About a year or so ago, I purchased a gorgeous cardigan and it has quickly become a standard item in my wardrobe (scroll to the end to see my Ethel cardigan).  The tag said that the brand was “Ethel of Beverly Hills” and a quick search on the internet brought up multiple gorgeous sweaters, each more beautiful than the next.

Ethel of Beverly Hills vintage clothing label on a vintage sweater.

I did find one Etsy seller (MsAnetVTG) who is selling 2 sweaters and she said that “The company was in business in the Los Angeles market from 1958 until the 1960’s, and even back then these sweaters were considered expensive”. So there is your brief brief history lesson on Ethel of Beverly Hills.

However, even though I cannot seem to find any information on them, I still think that their sweaters are absolutely gorgeous and I think I might start to turn into a collector very soon.

Lets take a browse shall we?

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. 

Note:If you click on a link and the item you are looking for is no longer available, don’t fret. Etsy & eBay are filled with 1000’s of options and updated daily. Do a search and see what comes up. You just never know what you will find!

Ethel of Beverly Hills

Beautiful 1950s & 1960s Sweaters / Cardigans / Boleros

This Ethel is wool with gorgeous pearls and rhinestones creating the letter “A” I believe. I have seen a couple of sweaters with a letter on it, so I wonder if this was something that made them standout?

Ethel Of Beverly Hills Wool Beige Sweater Cardigan

Etsy seller-MsAnetVTG

As I just mentioned above, here is another beautiful black knit Monogram D bolero sweater.

Ethel of Beverly Hills -Black Knit Monogram D Bolero Sweater.

One more Ethel 1950s Sweater with an 8 inch monogrammed C on the left front outlined in pearls and rhinestones.

1950s vintage womens sweater/ cardiganwith an 8 inch monogrammed C on the left front outlined in pearls and rhinestones from Ethel of Beverly Hills

Source: Etsy

I love the cutouts in this 1950s sweater!

1950s Fashion: Ethel of Beverly Hills 1950s vintage sweater

Etsy Seller-WhynaughtShop

As we move down the list, it’s becoming clearer and clearer that you can’t miss an Ethel sweater can you? They have a very distinct style that was unique to their brand.

Like this wonderful arrow design in this sweater, it’s lovely!

Ethel of Beverly Hills vintage sweater with an arrow design

Etsy Seller-wearitagain

The blue sweater colour is perfect and I love the tree design that is made up of metallic gold stitched with applied pearl discs.

1950s Fashion: Vintage 1950s Ethel of Beverly Hills vintage sweater with a tree stitched into it.

Seller-Poppy’s Vintage Clothing

If your name started with a “C” this would be perfect for you! Well… it’s not actually initials in this knockout number but it almost could be with what we have seen above.

vintage sweater from Ethel of Beverly Hills. featuring a stiched in design.

Etsy Seller-greenthreadsboutique

Now an Ethel that does not fit the mold like the ones shown above….

I LOVE IT!! Vintage 1950s Hand-Knit Black Bolero with Cotton Fringe Accents by Ethel of Beverly Hills

Vintage 1950s Hand-Knit Black Bolero with Cotton Fringe Accents by Ethel of Beverly Hills

Source

A 1950s Cardigan/ sweater in a pretty cream colour that is different from the others above (avail as of April 2023 HERE).

1950s vintage womens sweater/ cardigan by Ethel of Beverly Hills

Source: Etsy

Here is another style similar to the sweater above (this time from the 1960s). I feel as the brand moved into the 1960s they got away from their signature monogram look. Do you agree?

1960s Fashion: Blue mohair cardigan from Ethel of Beverly Hills.

Source: Etsy-AndSheWoreVintage

Here is a picture of one of my Ethel 1950s cardigans. Isn’t it a beauty?

1950s Fashion-Ethel of Beverly Hills 1950s sweater as seen on Liz from the Vintage Inn Blog.

Do you own an Ethel Sweater or did you have a favorite above? Maybe you happen to know the history of this brand? If so, please share!

Vintage Shopping: Do you love vintage cardigans? Then head to my Etsy Collection of vintage cardigans for sale (Including Ethel ones if they are avail).

