Meng - French General: Treasured Notions

Text copyright 2010 by Kaari Meng.

Foreword text copyright 2010 by Marcia Ceppos.

Photographs copyright 2010 by Jon Zabala.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in
any form without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available.

ISBN: 978-0-8118-7212-6

Designed by Katie Heit

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Time stopped in 1940 in Tinsel Tradings basement: the walls peeling paint, the old rusted shelves, the acidic smell of metal, and endless boxes overflowing with vintage thread, tassels, trims, and fringesa collection of goods that spans seventy-five years and was hidden until now. This remarkable treasure trove is the product of one mansmy grandfathersobsession with unique notions. It started with a casual interest in shiny gold-and-silver threads and grew into the most extraordinary inventory of materials gathered from all over the world. To this day, a large amount of this inventory remains in our basement, still wound on the French manufacturers original wooden spools and wrapped in paper with handwritten gold labels. Many notions still nest safely in the handmade wooden crates sent by sea from France. I hope to keep these authentic crates closed for as long as possible, perpetuating the history and mystery of my grandfathers company, Tinsel Trading Company.

After a brief job as a mechanic for the army during WWI, my grandfather, Arch Bergoffen, went to work in Manhattan at the French Tinsel Co., a vendor of metal threads made in France. Because his father was a tailor, Arch was intrigued by the threads and spent years working for the company. Eventually, in 1933, he purchased the business and began his own: Tinsel Trading Company was born.

During World War II, his biggest client turned out to be the U.S. government. Unable to import metal threads for sewing and embroidering military uniforms, the government relied on my grandfather, who had stockpiled thousands and thousands of spools of metal thread. With European fashion at a wartime standstill, American designers began to emerge as industry trendsetters. Metal thread was in demand and Tinsel Trading was the only place to go.

After the war, my grandfather realized he needed to offer a wider variety of embellishments. Tinsel Trading would always specialize in metals, but he grew the business to include trims, tassels, fringes, cords, fabrics, and all sorts of wonders. He hunted for anything made before 1950. Soon, word got out to every vendor and salesman and he never had to travel further than the front door. Everyone who had old and useless stuff lying aroundmost of it from outside the United Stateshad heard about that crazy guy on 38th Street who would buy almost any kind of trim as long as it was old. Little did they know that their junk was gold to my grandfather. He bought beautiful ombre ribbons woven in France, glass buttons made in Czechoslovakia, French and German tassels, raffia ornaments produced in Italy, and anything else that attracted him (even Brazilian beetles from the 1930s). If it remotely fit into his idea of a creative decorative item, he wanted it.

Hundreds of boxes arrived over the yearsmany went unopened. One piece of each item would be put out for sale on the shelves, but the rest went down into the basement, one box piled on top of another, blocking aisles and passageways, sitting unopened and unmarked. Eventually those years turned into decades and when my grandfather died in 1989, the basement was filled with thousands and thousands of items. It was an unorganized, cluttered mass of wonderment. All you could do was gaze in astonishment.

Now, for the first time, Im thrilled to share these wonders with the world. After my grandfather passed away, it became my job to bring Tinsel Trading into the next century. It would be a formidable and at times overwhelming task, but I knew I could and would accomplish it. My passion and determination would carry me through. Along the way, the people I have met during this adventure have been most remarkable: famous movie stars, singers, architects, and fashion designers such as Ralph Lauren, Anna Sui, and John Galliano. Every day I meet amazing artists and talented everyday crafters who just want to create something special.

I met Kaari Meng in the early 1990s when she was designing wholesale costume jewelry. We immediately recognized that we shared a love for antique notions. Over the years we became friends. For years, When can I see the basement? was Kaaris mantra whenever we spoke. I would laugh and repeat my own mantra, No one goes to the basement except my employees. There were times I thought she would apply for a job just to get a chance to see what lay below.

I finally relented to Kaaris pleading. Was that ever the right move! In May 2008, Kaari and her sister, Molly, came to New York. With barely contained excitement, they headed down the narrow steps to what Kaari had waited for, for over fifteen years. That day, they spent hours exploring the basement. Every few minutes I would check to see if they were still breathing. Oohs, aahs, and gasps confirmed that they were never better.

This book shares Kaaris experience that day and our belief that with beautiful ingredients, anything is possible. I hope you enjoy the tour.

MARCIA CEPPOS

Owner, Tinsel Trading Company

When I started my jewelry business, Kaari Meng Designs, back in 1992, I rented a small studio on the second floor of an old building on 38th Street in New York City. I created a line of costume jewelry based on vintage beads, buttons, and baubles. Since that time, I have been obsessed with finding vintage notions to use in jewelry making and other craft projects. I look for everything from milk glass stamens to coral velvet leaves. I used to search out treasures in the millinery and trim district of Manhattanan area with dozens of old shops selling ribbons, flowers, feathers, beads, buttons, and trim to fashion designers. I would spend my lunch hour walking up and down the blocks between 5th and 6th Avenues looking for stores or private stashes of old notions. Once I found a shop carrying great old stock, I always asked if I could visit their basement. Usually, I was warned the basements were dark, cramped, and unorganized. Even better, I would think. In the basement, I would set to work digging out the gems that were hidden underneath decades of inventory. I was looking for batches of the odd and unusual bits left behindmaterials so popular in their day, thousands and thousands of pieces were made to accommodate the ladies decorative-trim business.