy, Guy Laroche and Valentino Garavani.   

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

You can admire the White Stole Collection for it’s curation and preservation of the design and craft of Vintage Stoles that otherwise we might never have access to so many years beyond their original creation.  Yet, even more importantly, we can’t overlook the fact that the Vintage Wraps in White Stole's collection were all worn by a special woman…whose initials are embroidered along the inside lining. 

 “Each and every Stole in our collection stands as a treasured memory of the life of the woman who wore it” Roberta, Stylist

The White Stole Collection is dedicated to all those across the globe who have toiled, now and before us, to make Couture Accessories in the time-honored tradition “by hand” and with “high quality sewing.”

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Maggy Rouff is known for her beliefs that a truly elegant woman is in harmony with her environment and herself.  Addressing a basic longing she sensed in women as early as the 1940’s, Rouff wooed patrons to her salon with her belief that novelty and even surprise were good for fashion, yet only novelty allied with taste yielded chic.

As a result, Rouff rarely created a design that was considered "eccentric."  She took care to establish a focal point in every design, always enhancing the underlying sense of femininity of the lines.  An evening gown in which the skirt was trimmed with a crossover hip wrap and little side puffs had simply-cut sleeves and bodice.  She had a fondness for draped details, whether it had the sarong-like side drape of a skirt panel or soft cowl folds at the neckline.  Rouff often highlighted the upper body, drawing attention toward the face with a few favorite elements such as wrapped and tied surplice fronts, unusual necklines, and dramatic sleeves.

Accents such as wide belts and sashes, bold buttons, and silk flowers as well as contrasts of color, texture, or luster were also used with the same sense of balance.  She enriched some surfaces with shirring, quilting, or trapunto, as in her 1936 "plus four" playsuit and in her 1938 button-quilted evening dress, but very lush fabrics and furs were handled in accordance with her “less-is-more” philosophy.

While Paris was occupied by German troops, Maggy Rouff, who had already lived through one world war, wrote La Philosophie de L'Elégance. Her justification for what might have been considered under such circumstances a frivolous topic, was her belief that even in darkest times there must be faith in the future. Rouff’s book is seen as an affirmation of the value and substance which the Art of Elegance had given to her life and her success. 

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Since 1954, the House of Schiaparelli  has been known to be one of the most potent in all of Haute Couture.  During that time, Elsa Schiaparelli, was well-known as a Creator rather than a Couturier who had no formal training in the Art of Couture.  She approached design with bravery because she was free from the dictates of any specific skillset.  

Born to an aristrocratic Italian family of scholars in 1890, she fled the confines of her childhood home in Rome for a fuller life in London, New York and lastly, Paris.  In true post-war elegance, the playful, excessive, erudite and willful spirit that imbued each of Elsa’s designs swept-away the fashion world in 1927 - whether the design was her great pagoda-like mink collars mounted ontop black woolen coats,  or her bow-tied sweaters that exuded all of the surrealism and artistic fury of the 20’s and 30’s.  

Her provocative Ballgowns of the time, some with draping, feathered or embroidered Stoles were legendary, as were the seductive little jackets decorated with embroidery in a profusion of creativity.  Schiaparelli invented the idea of Ready-to-Wear, the concept of the “Boutique,” Mix-and-Match separates, Shirtwaist Dresses, Culottes, Wedge Heels, Designer Sunglasses, Overalls, and the color “Shocking Pink.”  Elsa Schiaparelli even designed a version of the “Jumpsuit” favored by sportsmen and skydivers during WWII for chic women to wear in bomb shelters!  No one had previously inspired artists, and hired them to decorate her clothes and her salon.  For those who loved her, Schiaparelli’s couture designs created the Heritage of her design house that was both bold and smart, with a flair that allowed any woman to stand out in a most exquisite way.

Like Schiaparelli, the Brides and Bridesmaids who come to the White Stole Collection follow their own path.  They are talented, creative women who embrace the eclectic and collaborative motifs brought forward by the most important artists of our time in order for us to become sophisticated women who understand their message of openness and tolerance in our lifetimes.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

All you have to do today is look at any fashion magazine or runway to witness that the future of fashion has arrived….and it’s all about dreaming of the past.  Fashion’s tendency to sample and recycle is certainly nothing new.  This truth can be seen as early as Dior’s famous hourglass New Look silhouette, which was hailed as a watershed moment for post-WWII fashion, but it wasn’t altogether original.  

