April Callahan

So this is our Claire McArdle collection.

Just the sheer amount of press that we're looking at here speaks to her presence within American fashion at the time.

We're looking at like five linear feet of material that are just Claire's press clippings.

Yeah, I mean, these are Claire's designs.

She did model her own designs, though, quite frequently.

This is a classic Claire.

It has a scoop neckline.

Very simple, but very elegant.

It could be a sundress, but it could also be an evening gown.

What's so Claire about this skirt are the two patch pockets on the front.

Big pockets.

Right?

So the stripes on the skirt are running vertical, but the pockets are running horizontally.

So it's like this very simple design element that's smart.

It's the most talked of, most successful dress of the season.

Everybody lost their mind.

The monastic was a sensation because nobody had ever seen anything like it.

Even Claire's boss, Howard Geist, said at the time no one had ever seen anything like Claire's designs.

It says, Claire doesn't make any I was first with it claims about fashion.

Take the case of the monastic dress, for instance.