#Zelda Wynn Valdes

[boricuacherry-blog]

At the apex of her career, Valdes made clothes for Ella Fitzgerald and Maria Cole, Nat King Cole's wife. She designed Cole's famous off-the-shoulder wedding dress in 1948, the very same year in which she opened her own boutique.

[h-the-jewel-thief]

Zelda Wynn Valdes (1905-2001) was an iconic American fashion designer and trailblazing business owner.

Zelda Wynn Valdes was the creator of the original Playboy Bunny costume. Valdes began her career in the peak years of Jim Crow segregation, when black seamstresses were largely low-wage...regardless, she became the first black woman to open a store on broadway and dressed many Hollywood stars and her clients were paying her ALOT. She also was responsible for the pieces African-American jazz singer Joyce Bryant wore which got a her nicknamed a sex symbol and 'the black Marilyn Monroe:

[onthebeatzworld]

Zelda Wynn Valdes

Zelda Wynn Valdes (1905-2001) was an iconic American fashion designer and trailblazing business owner.

As a young woman, Zelda Wynn Valdes started working in her uncle’s tailoring shop in outer New York, while also working in a high-end fashion boutique as a salesgirl. In 1948, she opened her own shop on Broadway in New York City, making her the first African-American to own a store on the highly coveted street. was the creator of the original Playboy Bunny costume. Valdes began her career in the peak years of Jim Crow segregation, when black seamstresses were largely low-wage...regardless, she became the first black woman to open a store on broadway and dressed many Hollywood stars and her clients were paying her ALOT. She also was responsible for the pieces African-American jazz singer Joyce Bryant wore which got a her nicknamed a sex symbol and 'the black Marilyn Monroe:

Zelda Wynn Valdes was known for creating gowns that fit perfectly- regardless of the shape of the wearer, Valdes could create a design that accentuated any woman’s body type. She became one of Hollywood’s most sought after designers, creating dresses for Josephine Baker, Mae West, Ella Fitzgerald, Eartha Kitt, and the wedding of Maria and Nat King Cole.

Zelda Wynn Valdes was commissioned by Hugh Hefner to design the original Playboy Bunny costumes which have become an iconic symbol in pop culture. She was also the New York chapter president of the National Association of Fashion & Accessory Designer (NAFAD), a coalition of black designers that was founded by Mary McLeod Bethune.

[sleepynegress]

Reminder this iconic costume was designed by an iconic Black designer who also created Mae West's figure-hugging illusion gowns, Marlene Dietrich's, Eartha Kitt's, Joyce Bryant's, and Dorothy Dandridge's...among others.

Her name was Zelda Wynn Valdes.

To be a playboy bunny 😌💕

[kaimactrash]

wip

Drawing Maureen from that apparently not very good Club Playboy tv show from years ago that got like 3 episodes.

Theres some really high quality photots of the stars of the show in their bunny suits, so I took that and the fact Maureens actress is bi, to make a bi flag bunny suit, bc its fucking cute.

[rwby-encrusted-blog]

Reese as a Sea Bunny faunus?

~At a Certain Kind of Establishment

Reese: *Sees jaune* Oh, you're-

Velvet: Hello Sir! Are you having a good time?

Jaune: Uh, Pardon? Well .. Yeah!

Reese: Heh ...

Reese: *Walking over to Jaune and Velvet* Leave this to me! you can help someone else!

Velvet: Huh? But ...

Reese: It's alright!

Velvet: Oh- okay ... alright then ...

*Velvet leaves*

Reese: *Turns to Jaune* Are you having a good time

Reese: With another "Bunny" Girl?

Jaune: *Thoroughly intimidated* No! I mean- I- I'm sorry?

Fun Fact! Zelda Wynn Valdes and Latvian émigrée designed/tailored the bunny suit to help enhance and show off the figure for the playboy bunny waitresses in the penthouse! However, they didn't take into account that the guest would be in leather armchairs which is lower than a a regular chair that sit at tables which lead to spillage (and not from the drinks) so the bunny dip was a technique to help by leaning back a little slightly bending the knees and serving drinks and/or food behind them.

~Later~

Jaune: I don't understand how people can have preferences between Humans and Faunus ... We're all pretty much the same.

Neptune: ha! you say things like that, people are gonna think you're picking a fight!

Reese: *Going to serve another customer* Oh hey!

Jaune: *Blushing*

Reese: You're back again! Good to see you! Have fun!

Jaune: Y-Yeah! haha ...

Jaune: *Ahem* L-like I was saying I don't understand why people have preferences ...

Neptune: ... Face the facts man.

