Retro fabrics put ‘60s images on screen
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Laura Sturza
With an oversized truck filled with trims for sewing on clown
skirts, “Top Cat” cartoon patches and blue and brown mushroom-printed
nylon cloth -- Judith Brahinsky moved to Burbank to open Esther’s
Vintage Fabrics in 2000.
Her Uncle Stanley might not have known what would become of the
boldly designed ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s fabrics he collected -- but his
niece thinks he would pleased with the splash they’ve made in film
world.
Stanley Brahinsky was an artist who purchased the strongest
graphics and colors he could find for the fabric shop he ran with his
mother Esther -- whether his St. Joseph, Mo. patrons wanted them or
not.
“All these little ladies wanted stuff for quilts -- like little
calicos,” Judith said.
After Brahinsky inherited the Missouri shop, much of the material
sat in storage until it was discovered by a graphic- design supplier
who referred studio contacts looking for reams of the hard-to-find
cloth.
Brahinsky saw that the studios were the best shot at the big time
for her retro stock. She came to Burbank where the cloth could leave
a lasting impression.
“If [the fabric’s] in a movie, it lives on -- it has an
immortality,” Brahinsky said.
Her uncle’s purchases now appear in films including “Austin Powers
in Goldmember” and “Auto Focus.”
The shop’s clients are set, costume and interior designers and
design students. Some customers learned about the shop online and
stopped in on a trip from Australia and Amsterdam so they could bring
the rare textiles home.
Set decorator K.C. Fox -- who is working on “Legally Blonde 2:
Red, White and Blonde” -- said Brahinsky’s collection is probably the
best in Los Angeles.
“Vintage fabrics offer unique looks and fun character elements,”
Fox said. “We can use fabric to convey a certain sense of exaggerated
style.”
Though her uncle could not have predicted what would become of the
merchandise he chose for its beauty, Brahinsky believes “there was a
reason why he bought all of this.”