If you haven’t a rag to your name, there is now Zandra Rhodes’ jersey, ripped, slashed and blue’stitched into her personal view of punk. She calls it “conceptual chic”. In style she thinks it is the first time the seventies have shown themselves. It is no holds barred style.
Mean streak of black jersey, this page, and another, opposite T-shirt shape under ragged tunic. All with blue cotton stitching, chains, ball bearings, safety pins, random diamante. All from Zandra Rhodes ; The Zandra Rhodes Shop at Harrods. Jersey by Racine. Very high heel gold sandals, Manolo Blahnik for Zapata. Hair by Fabian at Jean Louis David.
Maxine Smith in the bedroom, where the four-poster is set on a mirrored podium. Her satin nightdress and jacket by Zandra Rhodes. Hair by Celine at Leonard.
DRESSED BY ZANDRA RHODES STAGED BY MAXINE SMITH
Maxine and Gary Smith moved to London from New York in 1971. Since then, Gary Smith, American television producer and winner of several Emmy Awards, has been working with Sir Lew Grade on television spectaculars, and Maxine Smith has been planning their London flat with Zandra Rhodes. The combination of their ideas has worked perfectly, with one taking over where the other left off. Initially, Zandra Rhodes designed a series of fabrics. Maxine Smith then had them printed to her own colour pattern by Alex McIntyre, often using the same colourway and design on different fabrics so that texture changes have been subtly worked from cotton to felt to satin. Some sur-faces are flat, others gathered – as in the hall where felt blends with draped cotton. Throughout there is an instantaneous impact of colour, wit and comfort. As one becomes accustomed to the colours, one realises that the sitting-room is designed for midnight rather than midday, the windows permanently shuttered and the curtains drawn. One notices the enormous portrait of Lenny Bruce by Gary Smith, ‘twenties’ armchairs with covered feet found by Maxine Smith in Antique City, the Vogue needlepoint cushions all worked by her mother. In the bedroom, apricot satin and taffetas with a felt print ceiling and apricot-coloured cupboards, the bed set on a mirrored podium, and covered with cushions. Other points of colour are the red telephone, the amber carpet. Next, a completely cupboarded dressing-room. Then, the apricot bathroom. Downstairs, past a neon sign—”I love Max”—and other such illuminations, to the dining-room: originally a cellar, now a brilliant blue small tent. The kitchen has dark rust-coloured prints, the ceiling hung with a thousand cooking utensils and an enormous electric lamp bulb found at Selfridges. Just off the kitchen a bar, a platform bat on steps, with three-tier cushions as bar stools, and an embroidery of Whistler’s mother by Malcolm Poynter, which came from the DM Gallery, Fulham Road. London’s galleries and off-beat furniture shops have produced many other pieces of art and amusement, some of them transformed by Zandra Rhodes’ coverings, others untouched, all with a special blend of humour and art.
Photographed by Henry Clarke.
Scanned from Vogue, late April 1975.
The downstairs bar with Malcolm Poynter’s embroidery of Whistler’s mother in the background, cushions instead of bar stools.
Two views of the sitting-room, Maxine Smith wearing a Zandra Rhodes’ dress of the same print as the walls—”The dress came first, the walls followed.” All fabrics by Zandra Rhodes, from the range at Christopher Vane Percy, 5 Weighhouse St, W.1
The garden room leading off the bar.
The hall draped with cotton print.
The blue tent dining-room with candlesticks by Carole McNicholl
Silk chiffon with shadow lilies in white and iced green, washed over with a few pearly shells. Big full skirt over petticoat, a sash of Edwardian peach satin. Zandra Rhodes , £160, petticoat, £26, at Fortnum & Mason. Opal choker, £210, N. Bloom. Long opaline rope, £12, drop mother-of-pearl earrings, £15, from range, The Purple Shop. Opal/diamond ring, £550, at Andrew Grima. Snakeskin sandals, £29.50, Charles Jourdan. Scent, Vivre by Molyneux. Hair by Michael at Michaeljohn.
Model is Jane Goddard.
Photographed by David Bailey.
Scanned from Vogue, April 1st 1974.
