48 years ago today, John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th President of the U.S. Following a major blizzard the night before, thousands of workers toiled to clear the streets of Washington, D.C. for the inaugural parade. The temperatures were bitterly cold at 22°F with wind chills making it feel like 7°F.
Jackie wore a taupe wool dress with matching coat designed by Oleg Cassini. Every element of her outfit was carefully considered. The coat had a small sable fur collar, and a matching sable fur muff was chosen to help keep the First Lady's hands warm during the ceremony. She wore the muff over long kidskin gloves.
Jackie started the day with simple black pumps, but later added fur trimmed boots for the walk in the snow.
And then, there's the hat. Jackie had been forced by her public role into wearing hats, as called for by formal protocol. The high domed pillbox style had been shown by Givenchy, Dior, and Balenciaga in their recent collections. At the time, Halston (yes, that Halston) was the custom milliner at Bergdorf Goodman, and he designed the seamless wool felt hat Jackie wore for the inauguration. She made fashion history, however, by choosing to wear the hat tipped to the back of her head rather than straight on top.Tomorrow, I'll look at the dress Jackie wore to the Inauguration Ball. And at noon today, I'll be glued to my television watching history in the making with a new inauguration.
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