irvine sellars

The Soft Touch

1970s, annacat, Ballantyne, Buckle Under, C&A, coopers, cosmopolitan, Deirdre McSharry, Fenwick, Herbert Johnson, Ian Knipe, Inspirational Images, irvine sellars, Janet Ibbotson, Jasper, jean varon, Jenny Harrington, john bates, John Craig, john kelly, Samm, Spectrum, terry de havilland, The Purple Shop, Trille, Turnbull & Asser, Vintage Editorials
Just the jacket, for interviewing the gardener… if he’s as handsome as Ian Knipe. Trille does the Lady Bountiful bit in yellow and a romantic hat. Jacket C&A £9.95, felt hat by Herbert Johnson, pearls by Ciro. Yellow angora sweater by John Craig, £2.10.

There is a licence to touch all the clothes on these pages. There is not a single trad, scratchy, thornproof tweed among any of the frankly tactile silks, angoras and flannels of autumn. Jerseys and pearls and sensible shoes were once the uniform of the WI. Now, (well) kept ladies whose fingers smell of “Cabochard” rather than cabbage, are pressing their flannel bags, having their pearls restrung and are wearing them with shirts so unbuttoned they could catch pneumonia – and heels high enough to rise above the muddiest farmyard. They are taking to pleated kilts, and cashmere sweaters so tight they’d enliven the dullest game of backgammon. Dinner dresses are back in style, and I do mean back down as far as you can go. Properly and provocatively dressed, a weekend in the country might be more fun than you think.

Hair arranged for all pictures by Carl of Molton Brown.

Fashion by Deirdre McSharry.

Photographed by John Kelly.

Scanned from Cosmopolitan, October 1972.

Give into the call of the wild, but come on softly in silk, angora and flannel. Jenny Harrington sends Ian Knipe slightly wild in her silk shirt, £15, flannel bags £16.50 by Annacat, and angora cardigan, John Craig £5. Fish pendant by Ciro. Ian’s camelhair sweater Ballantyne, £11.50. (Inset: The smoothest tweed in the softest shape will make you want to throw away your old trench. A great way to look for opening bazaars – and coping with Mellors. Coat by Coopers £33, hat by Herbert Johnson, £8.95.)
What would the WI say? Trille lolls about in cashmere sweater, skirt and pearls- -and shoes too high for country lawns. Sweater £11, skirt £30, both by Ballantyne. Pearls by Ciro. Shoes by Samm, £7.50.
Who’s for backgammon? Trille and Jenny get down to it (right) in necklines that ought to fetch the men from their port, on the double. Trille in red jersey dinner dress, John Bates for Jean Varon £16.75, shoes by Terry de Havilland £15.95, pearls by Ciro. Jenny in cream satin shirt by Coopers, £8, and pleated plaid skirt, Gor-Ray f11.95. Red shoes by Samm, £7.50.
The sporting life means quick repairs on the run. Jenny puts back the paint, stays ladylike in powder soft suede and silk. Jacket and skirt by Janet Ibbotson; the jacket costs £38, the skirt £33.50. Silk shirt Fenwicks, £11.50. Jewellery and shagreen compact from The Purple Shop. Shoes by Samm, £7.95.
Long weekends can lead to explosive situations – Jenny ignites something in her cashmere and kilt. Sweater by Ballantyne £13.50, skirt by Gor-Ray £11.95, shoes by Terry de Havilland £15.95. Pearls by Ciro. Ian in ruffled lawn shirt, Turnbull and Asser £11.75, check trousers Irvine Sellars £5.95.
By dawn’s early light a lady likes to relax. Ian wears C & A velvet suit £28; Trille in taffeta skirt and blouse, £5.50 each from Spectrum. Rose 84p from Spectrum. Shoes by Terry de Havilland, £12.99.
The softest touch of all is this mohair sweater (right), and a far cry from the clumpy rustic knits we used to wear. Jenny puts the new country clothes together gently—pink sweater, Buckle Under £12, pink wool skirt, Spectrum £6.95, hat by Herbert Johnson £7.50. Ian’s shirt by Jasper £5.50, check trousers £6.95 by Irvine Sellars. (Inset: Soft again —cream flannel blouse and satin trousers whipped up with beads and roses. Jenny’s blouse £5.50, trousers £5.50, flowers 84p, all from Spectrum. Ian’s blue shirt by Mr Harry £7.65.)

What’s A Nice Girl Like You Doing In A Place Like This?

1970s, Adrian Mann, Anne Tyrrell, biba, Brave New World, che guevara, Derber, Gilles Ben Simon, Ian Batten, Inspirational Images, irvine sellars, John Craig, Leicester Shoes, Martha Hill, mr freedom, Richard Green, Snob, stirling cooper, terry de havilland, Vintage Editorials
Flamboyant concertina-pleated Courtelle wrapover blouse with elasticated frilled waist £4, and skin-tight Lurex toreador pants £5 50, both by Martha Hill, 39 Marylebone High Street, W1, mail order 25p extra. Waist-cinching leather belt £4.70 and diamante bracelet £2 both from Biba , sheer seamed tights, Mary Quant 75p, diamante-studded snakeskin shoes, Leicester Shoes £13.99; egg-shaped choker, Baggage & General £1 50; plastic bobble earrings, 43p, carved plastic bangle 40p, both by Adrien Mann chiffon scarf 15p from Woolworths

Lurid Lurex, sexy satin and slinky leopard skin make the wildest look of all. Not to be confined to parties, dance halls or even billiard rooms—this is what you wear anywhere and everywhere.

