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Vintage fashions in Oakland with Theresa LaQuey Couture
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Ball Gown Created by Theresa LaQuey
Buzzwords abound in fashion these days – recycle, restructure, reuse. But for some of us these are not new concepts. Seamstress and designer, Theresa LaQuey has been into the three Rs for as long as she can remember. The Oakland resident hasn’t shopped for clothes in years. She doesn’t need to, she makes her own and always vintage inspired.
In her charming bungalow house, Ms. LaQuey works her magic creating fabulous wedding gowns, ball gowns, suits, dresses, and even hats for herself and for her business, Theresa LaQuey Couture. She has the enviable talent of being able to stitch up the most complex of designs, often just from a picture. One recent example is a copy of an Elsa Schiaparelli gown she made for a client as a wedding dress. “About fifty percent of my business is bridal,” says Ms. LaQuey, donning a white pair of 1930s inspired wide-leg pants and yellow silk crepe jacquard top with a bow tie at the neck. “But I also make ball gowns for Art Deco Society events and suits for business professionals who want a vintage look but need to stay away from costume.”
Ms. LaQuey comes from a long line of seamstresses. Her mother was Head Costumer for the theater department at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill. Starting at age eight, Ms. LaQuey spent time helping with the costumes. “I think my first show was The Pajama Game,” she recalls. Her affection for vintage fashions began as a teenager perusing thrift stores. A tall girl, she had trouble finding clothing to fit. “At one store I discovered a bin of vintage patterns and I realized I could make my own clothes,” says Ms. LaQuey. Thirty-five hundred patterns later, she’s still collecting and very much immersed in styles of the past, particularly the 1930s. “I don’t even own a pair of jeans,” she says with pride.
After a stint in a punk rock band and a short marriage to the lead singer of the Dead Kennedys, Ms. LaQuey got her certificate in Fashion Design at Diablo Valley College in 1987. She attended at the urging of her mother. “I resisted at first,” admits Ms. LaQuey, “but once I started, I loved the challenge.” She especially enjoyed learning to make patterns. That early exposure and fondness for patterns combined with a knack for numbers, paved the way to a job creating patterns for Simplicity.
Sharing in Ms. LaQuey’s vintage lifestyle is her new husband Joseph Di Peitro Jr., a dapper dresser himself, and Lyda, a very stylish black and brown dachshund named after the 1930s movie star, Lyda Roberti. When not at the sewing machine, Ms. LaQuey can be found onstage performing under her stage name, Ann Gibson. She sings ragtime, of course! “I’m not about new,” says Ms. LaQuey. “My style is classic.”
For more information about Theresa LaQuey Couture: http://www.theresalaquey.com/
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