Afterall, Dior’s fanciful design was inspired by the corsets and petticoats of his own Belle Epoque childhood.  What made his designs wildly resonate for so many, however, was that they contrasted sharply with the long war-years of frugality.  Dior wrote in his autobiography in 1956: “It happened that my own inclinations coincided with the spirit or sensibilities of the times.”  And as the world turns, the attraction of timeless couture is proof that it never goes out of style.

Historically, natural fur marked certain stages in the lives of a girl of good family: at eighteen, Daddy would buy her a beaver and a mink jacket or coat for her marriage.   In 1962, Time magazine was asking: “After mink, what?”  In 1964, Valentino began to think about Evening Wear and in that year presented a short natural jacket with kimono sleeves over a long gown.  In fact, the reign of natural fur was to be a long one that also revisited us in its many evolutions.

This 1946 vintage photo by Gjon Mili of Evelyn, Sunny and Dovima in pure White Mink Stoles over evening gowns brings forth the vision of pretty beauty that brought the era under Dior’s hourglass influence.   White Stole calls this inspiration Quintessential!

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Most Rental Bridal Wear is easily forgettable – unless you’re the girls who frequent White Stole’s Vintage Bridal Stole and Couture Silk Wrap Collection.  These girls think of their LBD, or toned-down bridesmaid dresses as a blank canvas that can be decorated based on their age, frame of mind, or wedding theme. 

They understand that the perfect accessory (one piece will do!) will give an immediate uplifting look, and add an air of couture luxury to the look of their wedding day.  They know their wedding dress can be exceptional with the pleasure of wearing a One-of-a-kind Vintage or Couture Stole Accessory that will bring treasured memories of their day for a lifetime.

What fashionable young and older women of today love like none-other is that fashion is NOT about the basics (unless your idea of a basic includes fur-lined collars and lapels on cashmere or silk wrapping your shoulders, arms or neck).  It’s for the type of girls who are on the wait list at Fendi, Prada, Leonard Paris or Valentino to be the first to view their trunk shows – whether they can afford the full-priced item, or must rush-off to search for last year’s edition.  Girls who understand true quality as sticking to smaller, hard-to-find labels.  Girls who loathe fast, cheap fashion and instead comb the back racks for Antique Treasures.  Girls who tear pages from fashion and wedding magazines for later reference.  Girls who truly know themselves.

Those of us who curate the White Stole Collection are devoted to recreating only the very best parts of what came before - right down to the vintage-inspired hatbox that one of our rental Stoles comes in.  We understand, too, that a good part of the thrill in purchasing one of our Couture Wedding Accessories is that it will tell the story of our brides’ wedding day for the rest of their lifetime.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

In New York, Maximilian, as well as David of New York, who worked with Capucci during the time this Italian received the American Fashion Oscar in 1958, brought the love of Stoles to the American market even as it remained highly influenced by European Couturiers and Creatures.  The Americans tried to widen their market by banking on simple models, in tone with the fashion of the times: shoulders became rounder, collars less deep, and large buttons appeared on Stoles by the end of the decade.

With Capucci’s influence, garment borders formed romantic knots, a little Cape turned in cones that culminated at the shoulder, and a circular Stole hid a Bolero inside it.  Jackets and full-length Stoles became a single mantle, and other ensembles had detachable skirts.  These garments began to point to the move from the Fifties to the Sixties, confirming luxurious foreshadowing of the demystification of natural fur. 

After the end of the war, the most beautiful women in the world from Gina Lollobrigida to Audrey Hepburn were seen in natural Stoles.  Like the rest of fashion, natural Stoles ran along a double track for several seasons then their style would change - yet some constant features from the previous season always remained.  

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

A Couturier, by definition, is “a person who designs, makes and sells fashionable clothes for women.”  Other sources define a Couturier as “one who designs for, or owns, a couture establishment.”  Thus, the word Couturier has led to the use of the word Creature to define the clothes or fashion designer him or herself. 

