I would like to talk about Chico's a little. Everyone knows they have a fairly unique sizing chart, not quite boutique and certainly not plus size. I'm not going to talk size, though, and please understand that the comments expressed in this guide are purely my own opinions and not meant to anger anyone.

Chico's Design has  reinvented themselves over the years several times, sometimes to the chagrin of their faithful southwest pattern-buying customers. They have had several labels, and I will try to add pictures of them later. The first was a dinky little label sewn at the top, with "Chico's Design" on it. This lasted til the mid 90s, maybe a tad longer. During that time there was also an anniversary label with Chico's 10 Years on it. Eventually, they updated the Chico's Design label to be shiny and bigger. Then, in the last few years, they lost the 'Design', changed the font, and settled, for the moment, on a shiny block letter CHICO'S label, sewn all around.



During  what some would call the heyday, thru the mid-1990s, Chico's produced amazing cotton easy care clothing in patterns and matching solids. Very occasionally another thread was blended in; the Ismir pattern had a poly/cotton blend, heavy on the static.


There were annual, or even seasonal, themes. Caribbean Islands, US Indian Tribes, other tribal names, planets, cities, floral (in later years) are just a few. There were sets of colors for a theme, and it was pretty easy to mix and match your solids. A typical Chico's pattern was complex, containing 7-8 colors.  (There are plenty of exceptions, though, mainly at the end of the halcyon years).  A pattern might be released, over several seasons, in up to a dozen color combinations. Kilim and Tangiers are prime examples of this. And believe me, they were not all winners. :)

There were several fabrics - twill, knit, two-thread, which is a sortof fuzzy heavier fabric, and woven puckery cottons, or non-puckery ones.  

There were basically only two dozen or so pieces.  The Unconstructed Jacket, 3 kinds of vests, a few short and long sleeve knit tops in differing necklines and cuts, several pants styles, some shorts, a 'camp' shirt in either sleeve length, and pullover and button front two-thread jackets. Three skirt styles, generally, and occasionally a dress. If you knew that the loose-neck tee worked for you, and the cross-tab didn't, you had a pretty easy time buying at the stores or the outlets.

Chico's sourced much of this wonderful clothing from Turkey. In the mid 90s they reinvented themselves, seemingly, as Banana Republic, and as another 'when it's time for a dress' company. They switched to rayon and linen.  Happily, this didn't last. They went back to cotton, but expanded their production countries to include Peru, which was fine, but what they manufactured there was tight and stretchy and not geared to their original customer preferences. Fresh Produce did the same thing in the last couple years.  Chico's then had several years of heavy bulky rough less complex southwest looking patterns. They switched to the shorter boxy jacket, so popular, and so wrong for taller women. And then, China and India entered their sights, and if you've been to a Chico's recently, you'll see some of the most gorgeous stuff in the world, and some of the most impractical too.  Chico's has by far the most amazing India-produced clothing anywhere. It is not for me, but it is beautiful.  Ok, back to the past.

In my opinion, the term vintage Chico's, used informally by sellers, should only include the original Chico's. No rayon, no linen, no silk, nothing made in Peru (this is getting very technical). The new CHICO'S tagged items manifestly do not qualify, and the newer shiny Chico's Design label does not either.

Please be aware that the Chico's Design (small label) or 10 Years clothing you buy on ebay is 15 years old or more. It is washable, and any issues from being in a closet that long can be washed out with one use of warm water (cold is recommended generally, and NO fabric softener).  Chico's original clothing can wear out, but I've never really seen it happen.

Here is a list of the patterns I remember. I have a list, elsewhere, and will update when I find it.

60s Moderne
Aida
Aladdin
American Eagle
Antigua
Apache
Arizona
Athena
Batik Floral
Bedouin
Bocci (aka Boci)
Bronco
Cactus
Caravan
Casablanca
C-Block
Cherokee
Chi-Chi
Cornmaidens
Corsica
Desert Stripe
Garcia (for Jerry)
Gibraltar
Harem
Ismir
Jupiter
Kilim
Kiva
Le Madre
Lima
Lindy
Magic Carpet
Mardi Gras
Marrakech
Martinique
Masai
Medicine Man
Melange
Moorish
Myths
Navajo
Neptune
Oleander
Orbit
Ottoman Rose
Peruvian 
Reduced Kilim  -smaller pattern elements
Real
San Chez
Santa Cruz
Scrolls
Sequoia
Sophia
Stonehenge
Southwest Quilt
Tang
Tangier
Tangiers (yup)
Taos
Temple
Thebes  
Venus
Visions
Yuca
Zorba
 

 Memory lane... a wonderful place.