BY DESIGN : The Way They Wore : When Designers Recall Their Formative Gear, Memories Often Open a Door on Today’s Closets

Can you recall a specific outfit from years past, how it looked and made you feel? That off-the-shoulder pink prom dress, perhaps, or a favorite pair of flannel PJs you wore until the elastic waistband disintegrated.

We asked several designers to reminisce about the attire of their youth. Their responses unleashed colorful, telling memories as well as a snapshot of former fashion trends. Often we found that what they wore as children had a direct influence on the way they design today.

Sandra Harvey, 34, Costa Mesa, Sandra Harvey Boutique--hauntingly romantic women’s wear:

“I was a teen in the ‘70s and did thrift shopping and sewed, and the things that stick out in my memory are those slinky evening gowns from the ‘30s and ‘40s that I could get for a couple bucks, and the jet beads and fabulous broaches. And now as a designer, guess what I’m doing? Exactly that.

“My favorite outfit was a 1964 knit Chanel jacket, hot-pink with muted yellows, which I wore over long, backless dresses or over jeans. It was kind of like my trademark. My grandmother gave it to me when I was 16. She said, ‘Don’t listen to what people say; you can never be overdressed, never, ever, ever, because that way, you are fabulous and then you always stand out.’ And it’s true.”

Dana Bernard (formerly Dartez), 28, Irvine, Spot Girl--women’s wear “we call Jackie O. meets ‘Reality Bites,’ or retro for the ‘90s”:

“I remember one dress that I had when I was 3 years old, this mini pink (fake) leather zipper dress with a zipper all the way up the front and a big metal ring at the top, the zipper pull.

“One time my mother took me for portrait pictures at Sears, you know, where you get like 20 shots, and I just remember having to wear this dress, and I thought I was the coolest thing in the world. . . . At 3 years old I was already a clothes horse, I guess. I put it in my line this past season, in suede, corduroy and plaids, and it sold again. History does repeat itself.”

Sean Barger, 26, Costa Mesa, Hi-Fi Mfg--streetwear currently peppered with religious images:

“I had a really cool, like bell-bottom jumpsuit that I wore as a little kid; I was like 5 or 6, and I really dug it. It was really bright with yellow, blue and red-and-white stripes all through it. My brother had a matching one, and we wore them together.”

This outfit didn’t influence his design style, “but my grandmother used to dress me in really weird stuff; she put wigs on me, she put earrings on me, she put clothes on me, and I think that definitely had an effect on me. I have tons of jewelry--I’m all pierced up--and I’ve always been really into dressing up.”

David Dart, 32, Los Angeles, David Dart--casual wear:

“There’s one thing I always will remember: My brother and me in a picture, and I’m wearing a pair of shorts, knickers really, with ladybugs on them, and my brother is wearing a pair with grasshoppers on them. Both of us felt very ridiculous in them, but, of course, Mom wanted us to wear them. . . . The picture was taken on an Easter Sunday in my grandmother’s yard in Dover, N.J. I was under 10.”

Rick Lohr, 35, Newport Beach, Katin Surf Wear:

“In 1974 or ‘75, I was a freshman in high school, and I played freshman football, and on game day, Friday, you’d have to wear a tie. My mom was kind of into clothes that I was bashful to wear, like too much of a statement, so she picked out platform shoes--there were cooking, and ‘Shaft’ was in the (movie) theaters--and a powder-blue sweater with a matching long-sleeved shirt with one of those big ‘70s collars. The ensemble was not complete without a giant bow tie, like Richard Pryor would wear, also powder blue. It was buff.

“At first I was a little intimidated because it was such an upfront fashion statement, but after feeling the vibe on other people, that they liked it . . . man, I was feeling good, and I think I was the most together-looking guy. Like most people had square, hand-me-down bad stuff from their older brothers or dads.”

Jim Duval, 30, Irvine, 26 Red--streetwear:

“I had a mini-striped Hang 10 knit top that was deep navy blue and deep red, and I wore the thing until it had holes in it. I used to wear it with a pair of boot-cut pin-chord blue Levis, and I was styling.

“I did a couple of pieces for the summer line that are leaning toward that basic mini-stripe, and they’re definitely very vintage, retro-colored. I have one that’s red and navy.”

Tamera Beardsley, 35, Rancho Santa Margarita, Tamera Beardsley--dramatic jewelry.

“When I was in the second grade, I had a light-blue voile dress with little white daisies sewn or appliqued onto it, and I wore the dress with a blue velvet headband. I had my hair in a flip. I wore it first as a birthday dress, and I remember the birthday party, and I guess I remember being one of the better dressed kids. I had little black patent leather shoes that went with it, and I couldn’t wait to put it on.”

The outfit “definitely (influenced my design style). My mom, who made the dress, was into coordinating everything, and that’s definitely carried through. More than anything was the pride in how I looked.”

Barbara McReynolds, 48, Los Angeles, l.a. Eyeworks--fashionable, functional eye wear:

“In 1962, the year that surfing really becoming big, things got loose. We kind of stepped out of what I’d call girlie fashions.

“I was a sophomore at Huntington Beach High School, and the outfit we wore was a cotton blouse and a lightweight, sky-blue parka with a short pleated skirt. I had a plaid one and a gray wool one. We wore our hair long and combed to the side so it hung in our face. We were getting away from what (was) mom and dad’s idea of how 14-year-olds should look . . . . I felt liberated, I felt like a rebel, like I was making my individual statement.”

Gai Gherardi, 48, Los Angeles, l.a. Eyeworks:

“I had an incredible love for shoes, and, when I was 8, my mom let me buy a pair of shoes that were really for boys. They were white bucks with rubber-band red soles. They were the most sensational thing in the world, and they had a hinging mechanism so you used the tongue, which had reinforced metal on the inside, to close the shoe instead of laces.

“My favorite outfit was to wear my white bucks with this wristwatch band my mom had made me of white rabbit fur with little rhinestones embedded in it, and a pink dress shirt of my dad’s.

“Everything (in the outfit) was custom, that was the word. . . . I loved the idea that I had never seen it before, and it was really, really incredibly empowering. I felt that it was not fancy, but very special. I felt unique. But what I loved more was that, because they were boy’s shoes, there weren’t any girls that had them, which made it a little risque, as did my watchband with rabbit fur, as did this huge shirt of my father’s. It was very risque, like I was breaking the rules, and I loved that my parents gave me permission for that. They were behind my statement.

“It’s the boldness about it that I’d relate to today. I feel we’ve done what we wanted.”