Gunne Sax
Encyclopedia
Gunne Sax is a clothing label which specializes in formal
and semi-formal
wear
for young women and is owned by Jessica McClintock
, Inc. It was founded in the 1960s and bought by Ms McClintock in 1969.
While Jessica McClintock, Inc., is a large and diverse style house, the term "Gunne Sax" is often associated with its 1970s fashions, which could stylistically be called "prairie-revival", drawing on many elements popular in late-19th and early-20th century American
fashion
such as pinafore
s, gingham
, and calico. The company was named after the "gunny sack
" or burlap
trim
used on some of the earlier dresses.
Gunne Sax also revived a kind of "renaissance
" look, with empire waistlines and middle placket
, usually with more modern textiles such as velveteen
. Often there was a high collar
in the back with a low neckline in the front, making for a more demure variation on the medieval "wench" look. The puffed sleeves were usually tightened below the elbow, a style known as "leg o'mutton." Many of the dresses have laced bodice
s resembling corset
s.
. Imitators of Gunne Sax included Candi
and Young Edwardian. Collectors consider clothing with the original "black label," used only in 1969, the most valuable. A "hearts label" was used for a short time following, until the 1970s and early '80s larger label with scrollwork
was put into use.
Gunne Sax dresses are still manufactured, though the 1970s style associated with the term is no longer used by the company. Contemporary Gunne Sax dresses tend to follow modern prom
dress sensibilities, such as tight, strapless bodices and full skirt
s, favoring fabrics like satin
, taffeta
, and tulle
.
Formal wear
Formal wear and formal dress are the general terms for clothing suitable for formal social events, such as a wedding, formal garden party or dinner, débutante cotillion, dance, or race...
and semi-formal
Semi-formal
In Western clothing semi-formal is a grouping of dress codes, indicating the sort of clothes worn to events with a level of protocol between informal and formal...
wear
Wear
In materials science, wear is erosion or sideways displacement of material from its "derivative" and original position on a solid surface performed by the action of another surface....
for young women and is owned by Jessica McClintock
Jessica McClintock
Jessica Gagnon McClintock is Founder, President and CEO of Jessica McClintock, Inc., an American retail company based in San Francisco, California.-Biography:...
, Inc. It was founded in the 1960s and bought by Ms McClintock in 1969.
While Jessica McClintock, Inc., is a large and diverse style house, the term "Gunne Sax" is often associated with its 1970s fashions, which could stylistically be called "prairie-revival", drawing on many elements popular in late-19th and early-20th century American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
such as pinafore
Pinafore
A pinafore is a sleeveless garment worn as an apron.Pinafores may be worn by girls as a decorative garment and by both girls and women as a protective apron. A related term is pinafore dress, which is British English for what in American English is known as a jumper dress, i.e...
s, gingham
Gingham
Gingham is a medium-weight balanced plain-woven fabric made from dyed cotton or cotton-blend yarn.The name originates from an adjective in the Malay language, genggang , meaning striped. Some sources say that the name came into English via Dutch...
, and calico. The company was named after the "gunny sack
Gunny sack
A gunny sack is an inexpensive bag made of burlap, also known as a 'gunny shoe'. Gunny sacks are traditionally used for transporting grains, potatoes, and other agricultural products. Today they are also sometimes used as sandbags for erosion control. They are usually made from jute or other...
" or burlap
Burlap
Hessian , or burlap in the US, is a woven fabric usually made from skin of the jute plant or sisal fibres, or may be combined with other vegetable fibres to make rope, nets, and similar products...
trim
Trim (sewing)
Trim or trimming in clothing and home decorating is applied ornament, such as gimp, passementerie, ribbon, ruffles, or, as a verb, to apply such ornament....
used on some of the earlier dresses.
Gunne Sax also revived a kind of "renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
" look, with empire waistlines and middle placket
Placket
A placket is an opening in the upper part of trousers or skirts, or at the neck or sleeve of a garment. Plackets are almost always used to allow clothing to be put on or removed easily, but are sometimes used purely as a design element...
, usually with more modern textiles such as velveteen
Velveteen
Velveteen is a cloth made in imitation of velvet. Normally cotton, the term is sometimes applied to a mixture of silk and cotton. Some velveteens are a kind of fustian, having a rib of velvet pile alternating with a plain depression. This fabric has a pile that is short , and is closely set. It has...
. Often there was a high collar
Collar (clothing)
In clothing, a collar is the part of a shirt, dress, coat or blouse that fastens around or frames the neck. Among clothing construction professionals, a collar is differentiated from other necklines such as revers and lapels, by being made from a separate piece of fabric, rather than a folded or...
in the back with a low neckline in the front, making for a more demure variation on the medieval "wench" look. The puffed sleeves were usually tightened below the elbow, a style known as "leg o'mutton." Many of the dresses have laced bodice
Bodice
A bodice, historically, is an article of clothing for women, covering the body from the neck to the waist. In modern usage it typically refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the 18th century, or to the upper portion of a modern dress to distinguish it from...
s resembling corset
Corset
A corset is a garment worn to hold and shape the torso into a desired shape for aesthetic or medical purposes...
s.
Puffed sleeve "revival"
The characteristic puff sleeves and leg o'mutton sleeves found in many Gunne Sax pieces started the puff sleeve craze that prevailed throughout the 1970s and '80s and into the early '90s1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
. Imitators of Gunne Sax included Candi
Candi
Candi may refer to:* Candi of Indonesia, an Indonesian word for stupa * Candi, Sidoarjo, a subdistrict of Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia* Candi & The Backbeat, a Canadian dance band, initially known as just Candi...
and Young Edwardian. Collectors consider clothing with the original "black label," used only in 1969, the most valuable. A "hearts label" was used for a short time following, until the 1970s and early '80s larger label with scrollwork
Scrollwork
Scrollwork is an element of ornamentation and graphic design using a spiral. The name comes from by the supposed resemblance to the edge-on view of a rolled parchment scroll. "Scrollwork" is today mostly used in popular language for two-dimensional decorative flourishes and arabesques of all...
was put into use.
Gunne Sax dresses are still manufactured, though the 1970s style associated with the term is no longer used by the company. Contemporary Gunne Sax dresses tend to follow modern prom
Prom
In the United States and Canada, a prom, short for promenade, is a formal dance, or gathering of high school students. It is typically held near the end of the senior year. It figures greatly in popular culture and is a major event among high school students...
dress sensibilities, such as tight, strapless bodices and full skirt
Skirt
A skirt is a tube- or cone-shaped garment that hangs from the waist and covers all or part of the legs.In the western world, skirts are usually considered women's clothing. However, there are exceptions...
s, favoring fabrics like satin
Satin
Satin is a weave that typically has a glossy surface and a dull back. It is a warp-dominated weaving technique that forms a minimum number of interlacings in a fabric. If a fabric is formed with a satin weave using filament fibres such as silk, nylon, or polyester, the corresponding fabric is...
, taffeta
Taffeta
Taffeta is a crisp, smooth plain woven fabric made from silk or synthetic fibers. The word is Persian in origin, and means "twisted woven." It is considered to be a "high end" fabric, suitable for use in ball gowns, wedding dresses, and in interiors for curtains or wallcovering. There are two...
, and tulle
Tulle
Tulle is a commune and capital of the Corrèze department in the Limousin region in central France. It is also the episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tulle...
.