Memories of Sharon Tate from Debra Tate 

Hello lovelies, today I will be discussing Memories of Sharon Tate from her sister Debra Tate. 

What types of clothes did Sharon like to wear?

Sharon preferred Clean, Elegant, Simple lines… Not frou-frou at all. She particularly liked antique camisoles. She didn’t like baggy clothes; she wasn’t into Granny Coats like others were. She liked tailored clothes, even her Peasant Tops were tailored. She also had an Indian Wedding shirt tailored. She had blouses with hook and eye buttons made with spun gold. She wore jeans and pedal pushers. 

How tall was Sharon? 

Sharon was 5’6 tall. She wore a size six dress and her shoe size was 6 1/2.

What was Sharon’s preference for perfume, make-up, lip stick, hand bags, shoes and accessories?

Sharon wasn’t into perfume, as she was scent sensitive. (I am, too.) She always had a clean, fresh scent. She loved this bath product called “Milk and Pearls”. I have her last bottle. 

Skin Care Products: She loved Erno Lazlo, which you can still buy and 

she never went to sleep with her make up on. 

Sharon’s favorite Make up: Her fave Lipstick: Ready? Vaseline! She kept little jars in her car. Sharon also liked Yardley clear lip gloss, and used her brown Max Factor eye brow pencil as a lip liner. 

Shoes: Sharon disliked wearing shoes…Whenever possible, she would go barefoot or wear ballet slippers. Classic Ballet Pink was the preferred color –but she wore black slippers, too. I definitely remember that she had a pair of red ones, because she wanted to match a red mini dress, so we spray painted a pink pair, and made it red. 

Accessories: Sharon wore big wide belts that went over jeans or skirts. She loved Chanel and Gucci handbags. Same brand for shoes, too. She had a big heavy, gold, Cartier cigarette lighter. 

Jewelry: Sharon loved big hoop earrings and thin Love Beads that were made of tiny glass beads…called Bugle Beads. She was not big on rings or heavy necklaces…I think she didn’t like rings because they brought attention to her hands and she used to bite her nails. Her real jewelry was a Cartier watch with a black reptile band. 

In her off time, when not working, Sharon was always fresh scrubbed and wore little or no make up, and often her hair in pony tail. She was not vain at all. It didn’t matter to her if people saw her without her make up on. 

What kind of music did Sharon like to listen to?

I remember Sharon listening to The Beatles, especially the Yellow Submarine Album over and over again. She liked Chicago and The Doors. When she was with Jay she started listening to Jazz, as Jay was a Jazz Connoisseur. She also enjoyed Classical Chamber Music.

Was Sharon a natural blonde?

Sharon’s natural color was in between ash blonde and mousy brown.

What was Sharon’s favorite flower?

Yellow Roses (as in the Yellow Rose of Texas) 

What brand of cigarettes did Sharon smoke?

Sharon smoked Tareyton cigarettes. 

Did she have a sense of humor or was she serious?

Sharon had a devilish sense of humor and she liked to play practical jokes. 

Could Sharon sing or play any musical instruments? 

No, Sharon couldn’t sing. She liked to sing and she’d sing with the radio or records, but not professionally. Mother played the piano and sang, but all Sharon and I could do is play “chopsticks”.

What was Sharon’s favorite color? 

Ecrue, which is a creamy white. Do I remember Sharon saying “I love Ecrue”? No. The reason I say that is because I still have a lot of her personal items from clothing to bedding and the majority of it is…ecrue! 

What could Sharon not stand? 

Inhumanity, injustice and animal cruelty.

Who were some of the stars that used to pal around with Sharon and Roman? 

Everyone who was anyone back in the 60’s! Sharon and Roman were definitely “A-Listers” and you never knew who they’d be out with or who they’d have over, as they were very social. One particular memory stands out…. Sharon and Roman hosted a party at the Chateau Marmont and the Beatles were there. Why this stands out in my mind is because Sharon also invited our parents. Talk about severely diversified generations…it takes a sophisticated sense of humor to imagine the irony Debra fondly remembers… 

Yummy, greasy burgers…

Sharon used to take me to the Delores Diner in W. LA… It was a 50’s style Diner and they had car hops on roller skates…I heard it recently was torn down… at Wilshire and Fairfax? Sharon absolutely adored the hamburgers at Delores’ Diner and she would order it laden with chili and the chili would drip down her arms …and she’d lick her arms as she ate! It was always the first place she’d go after returning home from Europe

Running around town…

I remember often running errands with Sharon. Her favorite Drug Store was REXALL at the corner of La Cienega and Melrose. We’d go and get sandwiches from Greenblatt’s Delicatessen and then run over to the Dry Cleaners

Have a cigar…

Sharon tried to teach me the fine art of smoking stogies. It was New Years Eve, and we were in Italy. Sharon was around eighteen or nineteen and I must have been around nine. We sat on the floor, cross legged, facing each other, and smoked one of Dad’s big cigars. We both got sick and turned green. Sharon was fine the next day, but I was sick for about three days. For years after Sharon would poke fun at me for not being able to ‘tough it out’ and she’d call me the “Green Goddess”. 

Phony Sandals…

Sharon hated wearing shoes, so she went barefoot as often as possible. She devised a clever way for us to go run errands without us having to put on shoes… She had these elastic bands that were about seven inches long that had beads on them. We would take the elastic and step one foot into it, then twist it around the ankle and then do a loop over the second toe, it would look like a figure 8. … it sort of looked like we had delicate sandals on… and then we would go into stores that had signs that said “No Bare feet”. of seeing the Beatles and Mom and Dad (who were straight out of the 1950’s)–in the same marijuana smoke filled room. 

What were Sharon’s favorite restaurants?

Sharon liked the Delores Diner, Hamburger Hamlet and El Coyote.

El Coyote became famous for a dish they served for one month out of the year. “Blue Corn Tortillas” and yes, the corn is actually blue. Sharon loved that dish.