Quatrefoil layers of silk chiffon in melon, apricot, candy pink, frilling over the arms. By Gina Fratini, £244 , at Selfridges ; Lucienne Phillips ; Diagonal, Guildford and Lucinda Byre, Liverpool. Carnelian and silver gilt ring, £30, silver and gunstone ring, £18.50, Bakelite drop earrings, £3, all from range at The Purple Shop.
Crossover bodice of black silk crepe framed in lipstick red a full Liberty print silk skirt and enormous gathered pockets edged in stripes. By Bill Gibb, about £140, at ZigZag ; Chic of Hampstead ; Vicki, Cobham ; Julie Fitzmaurice, Harrogate. Scarlet high heels, £28 to order, at The Chelsea Cobbler. Pale sheer tights, Charnos. Scent, Audace by Marcel Rochas.
Polyamide georgette rainbow gathered from small brassiere top, one strap going straight over shoulder, the other angled to centre. By John Bates at Jean Varon, £49.95, Fenwick ; Earkers ; Kendal Milne, Manchester ; Campus, Oxford. Green hoop earrings, £2, from range at The Purple Shop. Scent, Fidji by Laroche.
DEPTHS OF EVENING CHIFFON, CAFTAN AND DIRNDL DRESS MERGED WITH GOLD AND VELVET Above: Tobacco chiffon caftan with smoked gold leaves, hooded, boot-buttoned, Arabic sleeves weighted with tassels. Gathered from the waist with a twisted gold rope belt. Choker, The Purple Shop, 15 Flood St, S.W.3. Soft gold boots with open lacing, 22 gns, Kurt Geiger. Right: Black organza with a bib and skirt of brilliant panne velvet, red, green and yellow printed in ribbon bands, with bangles and cuffs of the velvet. Rings, Andrew Grima. Beaded black velvet choker, The Purple Shop. Black satin ankleboots, with bright passementerie, by Moya Bowler for Edouard Jerrold. Dresses, both pages, to order at Bellville Sassoon.
How you dress is an escape and an adventure in itself… never more so than the evening.
Hair by Leonard
Models are Anne Schaufuss and Jean Shrimpton.
Photographed by Clive Arrowsmith.
Scanned from Vogue, December 1970.
SHEER BLACK OF NIGHT, WISPS PUT TOGETHER WITH JEWELS, VELVET AND GLEAMS Black chiffon blouse and skirt tiled with cut velvet mosaic. Blouse of velvet harlequins, bibbed with jet beads set in little studs of gilt; the skirt, striped with studded circles and squares. £184, at Thea Porter. Feather fan, to hire at The Purple Shop. Satin shoes, dyed to order, £18, dyeing, 21s, Charles Jourdan.
Black chiffon dress with a glittering apron tied around the skirt — turquoise and rusty velvet shapes shot with silver, with a striped hem, and cuffs to match. By Chloe, to order from Fortnum & Mason. Mirror necklace, £70, and gold sash clasped with turquoises, 140, both from Thea Porter. Rings, David Morris. Black velvet laced boots, 19 gns, from Kurt Geiger
KNICKERBOCKER BALLET ALL SURFACES RIPPLED WITH COLOUR AND SHINE Grass green silk satin glossed with an intricate paisley of red, ink, black, tremendous sleeves and tunic gathered from a yoke over ballooning knee pantaloons. 85 gns; choker 25 gns, and belt, 58 gns, all at Savita. Green moire boots, 18 gns, at The Chelsea Cobbler.
Water markings, waves of colour pooled in a chiffon blouse honeycombed at the shoulders, antique tunic and panne velvet knickers. The tunic has a fitted bodice, full sweeping skirt. Blouse, £59, tunic, £75, knickers £24, heavy silver belt, £100, all Thea Porter. Burgundy velvet boots laced to knee, 19 gns, Kurt Geiger. Rings, Blooms. Chokers, The Purple Shop, 15 Flood St, S.W.3. Make up by Lancome, with Climat scent.
A NEW SLEEVE CUT ACROSS NARROW FALLS OF GOLD LACE AND CLOUDY CHIFFON Spun gold laced with mauve, the bodice cut wide into the sleeves. sashed with deep purple velvet above a basque and a gathered skirt. By Jorn Langberg from Christian Dior London. Amethyst string and brooch, at Blooms: rings. Hooper Bolton. Satin shoes dyed mauve. £18. 21s for dyeing at Charles Jourdan. Amethyst tights. Mary Quant. Make-up by Dior. with new Dioressence scent.
