Fashion Entrepreneur/Dress Designer. She immigrated to the United States with her family in the late 1880s and settled with her family in New York City. There is a famous story that while on the ship to America, Hattie asked a fellow voyager about who the richest and most prosperous people in America were. The answer was, "Andrew Carnegie" and according to the story, young Hattie decided to change her name to Carnegie. Eventually the rest of her family dropped Kanengeiser and adopted the Carnegie name, a practice that was common among immigrants. She worked at various millinery establishments, and at Macy's. But in 1909 she, along with friend Rose Roth, opened her own business, a tiny hat shop. It was called "Carnegie – Ladies' Hatter." As the business grew, Hattie and Rose were able to hire workers who made the designs that Hattie developed. At this time, all fashion came from Paris, and so Hattie studied the Parisian styles, choosing only the best, and adapting them for her customers. And while she could neither sketch nor sew, Hattie was very good at communicating to her workers exactly what she wanted them to do. Her shop, at its peak, carried her own 'Hattie Carnegie Couture' collection, Paris couture imports from Chanel, Vionnet and Dior, a fur line, her several ready-to-wear lines under different names, a costume jewelry line, and a cosmetic line. Her dress designs were a success and soon she had such clients as Joan Crawford and the Duchess of Windsor. Hattie Carnegie's colorful clothing and chic costume jewelry, even today, are greatly sought after by fashion and jewelry collectors. In 1956 Hattie was laid to rest and unfortunately for the business, much of the desirability of the label lay in the woman herself, and after her death, the label lost a lot of its luster. The business closed its doors for good in 1976.
Fashion Entrepreneur/Dress Designer. She immigrated to the United States with her family in the late 1880s and settled with her family in New York City. There is a famous story that while on the ship to America, Hattie asked a fellow voyager about who the richest and most prosperous people in America were. The answer was, "Andrew Carnegie" and according to the story, young Hattie decided to change her name to Carnegie. Eventually the rest of her family dropped Kanengeiser and adopted the Carnegie name, a practice that was common among immigrants. She worked at various millinery establishments, and at Macy's. But in 1909 she, along with friend Rose Roth, opened her own business, a tiny hat shop. It was called "Carnegie – Ladies' Hatter." As the business grew, Hattie and Rose were able to hire workers who made the designs that Hattie developed. At this time, all fashion came from Paris, and so Hattie studied the Parisian styles, choosing only the best, and adapting them for her customers. And while she could neither sketch nor sew, Hattie was very good at communicating to her workers exactly what she wanted them to do. Her shop, at its peak, carried her own 'Hattie Carnegie Couture' collection, Paris couture imports from Chanel, Vionnet and Dior, a fur line, her several ready-to-wear lines under different names, a costume jewelry line, and a cosmetic line. Her dress designs were a success and soon she had such clients as Joan Crawford and the Duchess of Windsor. Hattie Carnegie's colorful clothing and chic costume jewelry, even today, are greatly sought after by fashion and jewelry collectors. In 1956 Hattie was laid to rest and unfortunately for the business, much of the desirability of the label lay in the woman herself, and after her death, the label lost a lot of its luster. The business closed its doors for good in 1976.
Bio by: Shock
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