Making a Mark in Fashion: The Mollie Parnis Story

Mollie Parnis was an American fashion designer and businesswoman. She was best known for creating high-end, sophisticated women’s wear during the 1950s and 1960s. Her designs were popular among society women, celebrities, and first ladies, including Jacqueline Kennedy.

Parnis was born in 1899 and grew up in New York City. She worked in the fashion industry for several years before starting her own business in the 1940s. She opened a small dress shop and quickly gained a reputation for her elegant and refined designs. She was known for her use of luxurious fabrics and for her attention to detail, often incorporating unique embellishments and trims into her pieces.

Throughout her career, Parnis was celebrated for her contributions to American fashion. She was awarded several prestigious fashion awards and was inducted into the Fashion Hall of Fame in 1970. Despite her success, she remained humble and dedicated to her craft, continuing to create beautiful, timeless pieces until her retirement in the 1980s.

Today, Mollie Parnis is remembered as one of the most influential designers of her time, known for her elegant and sophisticated designs that helped to define American fashion in the mid-twentieth century.

#1 Dovima in bouffant silk taffeta skirt with separate square-cut taffeta top by Mollie Parnis, Coro earrings, Hattie Carnegie fan, Harper’s Bazaar, February 1951

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#2 Eva Gerney wearing a suit of silk taffeta with peplum and velvet collar by Mollie Parnis, photo by Horst P. Horst, February 1951

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#3 Georgia Hamilton in dress of white and pink striped silk by Mollie Parnis, Harper’s Bazaar, April 1952

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#4 Jean Patchett wearing pale pink poodle coat by Swansdown over dress of pleated silk Shantung by Mollie Parnis, jewelry by Miriam Haskell, 1952

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#5 Liz Pringle in pale silk dinner dress with small matching jacket by Mollie Parnis, Harper’s Bazaar, October 1952

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#6 Sandra Nelson in white silk organdy dress with a little shawl around the shoulders by Mollie Parnis, Harper’s Bazaar, December 1952

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#7 Sheila Kilgore wears a Princess coat-dress of checked stiff, ridged silk lined in red taffeta with jeweled buttons and half belt in back by Mollie Parnis, Washington D.C., February 1952

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#8 Suzy Parker in a summer dress of white linen by Mollie Parnis, February 1952

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#9 Cherry Nelms in black and gray plaid cotton dress with white piqué collar and black patent leather belt by Mollie Parnis, Bermuda, Harper’s Bazaar, May 1953

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#10 Cherry Nelms in taupe silk twill sheath by Mollie Parnis, red brushed velours cap by John Frederics, gold and diamond necklace and bracelet by Van Cleef & Arpels, Vogue, July 1953

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#11 Evelyn Tripp in a red silk twill dress with a bustle-bow by Mollie Parnis, rhinestone jewellery by Bogoff, Vogue, November 15, 1953

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#12 Kathy Dennis in dress by Mollie Parnis, background by Marcel Vertés, Horst, 1953

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#13 Mary Jane Russell in a camel wool suit by Mollie Parnis and a fur turquoise hat by Emme, 1953

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#14 Evelyn Tripp in lovely summer dress of sheer organdy print over taffeta by Mollie Parnis, shoes by De Liso Debs, Harper’s Bazaar, May 1955

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#15 Liz Pringle in floral print silk twill dress and jacket by Mollie Parnis, baby cap with same print cartwheel by Emme, April 1955

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#16 Model in a pink with white polka dot silk surah dress by Mollie Parnis and reverse dot beret, Vogue, March 1, 1955

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#17 Carmen Dell’ Orefice in very pretty dress of black piqué swirling out from a camisole bodice by Mollie Parnis, diamond brooch and ring by Harry Winston, 1956

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#18 Evelyn Tripp and Joan Friedman in dresses by Mollie Parnis and flowered hats by Adolfo of Emme, Vogue, April 15, 1956

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#19 Jessica Ford in blue floral print Wamsutta Supervoile dress by Mollie Parnis, Wamsutta fabric ad, Vogue, December 1, 1956

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#20 Joan Friedman and Jessica Ford in pretty thin-as-air cotton shiffon dresses by Mollie Parnis, hats by Emme, December 1, 1956

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#21 Sunny Harnett in silk printed sheath with short bolero by Mollie Parnis, Vogue, 1956

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#22 Anne Gunning in vibrant red Pima cotton voile dress by Mollie Parnis, Harper’s Bazaar, May 1957

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#23 Isabella Albonico in black worsted jersey dress by Mollie Parnis, a raisin-colored velours hat by Sally Victor, and stole of black-dyed Russian broadtail lamb and Canadian fox by Fredrica, September 15, 1958

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#24 Model wearing yellow dress with rhinestone buttons, by Mollie Parnis, and earrings by Mosell, 1959

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#25 Isabella Albonico in boldly colored plum-red and blue print two-piece dress on Liberty of London silk by Mollie Parnis, red straw pagoda hat by Sally Victor, earrings by Hattie Carnegie, April 1, 1961

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#26 Tamara Nyman in sky-blue wool tweed suit with geranium-pink silk blouse by Mollie Parnis, jewelry by David Webb, January 1, 1961

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#27 Anne de Zogheb in sleeveless brown linen skimmer, half-belted in back, by Mollie Parnis, earrings by Schlumberger of Tiffany’s, May 1, 1962

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#28 Dorothea in a bright green chiffon dress and stole fringed with ostrich feathers by Mollie Parnis, Vogue US, March 1963

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#29 Brigitte Bauer in a pin-pleat evening with fan-pleated top in pale floral print by Mollie Parnis, Vogue, April 15, 1964

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#30 Jean Shrimpton in white linen dress printed with spice-yellow pansies, with turtleneck and string tie at the waist by Mollie Parnis, KJL ring, June 1, 1964

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#31 Model in an evening coat of yellow matelasse by Mollie Parnis, Denmark, Vogue, October 1, 1964

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#32 Marisa Berenson in dress of pale flowers embroidered in beads on a nude-colored net over crêpe with bands of silver and gold at the neck and sleeves by Mollie Parnis, September 1, 1965

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#33 Veruschka in beautiful colorful silk chiffon dress that scarfs one shoulder and swirls the body in a silken swirl, by Mollie Parnis, Vogue, April 1, 1965

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#34 Isa Stoppi in celery-green short silk chiffon smock with sparkling orange and green beaded yoke by Mollie Parnis, earrings by Charles Elkaim, Harper’s Bazaar, February 1966

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#35 Françoise Hardy in silk belted shirtdress with bright colors blocked out like ships’ flags on a field of white by Mollie Parnis, shoes by Golo, Vogue, March 1, 1967

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#36 Gloria Friedrich in short, floaty dress of lace woven in silver and gold falling from a jeweled neck ending in a scalloped hem by Mollie Parnis, earrings by Schreiner, coiffure by Kenneth, September 1, 1967

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#37 Charlene Dash in dress of richly woven fabric with the look of tapestry by Mollie Parnis, Vogue US, July 1969

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