Halston: America’s Designer

Good designers make great clothes. Great designers influence and inspire style. But a truly legendary designer comes along once or twice in a lifetime, altering the fiber of fashion forever. Halston was that rare designer. While modern clotheshorses are quite familiar with names like Marc Jacobs and Trina Turk, Halston—who perfectly embodied and reflected the zeitgeist of the 70s—may be a relative stranger. However, you may be surprised to discover that his innovative body of work still ripples remarkably strongly through today’s business of fashion.

Halston (who early in his career left his first name Roy behind, and became known by his more sophisticated middle name) ascended the rungs of the industry in short order. In a few short years he had left his Midwest upbringing in the rearview, rising from window dresser to milliner (hat maker) assistant to Lilly Dache to co-designer. Before long, he had gained enough caché with the editors and tastemakers of the day to move on to the position of head milliner at Manhattan’s famed luxury department store, Bergdorf Goodman. Here, Halston showed an early ability to not only influence but also pioneer, blazing new fashion trails. He convinced the store to allow his name to be sewed onto the hats’ labels, an honor never previously bestowed upon another designer. His name soon began appearing on much more than the inside of hats—when Jackie Kennedy wore a hat he designed to JFK’s inauguration, he became a household name, designing women’s wear, glamorous shoes and more for the hottest stars of the day, including Lauren Bacall, Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minelli among many. Newsweek soon dubbed him "the premier fashion designer of all America".

Fans of today’s flashy, over-the-top fashion weeks should tip their very stylish caps to Halston. He was the first designer to recognize and harness the potential of the catwalk show –until then, a dull, stiff event featuring models holding numbered placards– as a true performance event with vibrant music and lighting, infused with art and attitude.

His calling cards were simple, sleek, impeccably tailored clothing, accessories and products that often lacked buttons or zippers. His shoe designs were glam and feminine, with fabulous craftsmanship and attention to detail (check out this gorgeous, hard to find pair we have in stock). American fashion was ready for new fabrics and cuts that reflected both the swiftly changing culture and timeless style. Halston delivered, popularizing many looks which are still worn today, from cashmere to halter dresses to flowing caftans and knitted caped stoles. He also made the shirtdress a staple which remains an ensuring favorite of women everywhere. His elegant compact (click here to own it) and perfume bottles were also sleek, chic, outside of the box styles unlike anything the industry had seen until that point.

Halston was also the first designer to understand the potential of licensing his name. He established a licensing agreement with JC Penney (although this is commonplace for designers now, it was beyond shocking to the celebrities and fashion elite who had been his sole demographic to that point), in order to make his designs available to middle income women.  Halston was a perfectionist; unlike his peers, he refused to put his name on something that was not primarily designed by him personally. However, he chose to construct much more than exclusive catwalk looks. He designed and heavily influenced uniforms, including outfits for airlines, rental car companies, US Olympic teams, the Girl Scouts, and the NYPD.

However, this impressively diverse volume of licensed designs also contributed to his unfortunate business downfall. His tendency to overextend himself and proclivity for the excesses of the era led to a decline in profits and increased temper flare-ups; this series of events spiraled into a series of hostile corporate takeovers that amazingly led to Halston being prohibited from designing clothes under his own name, as he no longer owned the right to it. He privately continued creating red carpet looks for his closest celebrity friends until his death, but his name and mark on the business of fashion will endure forever.