Amazing vintage 60s black matelasse dress & coat set by Adolphe Zelinka**. The shift dress has a beautiful satin bow and vertical pockets in the dart seams. The bow is detachable with snap on buttons. Back metal Trend zipper. The flaring double breasted coat is double lined with an internal wool layer for warmth and a luscious black rayon satin lining. Notched lapel. Vertical pockets in princess seams. Two different kinds of buttons in each vertical line. The decorative ones are braided, the functional ones have black rhinestones in a floral pattern. Not sure if this is by design or later replacement. I believe the fabric is a silk/ wool blend.
Blue ILGWU union tag. National Coat & Suit Industry Recovery Board.
Excellent vintage condition.
✂----- Measurements (taken lying flat, please double where necessary):
Dress
Bust: 18"
Waist: 17"
Hips: 19"
Length: 38"
Coat
Bust: 20"
Waist: 21"
Hips: 25"
Length: 38"
*Please note that any letter sizing provided is only an approximation due to its variability. The above measurements are the most reliable way to determine fit.
**Adolphe Zelinka incorporated his company in April 1947 as Miss Petite. It was soon after renamed to Petite Juniors, and then Zelinka-Rubin. In 1948, it was renamed again to Adolphe Zelinka & Co with the first garment ads with that name appearing that year. He was primarily a coats and suits maker though he did also make other garments like dresses and blouses later. He was the brother of David Zelinka of Zelinka-Matlick (started earlier in 1929), which was another well-known 7th avenue coats and suits manufacturer. In 1966, Adolphe Zelinka Co was located at 512 7th Avenue, 38th Fl, NYC.
French-born Sony Schotland* designed for the company since at least 1964 and through about 1969 after which she designed for Golet. She was the winner of the 1969 American Designers Award. She was trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and had worked with couturier Maggy Rouff and later with Branell in New York.
John Anthony was a designer at the company starting in 1968 and went on to establish his own label in 1971, around the time the company closed. He said he left Zelinka because they wanted him to design 'matronly' clothes. During his time with Zelinka, he was strongly influenced by the 1940s as he saw the decade as the best of Jacques Fath and Schiaparelli. A student of Paris couture, he was an outspoken admirer of Givenchy. His work for Zelinka was mainly inspired by pre-Dior 40s though some of his ’68 collections had some post-1947 midi-lengths.
The company appears to have ceased operation in 1971/72 but wasn’t dissolved until 1982. In early 1973, shortly after the closure, Zelinka went on to become general manager of Original.
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This item is sold from a vintage boutique in Boston, MA.
