frontlines
Designing With Comfort, Style
Lynne Konstantin
Special to the Jewish News
T
hroughout her 50-year career, if fashion designer
Bette Appel didn't see it, she created it.
As a young mother in the 1960s, Appel, whose
then-husband Don introduced her to the local Jewish commu-
nity, did not like the clothing available for young children.
With a background in tailoring and a pas-
sion for numbers "and things that you can
make work:' she developed a mathematical
approach to designing clothing.
"I'm anti-gripper snap and ironing, and
darts are always in the wrong place says
Appel, 83, of Bloomfield Hills. "So I designed
a method with convex and concave lines. I
Bette Appel
wanted my kids to be comfortable"
Armed with 20 super-soft baby and
toddler pieces, Appel met with a buyer from the Jacobson's
department store.
"I thought, 'If she likes two pieces, I'm in business: But she
wanted everything:'
Soon, Me Too was in stores across the country — and Appel
was making appearances on the Today show.
But when the government issued a flame-retardant law for
children's nightwear, Appel was prevented from achieving the
silky softness she desired.
So she set her sights on a collection of womenswear, which
she called No Sweat, also trademarked as No Swet.
"I loved the Oxford gray of sweats:' says Appel, who would
es auran ... ince '
appropriate Champion products into
chic yet supremely wearable leggings,
jackets, bikinis and more.
When her long successful, trade-
marked No Sweat name was appropri-
ated by a U.S. Department of Labor
marketing campaign in the 1990s, she
set to work developing other various
lines, including women's beachwear
— vibrantly colored cover-ups, tanks
and bike shorts — and high-quality
tie-dyed jerseys, much of which will
be available at her upcoming sample
sale (see below).
Outerwear
Recently, she created a kimono-
by
styled hospital gown with business
Bette Appel
partner Judy Norwick. "Hospital
gowns are built for people who stay
in bed:' Appel says. "There was nothing that was comfortable,
with adequate coverage and functional for patients and nurses.
And I love a challenge:'
Within half an hour, she had a drawing of a gender-neutral,
adjustable, snap-free design.
"I've always been in love with a kimono; she says. "I figure
if it's been around since B.C.E., it's got to have worked:"
Currently being tested in hospitals, the GCgear (for "gotcha-
covered gear") gown will debut this summer, she hopes.
"Everything is an adventure," Appel says. "Each thing brought
me to another point. I just kept connecting the dots:'
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Robin Welford and Suzie Meklir, owners of Renew Hair
and Skin Center in Bingham Farms, will host a Bette
Appel Runway Sample Sale, with up to 80 percent off
designer pricing, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m.-
noon Saturday, March 28-29. Sale will feature all-seasons
ready-to-wear (sizes 6-8), outerwear (some oversized),
and shoes and boots (sizes 8-81/2). Cash and carry only.
A percentage of the proceeds will benefit the National
Alopecia Areata Foundation (hair loss counselor-life
coach Dr. Sandra Schiff will be on hand for personal
consultations). Renew is located at 30150 Telegraph
Road, Suite 173. Info: (248) 723-6398; www.renewhs.com .
JN CONTENTS
JEWISHNEWS
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Opening Day
March 31s
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Shabbat Lights
Shabbat: Friday, March 21, 7:28 p.m.
Shabbat Ends: Saturday, March 22, 8:30 p.m.
Shabbat: Friday, March 28, 7:36 p.m.
Shabbat Ends: Saturday, March 29, 8:38 p.m.
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Lobster and
Prime Rib
March 20 - 26, 2014 I 18-24 Adar II 5774 I Vol. CXLV, No. 7
Around Town
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Arts/Entertainment
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Calendar
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Celebrate .... Centerfold
Family Focus
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Fashion
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Food
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Israel ...5, 14, 16, 26, 27
JN Archives
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Saturday, March 22
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SOUL BAND
Starts at 8:00 PM
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Columnist
Danny Raskin
40
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