An outstanding characteristic of "moderne" French fabrics is their out-and-out luxury. By this time, the French textile industry had long since reestablished itself worldwide as the primary supplier of sumptuous fabrics for fashion. Anna and Laura Tirocchi were quick to profit from this. In 1929, Anna Tirocchi ordered a fabric from Bianchini, Férier that was of unparalleled richness. A black silk chiffon, completely encrusted with brocaded gold threads in a geometric pattern, it was made into a garment and sold immediately to a client [fig. 188]. Another fabric dates from March 1929 and was imported by the Harry Angelo Company. It is a "robe" with a black chiffon bodice, down to tunic length, which is embroidered with thousands of tiny white seed beads in a scroll pattern [fig. 189]. When sewn together, the dress would have had a softly full short skirt of plain black chiffon. The cost to Anna Tirocchi was $39.50. A third example of the French idea of chic luxury is a "robe" dated to fall 1932, also from Harry Angelo Company. By this time, hemlines had descended and the silhouette was closer to the body. This unmade jacket is of a black silk crepe embroidered in stylized roundels reminiscent of Chinese design [fig. 190], a bargain at only $20. The fabric, sewn to a buckram band, was accompanied by a drawing of the jacket the Tirocchis were to produce from it, tight to the body, but with long, full sleeves, the better to show off the large expanses of black and gold. These fabrics form a perfect advertisement for the newly rejuvenated French textile industry and illustrate in an immediate way the reason French textiles were so beloved by the elite Tirocchi clientele.

In the 1920s, dress trims, clips, and jewelry echoed textile motifs. They illustrate in a most charmingly miniature form some of the artistic concerns of the era. A Japonist dress ornament with a cream-colored figure of a Japanese woman and child attached to a dark medallion is a particularly appealing detail [fig. 191]. Its tag reveals that Anna patronized other establishments besides suppliers to the couture. According to its attached tag (not shown), she purchased the medallion in Paris on the third floor of the Printemps department store; thus it must date to 1924 or 1926-27, the dates of her two trips to the city. Another ornament, a large plaque with Chinese lettering and a long black silk fringe and lacquered beads, reflects the popularity of Oriental motifs of all kinds.

"Machine-age" motifs of the 1930s seem particularly suited to jeweled trims. The geometric arrangements of rhinestones found in two pieces from the Tirocchi shop reflect this purist aesthetic. Their quintessential Art Deco look is based on the strict alignment of simple components: circles, rectangles, and straight lines. One, a belt buckle, is based on a pattern of interrelated circles and rectangles [fig. 192], while a pin is set with rhinestones in a step-back pattern that echoes skyscraper designs [fig. 193]. They seem especially designed to add sophistication and glitter to a classic streamlined black gown of the 1930s. The Tirocchis kept many of these pieces in small trays covered in black that showed off the modernist designs to perfection [fig. 194]. Among the jewelry is a small pin with steely glitter and purity of line reminiscent of nothing so much as the wheels and struts of America's streamlined locomotives [fig. 195]. Like much of the jewelry from the shop, it is an example of pure "machine-age" inspiration.