From 1847 Italy onward, the founding fathers of the fur industry read like cases of fine wine:  Matti, Viscardi, Carinato, Chiovato, Pellegrini, Melloni, Bolzano and many others.  Jole Veneziani moved ahead with her progressive designs alongside Rivella and Schettini.  The trend increased as Rossini, Porro and Naldoni brought Stoles into both sporting as well as elegant realms for the public.  Giovanni Battista Giorgini’s shows at Villa Torregiani in Florence in 1951 helped launch the glory years of Haute Couture.   By 1958, the leading Couturier names of Capucci, Fabiani, Fendi and Valentino spelled Stole elegance into the 60’s and beyond.

Regardless of the name reference, the beginning Italian history of the enthusiasm for women’s Stole fashion began with a few leading men and women, though none so famous as Rivella, who founded his fur fashion house in 1868 and put a personal touch to the endless designs of Cape Stoles of the period – whether having a special collar, or a braided effect like that of a knitted pullover.  In 1958 he created a wedding dress so perfect that the fur blended into the fabric, giving it a Mikado effect.  Rivella became a leading name in the new Made in Italy label.

In Paris, the French fashion houses held fast during WWII with Fourrures Max, the most important pre-war furrier, and shortly after liberation Revillon, Freres, Fath, Molyneux, Chanel, Rouff and Schiaparelli continued with fur fashion that never entirely went away during the war, though it was confined to a very select public.  By 1947 Dior, Balmain and Balenciaga propelled fur fashions to the strata that ensured they were due to last.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

The informal elegance of the small-time Classic Boa Stole set against a stunning evening gown began its ascent to couture fame as early as the 1940's.  The trend toward lower-cost natural shoulder Stoles, with carefully thought-out embellishments and accessories, arose as a detail showing that the piece came from a famous Fashion-House - an Exclamation Point, of sorts, on a formal evening dress.  This small accent-piece also acted as a down-payment in the early days of couture for those who could not otherwise afford the whole garment.

There were feather or fur Boas which either stood alone or were applied to tailor-mades as though they were Stoles,  or were attached to countless hems forming borders to garments of all kinds.  There were huge muffs that could be turned into a Bolero Stole, some with flares or bows at each end.  In designing for evening, designers followed the clinging line of the long evening dress, determining the point of emphasis where the Stole was to be placed.

In celebration of White Stole's small, elegant Classic Boa Stole, which will be walking the runway of the 2014 Seattle Wedding Show, we are thrilled to extend our Special Invitation to all 2014 Seattle Wedding Show Attendees:"

"Wrap 4 or more in your bridal party....and White Stole Wraps YOU!"

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Chic.  Sophisticated.  Classic.  Timeless with a modern edge.  A White Stole over a traditional White Wedding Gown becomes the perfect palette for embellishments of pearl, crystal and white lace over satin and tulle for any theme, holiday or wedding setting.  The many tonal shades of white allow it to span refined cool and fuse the vision of Traditional White together.  

The costume a bride chooses for her wedding day is as unique and special as the moment in life itself.  What she chooses to wear as adornment is key to her memories of the day.  Through the centuries, symbols of wealth have universally been displayed by the bride, groom and the entourage in their outer garments, which were encrusted with precious stones, or stitched with silver and gold on opulent fabrics.  

A Stole is both an adornment and, like the neckline of a wedding dress, an element that frames a beautiful face and draws all eyes to the leading lady.  Full of nuance, a Stole offers an exclamation point to the prosperity, beauty, and above all else, optimism that the wedding day represents.  A Stole easily supplies effortless warmth along with its styling in all seasons - whether a handsewn vintage natural Stole, or something lightweight in silk satin, silk chiffon, silk georgette, silk twill, or silk-cashmere blends.

The White Stole Collection is decidedly versatile, going beyond traditional formalities to explore bridal’s new modernity.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Stoles began to be fashioned from every material type with exotic names ranging from Azurene to Silverblu, all of which added to their attraction.  In these years of anticipation of the boom, bodices became the target for all designers’ creative talents, and the designs were carried out in every material that happened to be the rage from one season to the other.  This expression of elegance in luxurious outerwear shaped to the body became subject for a thousand variations in its meticulous details. 

