Vintage Vera

Last week, I was in town and stopped at a local thrift store.  I always head to the small selection of housewares.  I saw a stack of bright, bold, and beautiful napkins for $3!  They looked brand new!  I knew they were some vintage items by the "Vera" logo but couldn't remember the exact story.  After going online and reading up on it, I wanted to share some of it with you.

The lady behind the ladybug…

Vera Neumann was an unlikely revolutionary–her tiny five-foot-tall frame typically dressed in mod tunics and a bold scarf, armed with a quick but shy demeanor. But Vera­–the innovator of cross-licensing and one of the most successful female entrepreneurs of her time–had a radical philosophy: fine art should be accessible to everyone, not just a select few. She believed that artwork should not be relegated to walls. Rather, people should surround themselves with art–wear it, dine off it, and dream under it. Any why not? Great art endures. It lifts your spirit and makes you feel better. Vera’s art certainly does. It’s bright, happy, and inspirational.

Vera got her start at her kitchen table designing kitchen linens.  Interest in her work grew rapidly.  Her scarves were hugely popular in the 1960's.  Marilyn Monroe posed for Vogue magazine with a Vera scarf!  In 1952, the White House sunroom was decorated by Vera.

Vintage Vera items can still be found on such sites as ebay and etsy.  New items can be found at Macy's, Dillards, and Bed, Bath, & Beyond.

Information obtained from http://theveracompany.blogspot.com/2009/02/vintage-vera.html; http://www.designsponge.com/2010/12/past-present-vera.html; www.theveracompany.com; wikipedia.org;

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Thrifty Treasures @ Southern Hospitality