Just one of the most deliciously styled and shot editorials. As so often happens with Terry de Havilland, his shoes are credited to Leicester Shoes in this editorial but they’re definitely his as they also feature in Vogue in 1972.

Photographed by Gilles Ben Simon.

Scanned from Honey, October 1972.

Jet black embossed satin wrapover blouse, John Craig, £4.50 from Miss Selfridge, Duke Street, W1. Luminous pink satin trousers, Mistermonte at Dolly Day, £4.25 from all branches of Werff ; Satisfaction, Ilford and Harrow; Habit, York. Cube-shaped choker, £1.50, carved plastic bangle, 40p, both by Adrien Mann; diamante studded earrings, Paul Stephens, £2.85; chiffon scarf, Woolworths, 15p.
Glittering ruched Lurex top with fluted sleeves, Ian Batten at Stirling Cooper, £5.95 from Peter Robinson, Oxford Circus, Slippery silver satin jeans, Seasons, £7 50 from Peter Robinson, Oxford Circus, W1 ; Pinnochio, Fulham Road, SW10 ; Brighton; Garbo, Edinburgh. Wide leather belt £4.75, oval plastic bracelet 50p, both from Biba; long pearl rope 85p, kaleidoscopic jewelled “shubsilk” bag, £1250, both by Paul Stephens; Lurex ankle socks, Mr Freedom 65p; metallic snakeskin shoes, Leicester Shoes, £12-99; flocked chiffon scarf, Woolworths, 25p; bobble earrings, Adrien Mann, 43p.
Startling yellow and black leopardskin printed dress with ruched bodice, Martha Hill, £4.50 from Martha Hill, 39 Marylebone High Street, W1, mail order 15p extra. Pearlised purple leather belt £4.70, plum plastic beads, £1.25, both by Biba; dangly jet earrings, Paul Stephens, £2.85.
Sparkling knitted Lurex halter-neck sweater, John Craig, £3 50 from Snob, 18 Golders Green Road, NW11, mail order 25p extra; also available from other branches of Snob. Pencil slim Lurex skirt, Brave New World, £5 50 from Che Guevara, Kensington High Street, W8. Fluorescent leather belt £4 75, pink plastic bracelet 50p, both from Biba; pearl rope wound round wrist 85p, diamante studded earrings 85p, both by Paul Stephens.
Black slash-neck Banton dress with tiered flounced skirt, Anne Tyrell for John Marks, £11-50 from Miss Selfridge, Duke Street, W1 ; Hobby, Cardiff ; Topaz, Oxon; Chez Monique, Brighton. Fishnet tights, Wolford 50p; jet drop earrings £2.85, large pearl bobble necklace 75p, both by Paul Stephens; diamante zig-zag bracelet, Biba £2; flocked pink chiffon scarf, Woolworths 21 p.
Slinky Tricel jersey vest with swirling handkerchief pointed hem, Martha Hill, £7.50 from Martha Hill, 39 Marylebone High Street, W1, mail order 1 5p extra. Dusty pink rose from a selection at Miss Selfridge; oval elasticated bracelet, Biba 50p; scarlet chiffon scarf, Woolworths 15p; sheer tights, Mary Quant 75p; patent wedge-heeled shoes, Derber £6.99.
Skimpy cold and black Lurex vest £3 50, silver and black zig-zag printed jacket £5.50, both from Martha Hill, 39 Marylebone High Street, W1, mail order 1 5p extra. Black satin trousers, Richard Green, £5.60 from main branches of Irvine Sellars; Peter Robinson, Croydon, Norwich and Cardiff ; Gillian Richard Shop, Kendal Milne, Manchester. Scarlet leather belt, £4.75, black plastic bangles, 45p each, both by Biba ; white poppet beads, Woolworths 25P; black drop earrings, Paul Stephens £2.85.

Far From the Madding Crowd

1970s, Ann Reeves, biba, british boutique movement, bus stop, Inspirational Images, irvine sellars, jeff banks, John Carter, lee bender, miss selfridge, mr freedom, peter robinson, petticoat magazine, topshop

Left to right: Dress, Jeff Banks, £9.90, P.R’s Top Shop. Dress, Ann Reeves, £9.25, Miss Selfridge,

Soft country girl dresses falling just below the knee in dark flowery prints ready for autumn, great for now. Looking sweet and old-fashioned with padded shoulders, sweetheart necklines or rever collars and cuffs – and all they really need is you and some romantic thoughts!

Very David Hamilton/Sarah Moon influenced shoot by John Carter. Scanned from Petticoat, July 1973.

Left to right: Beige dress, Jeff Banks, £9.90, Lady Tramp SW3. Mr Freedom hat, £2.50. Cream dress, Bus Stop, £9.95.