Stoles, Boleros, Jackets, Capes and Cloaks were, from the 1950's into the 1960's, essential to the elegant woman’s wardrobe.  The Stole had made its definitive entrance into women’s fashion as the par excellence elegant female status symbol alongside Haute Couture.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

The year 1948 had introduced the “Little Cape” in which the contrasting little tails imitated the fastening, short Capes with peplums, along with floor-length Capes sporting little Volant sleeves or large cuffs.  Rivella’s Stole Cape was almost as big as a Cloak.  Pellegrini invented a sort of allusion to a double collar with all the fullness to the back.  Revillon brightened up the Stole with cloth inserts, as well as inserting folds of muslin into the fur. 

Boleros, Jackets, Capes and Cloaks were produced in every possible variation and color, and lived for 12 months of the year.  Aeolian, Tourmaline, Royal Pastel and Autumn Haze were the taupe-coloured, light beige and natural brown mutations of the EMBA mink, and chosen for the majority of the designs.  Little Jackets and Boleros could be short and square, fastening at the edge, could have fullness at the back or front, could do away with the collar or make it huge. 

In 1954, Dior presented a silver fox Muff in an attempt to bring back this classic accessory.  The Fur Boa also had its adherents.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

It was only a short step from the Stole to the Bolero and its derivatives, and the 50’s were proof to this fact.  Many of these Boleros and little jackets hardly came down to the waistline.  The design-house Revillon made a shell-shaped Capelet Bolero in Royal Pastel mink, while other designers used the famous Autumn Haze EMBA mink.    Maximilian studied the Stole Bolero in Royal Pastel where the shoulders and neck remained free as a frame for a pretty face. 

The designer Fath launched a blousy Bolero in beaver.  Rossini and Porro were making them with an oriental flair.  Many were in mink, others in Persian lamb or with “crater” collars which moved their image from a sporting to an elegant look.  Jole Veneziani went beyond to a short jacket Bolero of zebra, with fringe that would later be called a T-shirt shape.

There were Vest-Jackets and little Shawls with fur puffs at the ends, and the ultra-famous Stoles consisting of four pelts that intertwined forming a knot. Many women became able to afford an Evening Stole. 

The stimulating minimum effect of the small Stole for the average woman became a fashion statement that was due to last.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Even for those who do not delight in fashion, the idea of the Fifties evokes the Fur Stole.  It was not by chance that, in 1950 itself, the advertisements of the American firms of Ben Mendel and Bergdorf Goodman were based on the Stole, which, in those days, had few rivals in the fur trade as regards to quantity.  American artisans, looking for wider markets, made every attempt to vary and update the classic Stole in every possible way in an attempt to make it affordable to all women.

There was the small, cropped model, which followed the Empire period line, which was often fastened with two bows beneath the bust, and another on one shoulder and grew wider on the other side, or which knotted behind into a butterfly effect. 

Others were double collared or built with multi-tiered rows of natural fur. Collars were wide and often swelled into shawls. They were square, flat, stole-shaped or molded in the form of high-knotted scarves with lines that followed those of the dressmaker.

This rectangle of fur, which constitutes a luxury embrace, was subject to a thousand variations.  

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.

Any study of fashion can not be separated from women’s fashion history and an understanding of the beginnings of Haute Couture literally meaning “high-quality sewing.”  Paris had been the center of couture since the 19th Century when couture was transformed from a craft into business, and high art. 

Women’s fashion had been put on ice during WWII from 1939 to 1944.  During the occupation of Paris in 1940, many fashion houses were forced into war-related industries.  The progress of the war made it necessary to prohibit all superfluous material and labor.  America followed Britain in clothes rationing with L85 restrictions, promoting the approved ” Victory Suit” with its narrow styling as being more practical and patriotic. 

The Allied Nations were at a loss when Paris fell because they had looked to Paris as the World Capital of Fashion since the 17th Century.  Despite materials rationing on both sides of the Atlantic, some 20 Parisian couture fashion houses violated the wartime silhouette during this time and continued to produce approximately 100 models per year – primarily for wealthy collaborators or for export to Germany.  From Designers to Apprentices, the French declared they had fought to keep Parisian Couture alive because it represented a Parisian industry of prime importance, a means of employment…but most importantly, because it preserved Haute Couture in the eyes of the world.

View White Stole’s entire collection for size color ranges of Stoles, Stole Wraps, Vintage Stoles, Stole Capes and Shawls for purchase, or rental, on our website.