Sea Bunnies, or Jorunna Parva, have a set of organs resembling Lagomorphic ears near their 'face.' However, they are not hearing organs, but more akin to Scent organs. Their "tails" are external gills.

~~~~~

Jaune: Hey! Excuse me, are you Miss bunnygirl?

Reese: *beginning to run away* Sorry! You've mistaken me for someone else!

Jaune: Wait! !ou might fall if you suddenly-

Reese: *thud* Ouch!

Jaune: ... Run.

Jaune: *Helping her up* Hey, are you alright? Why did you start running?

Reese: Well, i'm ... not used to getting recognized in casual clothes ...

Jaune: ...? But I usually see you in a bunny suit though?

Reese: There's a separation between work and normal life.

Jaune: ... I'm Jaune by the way. It's nice to officially meet you.

Reese: ... you can call me Reese.

Sea Bunnies come in many colors, but all of them are covered in dark-tipped papillae.

~~~~~

Reese: Hey, how about a game? Whoever loses has to grant the other persona wish!

Jaune: Uh, Okay!

Reese: Rock! Paper! Scissors! Shoot!

Jaune: *Throws paper* ...

Jaune: Reese? Why didn't you extend your hand?

Reese: *Slowly raises her fist* Oh No~ I lost. It seems I'll have to grant you a wish~

Jaune: ... Did you lose on pur-

Reese: NO! Of course not!

Sea bunnies prey on Toxic Sponges. Some of these Toxins are used in Cancer Treatments.

~~~~~

Jaune: *carrying groceries for Reese* You're cute when you're not working Reese!

Reese: Ah ... Really?

~At her apartment~

Jaune: So do I just set these here, or- WHEN DID YOU CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES?

Reese: *in her bunny suit* You said I was cute? *Slams apartment door shut* Right?

Reese: As of right now, I will be working~

Jaune: W-WaiT!

Sea Bunnies are hermaphrodites. when mating, the pair will interlock their genitalia and exchange sperm.

~~~~~

Reese: *Serving Jaune a Drink*

*CLICK*

Reese: Huh?

Jaune: Ah! Aw, the power went out! Hang on, Ill get the

Announcement: Attention dear Customers, there seems to be an issue with the electricity. Please be patient while we fix it.

Jaune: ... I'll ... Turn the flashlight on on my phone- I left it on the table somewhere ...

Reese: Here, let me help look for it to-

*Gentle Squish*

Reese: Uwah!

Jaune: Ah! What happened?

*CLICK*

Jaune: Oh! The lights are back!

Reese: *Holding her hands to her chest*

Jaune: Huh? What's wrong?

Reese: *Blushing against her anger* Patrons Are not allowed to touch the girls at the bar!

Jaune: What Happened?!?

[ptseti]

Zelda wynn valdes’. Fashion Pioneer

#blackhistory #blackhistorymonth #fashion

[yukithesnowman314]

Zelda Wynn Valdes: The Mother of Bunny Girls

[alaniwaves]

designer Zelda Wynn Valdes & Jennifer Jackson

[eyeliner-and-c1garettes]

Hi dolls! Welcome to my fashion account.

From 2016-2018 I was an avid polyvore user and content creator. And I may say it was one of the most wonderful, fun, and rewarding apps I’ve ever been a part of. Tragically, the app was shut down, and all was lost for my fashion, character creation, and mood board passion.

For a while I was lost…. Until I discovered shoplook in 2019. It brought me so much joy to create then, when I was being charged to post. But tragedy stuck in April 2020, when I was forced to delete my account. After that, I never thought I’d ever be able to make any content there again…. But at last, in 2023, the year of our lord and savior Zelda Wynn Valdes, I finally found the app again! And folks, I’ll be here to stay forever! I’m adding all the sets I make to this tumblr account, but please feel free to pay me a visit on shoplook under the username eyeliner_and_cigarettes. (Follow this link here!)

I believe that fashion can tell a story. And that story can reflect all the aspects of our personalities, hopes, dreams, and fears. I hope you enjoy the fever dream that is my personal style, what I wish I could be versus what I show you here now, enjoy your stay here! 🗝️

[theprophet359]

We have centuries of contributions to the fashion industry! It’s no secret that mainstream culture is Black culture and, more importantly, Black style is the foundation on which all things cool exist. Still, many would like to conveniently leave that part out, opting to rename our innate styles under newfangled terminology, but we will never forget. Fashion rockstars like Kanye West and the late, great, Virgil Abloh may seem like supernova stars, but the truth is that they exist because of a long line of fashion forefathers and matriarchs. Black fashion magic isn’t a new concept, and fashion mavens like Kahlana Barfield and Samantha Black are able to run primarily because legends like André Leon Talley walked.  While some of our fashion patriarchs like Dapper Dan were forced into obscurity for decades by gatekeepers, torch bearers like Sean “Diddy” Combs held space in their absence. This intentionality, with the added help of social media’s long memory, made way for an eventual resurgence of the OGs. And now that brands like Dap’s and Karl Kani are back in the game, a new generation is able to properly give them their flowers.   View this post on Instagram A post shared by Karl Kani🦅 (@karlkani)   It’s impossible to know where you’re going if you don’t know where you’ve been,...