Left to right: Floral dress, Jeff Banks, £15.90, Irvine Sellars, sizal hat £2.50 from Biba. Black print dress, Ann Reeves, £9, Miss Selfridge.

 

Bagged!

1970s, aristos, art of bags, biba, british boutique movement, chelsea girl, countdown, crowthers, irvine sellars, jean varon, john bates, just looking, king's road, laura ashley, mr freedom, ravel, stop the shop, take 6

Aristos © John Hendy

I couldn’t resist following ‘Tagged!’ with ‘Bagged!’. The art of the carrier bag seems even less appreciated than the art of the hang tag, despite its importance in the history of advertising and consumerism.

On Simon Hendy’s incredible website “My Dad’s Photos“, Simon has scanned a mountain of original photos that his father took across six years of fashionable (and not so fashionable) people on the King’s Road in the late Sixties and early Seventies. It is truly a delight to sift your way through them. They are a true time capsule of ‘real’ people wearing ‘real’ clothes in a period where photo opportunities were frequently engineered and crafted (as brilliant as Frank Habicht’s ‘In The Sixties’ is, it’s a very well-crafted form of ‘candid’ photography). I will definitely post about them again, not least because I recognise so many bits of clothing from designers I love.

However, today’s post is about the carrier bag. For, as I was sifting through and starting to get a bit dizzy with the amazingness of it all, I started to notice the bags people were carrying. Biba, Aristos, Stop the Shop, Crowthers… These are truly ephemeral items. How many people bother to keep a plastic bag? You might, if you were lucky, have wrapped something up in one and plonked it in your loft for the past forty years. But these examples are few and far between. The iconic design of the original Biba bags has ensured that they are the most regularly found on eBay, but few of any other kind have slipped through the net.

I did, however, find a ‘Jean Varon’ bag on eBay very recently, which has now taken its place in my collection of weird and wonderful ephemera.

Simon has kindly allowed me to link to his photos from my blog. I know it’s hard to keep such things under control in this age of tumblr etc, but I would appreciate if you would also ask him if you would like to repost his images somewhere else. He has spent many hours scanning these photos, photos which (unlike magazine scans) would not be available otherwise – from anyone else. Thank you!

Unidentified (possibly Mr Freedom at the back?) © John Hendy

Selfridges © John Hendy

Mates by Irvine Sellars © John Hendy

Guys and Dolls and C&A © John Hendy

Unknown © John Hendy

Fancy That © John Hendy

Chelsea Girl © John Hendy

Crowthers © John Hendy

Just Looking © John Hendy

Kids in Gear © John Hendy

Take 6 © John Hendy

Countdown © John Hendy

Ravel © John Hendy

Unknown (Mantra?) © John Hendy

Strides © John Hendy

Stop the Shop © John Hendy

Laura Ashley © John Hendy

Inspirational Illustrations: Play the Fashion Game

19 magazine, 1970s, Illustrations, irvine sellars, leslie chapman, paper dolls, ravel

I fear I may be thirty-eight years too late to enter this competition, but I definitely wouldn’t say no to a wardrobe full of Irvine Sellars gear! Let me know if any of you are crazy enough to print this out and make actual paper dolls (and please send photos…).

Illustrations by Leslie Chapman. Scanned from 19 Magazine, May 1974.

Must See Vintage Films: The Adventures of Barry McKenzie

aristos, barry humphries, films, Foale and Tuffin, haute naffness, irvine sellars, katy manning, peter cook, take 6, zandra rhodes

Ok, so perhaps the term ‘must see’ is not necessarily going to apply to most [sane] people, but if you’ve got an appetite for the naff, kitsch or questionable tastes in life (and as a reader of my blog, I fear this may be the case…) then The Adventures of Barry McKenzie (1972) should be right up your street.

The film is based on the comic strip from Private Eye, written by Barry Humphries and illustrated by Nicholas Garland, and follows the eponymous Aussie hero as he fulfills his dead father’s wish to expand his cultural horizons in London. Ending up in Earl’s Court (where else?) a series of mishaps and misunderstandings lead Barry to an unspeakable dénouement in a TV studio. I am not even going to attempt to explain that.

Barry, Barry and Willie Rushton

Starring Barry Humphries in an early outing as plain old Mrs Edna Everage, Barry Crocker as our hero (Crocker is now married to Miss Peelpants-favourite Katy Manning and is best known to us ‘Pommy Bastards’ as the original singer of the Neighbours theme tune), and with cameos by Spike Milligan and Peter Cook, it is certainly quite an amazing period piece. Demonstrated perfectly with an incredible, possibly unique, shot of Barry and a friend walking down Marlborough Court. Yes, you can see Irvine Sellars ‘Mates’ boutique, Take 6, Aristos and Foale and Tuffin!!! Much excitement abounded….

Further still, one young lady is slinking around her apartment in the most perfect Zandra Rhodes outfit….

And then Peter Cook manages to floor me with a fabulous Betty Grable-printed t-shirt. I have no idea who this is by, so if any menswear geeks ever find out – please do let me know!