"I have always loved things that better with age"-Ralph Lauren
It is hard to think of any Ralph Lauren piece as "vintage" as the iconic designer's style is so classic that his pieces define timeless. Creating a lifestyle reflective of "worlds" that have inspired him from The Classic American West, School Prep, Hollywood Glamour and as we have seen with his connection to Downton Abbey, The Traditional English Estate, the Ralph Lauren brand can never grow old but many pieces from 45 years of designing the American look are highly collectible. The designer has launched RL Vintage
to celebrate specific and collectable pieces from his design archives of over 45 years that demonstrate his passion for craftsmanship and heritage...and that reflect Ralph Lauren's belief in "...a simpler kind of beauty that's connected to the past but not bound by it."
These are rare and authentic pieces and not replicas of designs. The first pieces in the RL Vintage offering, which is almost all sold out, were from his passion for The American West. This is how we came to know and love Ralph Lauren style-rugged workman denim, cowboy boots, cowhide, serape stripes, prairie skirts, concha belts, turquoise jewelry, fringed suede and leather jackets, shearling, Southwest inspired sweaters and coats
and the iconic America Flag sweater.
Visiting the RL Vintage site is like a wonderful musuem trip to see curated pieces from America's most beloved designer and part of the fun is the "Bring it Back" Program where you can vote to decide from a selected group of iconic Ralph Lauren products which will be put back into limited production. The Teddy Bear lover, knitter and Ralph Lauren Teddy Bear collector in me was excited to see that the first group released for voting in Bring it Back was the Polo Bear sweater!
In the early years of the Ralph Lauren design house his staff presented Mr. Lauren with a custom designed Steiff Bear for his birthday sporting the Ralph Lauren denim look. Mr. Lauren loved it so much that this became a birthday tradition and each year the Lauren team worked to design a Steiff bear that was dressed in an outfit Mr. Lauren had worn.
Over the years he was presented with a Western Bear, a ski bear, a preppy bear, a dinner jacket bear... Since Mr. Lauren is a bear lover he released limited edition collectable bears with impeccable detail which made them very costly and highly sought after.
To make the Bears more accessible the Polo Bear Sweater was created in 1991. Knit in each sweater was one of the well dressed Polo Bears and these became part of the signature of the Polo Brand and among the most collectable of the designers products.
Polo Bear Sweaters from the 1990s can be found on Ebay for as much as $800
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...and the winners are...
Dates have not yet been given as to when these precious two will be released for sale but in the meantime, maybe I will cast on one of my favorite Vintage RL sweater designs---timeless!
Fall 1981 via
images via ralphlauren.com and RLWintage.com
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