Nell Donnelly Reed
| Nell Donnelly Reed | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Ellen Quinlan March 6, 1889 Parsons, Kansas, United States |
| Died | September 8, 1991 (aged 102) Kansas City, Missouri |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Lindenwood College, St. Charles, Missouri |
| Occupation | Fashion designer |
| Spouse(s) |
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| Labels | Nelly Don |
Nell Donnelly Reed (March 6, 1889 – September 8, 1991) was an American fashion designer and businesswoman, famous for her house dresses, who founded the Nelly Don brand.
Nell was born Ellen Quinlan in Parsons, Kansas, the twelfth child of an Irish immigrant railroad worker and his wife. She attended Parsons High School, and following graduation, worked as a stenographer in Kansas City where, aged 17, she married a fellow tenant at her boarding-house, Paul J. Donnelly. A local representative for a shoe company, Donnelly supported her by pooling his earnings with hers to fund her studies at Lindenwood College where at the time, she was the only student to be married.
While the Donnellys had no children, Mr. Donnelly later adopted Nell's son, David, who was fathered in 1931 by Senator James Reed.
Nell had always insisted on looking nicely dressed all the time, even whilst working at home, for which many women wore cheaply made, unflattering 69-cent dresses.The New York Times reported that she said she wanted to "make women look pretty when they are washing dishes." Nell's ruffled dresses and aprons in good-quality, hard-wearing fabrics were made for herself and her family, but were admired by her friends and neighbours, who asked if she would make dresses for them too. In 1916 she started working commercially, selling her first designs through a large local department store, the Gregory B. Peck Dry Goods Company in Kansas. The original order of 216 dresses, run up by two seamstresses in the Donnelly's attic on newly purchased industrial sewing machines, rapidily sold out. This was despite the fact that at a dollar each, they were more expensive than the average housedresses.
In 1919, Nell and Paul Donnelly established the Donnelly Garment Company. The company rapidly grew through the 1920s, becoming known for its focus on good fit and durability combined with attractive designs. Each design was prototyped in every size it would be made in to ensure that the fit was correct and that purchasers would not be forced to alter them, with unsuccessful designs either reworked or not produced. As Nell was a size 16, she wanted her designs to look stylish and flattering on women of a wide range of sizes. In 1927, Kansas City voted Nell its most illustrious businesswoman for her success in turning them into a successful center for ready-to-wear production.
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