Further Reading:

Liz 🙂

37 Comments on Ethel of Beverly Hills-Beautiful Vintage Sweaters

  2. My word, these are especially stunning! I love that they’re bold, but not overwhelming, if that makes sense. I love every last example highlighted here and now have a new item to add to my vintage shopping wishlist! 🙂

    Have an awesome start of April, dear Liz!
    ♥ Jessica

    Reply

    • Thanks Shermy! Well some of the ones I posted are for sale 🙂 Just saying lol!….They are not cheap and there does not seem to be a lot around from what I can see but they would be a wonderful addition to your collection.

      Reply

  4. I feel like I’ve seen the one with the cut outs recently 😮 However I know I have seen such a style in modern high end retail! What a neat brand.

    Reply

  6. Hey there! I have an Ethel of Beverly Hills cardigan in my Etsy shop, and came across this lovely blog of yours while doing research on the label. Thank you for creating such an extensive visual collection of these beautiful sweaters. Here’s my listing if you’d like to take a look at another style of sweaters made by this designer. It’s not as fancy as the others shown above, but more of an everyday wearable piece – and in such a fun, bright color!

    https://www.etsy.com/listing/216166280/vintage-60s-ethel-of-beverly-hills

    Reply

  7. I opened up an old steamer trunk of my mother’s (she passed in 2001), and two of these were in there! They are along the lines of the one with the “C”. I’m going to be posting them soon on either eBay or Etsy.

    Love yours, BTW – super cute and classy!

    Reply

  8. Ethel (Adler-Gellis) of Beverly Hills was my Aunt and an amazing clothing designer and business owner….she had an eye for fashion. She moved from Montreal to Los Angeles as a young woman and built her business from the ground up ….a woman way ahead of her time.

    Reply

    • Oh my goodness. ADAM! You don’t even know how many people have emailed me wanting to know more about your aunt as there is nothing out there about her. Thank you for dropping me a line! This little bit of information you have supplied me is more than I have ever been able to find.

      So your Aunt was Canadian, this THRILLS my Canadian heart to pieces that she was originally from Montreal. Would you happen to have any more information you might be able to supply me or could you point me in the direction where I might be able to know more? I absolutely 100% beyond a doubt adore her line of clothing and have made it my mission to acquire many more of her sweaters. I would love to do a follow up post to help answer other fans questions about her. I find it important that designers get their recognition especially from the earlier days where sometimes designers got lost in the shuffle on documentation of their history (hence why nobody knows anything about Ethel).

      If you don’t know anymore that is 100% okay. Just hearing the bit that you supplied me here, makes me very happy.

      Thanks again for stopping by Adam. Have a wonderful day.

      Liz 🙂

      Reply

      • Liz,
        I’m her grandson and can tell you anything you want to know– Adam is my second cousin- I have a great oil painting of Ethel and a few photos I would love to post, but I can’t figure out how.

        Reply

    • Ethel Gellis was my mother who was in business in Los Angeles from the early 50’s to early 70’s. Her sweaters were sold all over the country in high end stores such as Bonwitt Teller, Bullocks Wilshire, Goldwaters in AZ, and gift shops in Las Vegas hotels plus smaller boutique stores. I was a salesman for her at one time!

      Ethel was a prolific knitter and started in business crocheting “snoods” to sell after someone saw her wearing one she had made for herself. She started a cottage industry designing “stoles” made from tubular jersey farming out the finishing with beads and fringe to home sewers, selling them by the thousands before she even had a store.

      At some point Ethel opened a “knit shop” off of Wilshire and Fairfax in Los Angeles selling yarn etc. She loved to knit dresses out of ribbon!

      She closed her yarn store to open her factory at 818 South Broadway, Los Angeles.

      Ethel passed away in 1991.

      Reply

  9. I found a Ethel of Beverly Hills at a Goodwill Outlet while digging for treasure in the .89 a pound tubs. It is very beautiful and very different from the ones I have found on the internet. I came across your blog and thought you might want to see it. It is a long cream cardigan with really cool swirls. Let me know how I can send you a picture.

    Reply

  11. Ethel of Beverly Hills, was my grandmother Ethel Gellis– it’s so great to see her sweaters are still around and being enjoyed 50 plus years after they were made. I remember being in her factory in downtown LA as a kid and playing with all the beads and yarn.
    Thank you for the post about her!!

    Reply

    • ohh those is so marvelous! to hear from another family member of Ethel! I really love her sweaters and I know that many others do as well. I would love to take you up on your offer to ask more questions (I just need to prepare them) as there is not much out there on her. I would also love to see the photos and that painting. It might be easier to email me at: thevintageinnblog@gmail.com

      Thanks for reaching out 🙂

      Liz

      Reply
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