The daughter of an inventor and dressmaker, Bonnie Cashin was
inspired to design clothes by the age of eight. By sixteen, she had
her first paying job as a costume designer for the chorus line of a Los
Angeles-based dance company. She received formal training in design at
the Chouinard School of Art in Los Angeles, and, after moving to New
York in 1933, at the Art Students League. Having attained her qualifications she set out to work as
full-time costume designer for the Roxy Theatre's 'Roxyettes', followed
by six years employment (1937-43) with prestigious suit manufacturers Adler &
Adler. She returned to the West Coast in 1943 to sign a contract with
20th Century Fox where she stayed until 1949 as part of the team
headed by Charles Le Maire. During her
tenure she received most acclaim for the costumes she designed for
Gene Tierney in
Laura (1944), and for
Irene Dunne in
Anna und der König von Siam (1946).
In 1949, Cashin resumed her work with Adler & Adler, eventually opening
her own salon -- Bonnie Cashin Designs Inc. -- in 1952. She established a
singular reputation for elegant, innovative design in ready-to-wear
clothes and sportswear, including canvas raincoats and jumpsuits for
women. Moreover, she was among the first to introduce the 'layered
look' by creating clothes which could be adapted to varying climatic
conditions. She became notably affiliated with the leather manufacturer
Sills & Co. (1953-77), and with the Coach handbag company (1961-74). In
1972, Cashin was inducted into the Coty American Fashion Critics Hall
of Fame.