[cheeborat]

With everyone drawing bunny suits for the new year, I wanted to remind people that the designer of the suit is Zelda Barbour Wynn Valdes!

[bucolicbook]

Empresses of Seventh Avenue: World War II, New York City, and the Birth of American Fashion by Nancy McDonnell 

US pub date - 8/27/24

Fashion is huge and it’s always, always around, regardless of where you are. 

Many are familiar with Dior’s New Look or his name, if little else. Or Richard Avedon.

But… 

Elizabeth Hawes?

Zelda Wynn Valdes?

Ann Lowe?

Claire McCardell? 

Marjorie Griswold? 

Dorothy Shaver?

Lois Long? 

Virginia Pope?

Eleanor Lambert?

Diane Vreeland?

Louise Dahl-Wolfe? 

Carmel Snow? 

With the exception of Diane Vreeland, these are names I was introduced to for the first time in the first chapter. Have you heard of these fashion creating women or the women who helped these fashions succeed? 

Nancy McDonnell, a fashion historian, has obviously put time into researching and bringing these women and their accomplishments into the light of the twenty-first century. 

Though I would have also liked to read more about WOC in fashion, I enjoyed this, spent a lot of time googling, and learned quite a bit. 

Recommended for anyone interested in fashion, history, 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the DRC 

[lboogie1906]

Zelda Barbour Wynn Valdes (June 28, 1901 - September 29, 2001) was a fashion and costume designer. She was the first African American designer to open her shop, which was the first African American-owned business on Broadway in 1948. Her designs were worn by numerous celebrities and entertainers, including Dorothy Dandridge, Josephine Baker, Marian Anderson, Josephine Baker, Ella Fitzgerald, Mae West, Ruby Dee, Eartha Kitt, and Sarah Vaughan.

She was born in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. She studied her grandmother’s work as a seamstress and also worked in her uncle’s tailoring shop. She began working as a stock girl at a high-end boutique around 1920 and worked her way up to become the boutique’s first African American sales clerk and tailor.

She called her store, Chez Zelda. Her boutique soon attracted celebrities and society women. She moved Chez Zelda to midtown Manhattan. She was elected president of the New York Chapter of the National Association of Fashion and Accessory Designers.

Her fashion designs were responsible for creating a new sexier image for singer Joyce Bryant. In 1958, Hugh Hefner hired her to design the first Playboy Bunny costumes. Originally, her design had the ears taller and the ensemble lacked the trademark bow tie, collar, and cuffs. First unveiled publicly in an early episode of Playboy’s Penthouse Magazine, the bunny costume made its formal debut at the opening of the first Playboy Club in Chicago, on the evening of February 29, 1960.

In 1970, Arthur Mitchell asked her to design costumes for his new company, the Dance Theater of Harlem. She continued to work with the Dance Theater of Harlem until her death. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[kaimactrash]

She is finally done!! Really love how this one came out, enjoyed trying and failing then trying and not failing as badly with the deeper colour in the shading I did after seeing a tutorial on here and then losing it...lmk if you know what one it is but it was like on tonal colouring and stuff, words!

anyway, this is Maureen from Club Play Boy, a show almost no one saw, and those who did, didn't seem to love it, but hey! the costume work on that show was top-notch.

Maureen usually wears blue but I chose to make her suit the bi flag because her actress, Amber Heard, is bi and tbh I am a sucker for pride flag-coloured clothing.

This was for a bunny month but I missed the deadline then real-life shit happened, so here we are now!

(fuck the Playboy corporation, but damn was Zelda Wynn Valdes a talented woman! the suits are a work of art even if made for a shithead company.)

[twixnmix]

Eartha Kitt during a fitting with Zelda Wynn Valdes in New York City in 1952. Zelda Wynn Valdes is the creator of the original Playboy Bunny costume. In 1948, she opened "Zelda Wynn," her design and dressmaking studio   was the first black-owned business on Broadway.

Photos by Gordon Parks for LIFE magazine