HATTIE CARNEGIE JEWELRY HIGHLIGHTS by AMY WIGGIN

When someone hears the name Hattie Carnegie, the first thought that comes to most, is hats, dresses, fashionable suits, and evening attire. During her lifetime, she was a household name but Hattie Carnegie was never credited as a jewelry designer.

Officially Begun in 1939.......

It is documented, in a number of reliable sources that Hattie did not officially launch a jewelry line until 1939. Even at the onset in 1939, the jewelry line was secondary to the fashions. It was merely utilized as a complimentary item to a beautiful dress.

Elsa's Influence on Hattie..........

Hattie Carnegie actually always loved jewelry. Elsa Schiaparelli was one of her very favorite designers Hattie was most partial to turquoise and pearls.

Beloved Pearls

Pearls would eventually become her trademark. Major John Zanft bought her a beautiful three-strand necklace; it is rare to find a photograph of Hattie when she is not wearing those beloved pearls.

Hattie adored pearls so much that when John proposed to her he put the diamond ring back and selected a rare pearl ring encircled by diamonds for his bride.

Encouragement

John made another wonderful contribution, not just to Hattie for buying her that pearl necklace and interesting the wedding ring, but to all of us, who collect, enjoy and wear Hattie Carnegie jewelry to this day. He encouraged her to incorporate a jewelry line of her own when he noticed that her jewelry box was overflowing with both fine jewelry and costume jewelry. Hattie mentioned to him that a nice outfit was made even more special with a beautiful necklace or bracelet to match. Hattie actually experimented with a piece of jewelry here and there when she incorporated her famous HC in a diamond mark in 1919, however it would be two more decades before she had an official line.

Those early photographs of Hattie Carnegie models, included a young Lucille Ball, often wore matching necklaces and/or bracelets in the photographs, but the jewelry was not a Hattie Carnegie original, it was from a well-known jewelry company of the day or several well known companies. Hattie freely complemented these companies in her early advertisements because she did not sense a threat from them at least up until 1939 when she officially launched her own costume jewelry collection.

Hattie worked hard to achieve success, to her having her name stamped on her work was not so much a sign of vanity or pride, but as a reminder to the once poor tenement girl of how much she had achieved in the land of opportunity, so it is a rarity to find an unsigned Carnegie.

Companies such as Hattie Carnegie Inc. had to buy a number of pieces from wholesale jewelry companies to have their company logo or designer signature stamped upon the piece, so that is why a collector can locate a number of the same pieces or styles attributed to a specific designer or company.

Hattie Carnegie’s company did design custom made clothing that was hand made by her designers at her New York shop, this was not the case with the jewelry line that was never custom made within Hattie’s shop.

Wholesale Jewelry Companies

She selected a few trusted wholesale companies to design her jewelry. A jewelry designer that Hattie really liked was a man by the name of Jacques “Jack” Libuono. Hattie had a special fondness for Mr. Libuono, because he loved the French designs that she herself was so drawn to. Hattie also liked to purchase jewelry from the Kasnoffs. Dan Kasnoff and his son Larry sold under the name of Florenza. The Kasnoffs had other famous clientele. Ironically, many of these companies were Hattie Carnegie competitors such as Weiss, Kramer, Coro, Capri and Revlon. The Kasnoffs also sold jewelry under their own signature label of Florenza. Hattie Carnegie’s brother in law often picked up the orders which Hattie Carnegie had personally selected. Hattie would carefully look at and examine every example, she refused to be rushed. Her employees and wholesalers were made nervous by this trait.

Strictest of Standards

Hattie Carnegie held the strictest of standards with any item that carried her name because it was a reflection of her shop. Hattie would not hesitate and was known to actually return a piece if it was not to her liking. Everything that was sold in Hattie’s shop had to appeal to her personal sense of style. In additional to the traditional jewelry like the bracelets and necklaces. Hattie also sold hair ornaments, buckles and jewelry boxes under the names of either “Pooped Pussy Cat” or “Pooped Poodle” The poodle name was in reference to her pet, a little black toy poodle. A poodle was also used as a logo for her company.

Hattie Carnegie Jewelry Facts......

Hattie had two toy poodles. One was black and one was white. Hattie named them Onyx and Opal. When Hattie was 14 years old, Hattie and her best friend who would become a future opera star, and grandmother of actress Stephanie Zimbalist, Alma Gluck each pierced the others ears. Needless to say, Hattie's father was furious when he found out what she had done, as it was very common to die of infections, because of the unsanitary tenement conditions, and the lack of reliable antibiotics.

For more information about Hattie Carnegie please visit this site:
Hattie Carnegie Website