The bodice sleeve in chiffon, clouds of mauve blowing across. The top crossed low over the bosom and simply gathered at wrists. slight gathers in the skirt catchir the air. By Nettie Vogues, at Harrods: Hilda Hanson. Nottingham. Velvet choker. The Purple Shop at Antiquarius. Amethyst and diamond rings. Blooms; emerald and diamond ring. David Morris. Make-up by Orlane, with Jean d’Albret Casaque scent.
GLORIOUS NIGHT SHAPES. TAPESTRY BELLS AND SATIN PAGODA Misty blue tapestry and gold leaves. left. edged with wide ribbons of sprigged tapestry. A gold thread laces the deep neck of a small jacket belling from the Yoke, with short arabesque sleeves. Fade-print chemise underneath, with full sleeves and crossed braid ; a slim bell for a skirt. By Bill Gibb for Baccarat, at Fortnum & Mason. Pearly black velvet choker, The Purple Shop at Antiquarius. Tangerine braid decorations, from Savita. Rings, Andrew Grima. Honey-gold and gilt velvet slippers, 20 gns, to order, The Chelsea Cobbler. Make-up by Eve of Roma, with the new Eve scent.
Sunset burst of satin, right, a pagoda of quilted tiers, wide sleeves set up to a bib bodice. Feather-print of celestial blue and of black for sun-rays. By Zandra Rhodes, at Fortnum & Mason. Diamond and blue enamel rings, at Blooms. Neck lace stringing pale beads and colourless feathers, by Pablo & Delia. Make-up by Mary Quant with P.M. scent.
Sparkling black chiffon dress with plunging neckline and diamante embroidery, £250 from Thea Porter, 8 Greek Street, London W1
Japanese men are peculiarly affected by a glimpse of the naked nape of a Japanese neck. In Western cultures such excitement is generated by a panorama of bosom (as in this black chiffon dress by Thea Porter), or a smooth swathe of thigh. Here we show some revelations from the London autumn collections… hot numbers for the coolest of winter evenings.
All perfect for lockdowns, I’m sure you’ll agree! It’s also nice to be surprised by Ossie Clark every once in a while – with a corset being so vastly different in tone from what we would usually expect.
Photographed by Sam Haskins.
Fashion Editor: Cherry Twiss.
Hair by Paulene at Michaeljohn.
Scanned from The Telegraph Magazine, 8th November 1974.
Cream and brown two piece with lace split skirt and boned top by Ossie Clark. Shoes by Charles Jourdan, 47/49 Brompton Road, SW3
Slate blue dress by Yuki. Approximately £,165 from Fortnum and Mason, Chic of Hampstead, Heath Street, London NW3 or Lucienne’s, 89 Knightsbridge, London SW1. Gold and jade bangles from Jones, 52 Beauchamp Place, London SW3.
White silk chiffon and net full skirt and sheer top by Zandra Rhodes, to order from Fortnum and Mason.
Black jersey skirt with split front by Yuki obtainable from Fortnum and Mason or Chic of Hampstead. Sheer silk chiffon halter top by Sheilagh Browne, £14 from Quorum. Black suspender belt from Janet Reger, Bottom Drawer, 33 Southwick Street, London W2. Black stockings from Biba, Kensington High Street, W8. Shoes from Yves St Laurent, 113 New Bond Street, W1 .
Bill Gibb’s mixture of sequins, leather and silver chrysanthemums. Sequin hood and cowl, dolman blouse glistening under leather waistcoat, leather skirt flared from basque, printed with chrysanthemums. £54, £30, £86 at Lucienne Phillips. Sequined fabric by Jacob Schlaepfer.
The wilder shores of fashion
I was mainly scanning this spread because I’ve just listed a Zandra Rhodes dress which I think must be from the same collection over on Etsy, but thought I might as well put them here too – especially because of that iconic Bill Gibb photo (used for the cover of Iain R. Webb’s definitive book about Gibb, seemingly fetching a pretty penny on Amazon these days). These top-stitched jerseys were a signature look for her in this period and mine also has the Piero de Monzi label. Marc Bolan had a top version in various colours and levels of frilly extravagance.
(If you’re interested in the Zandra Rhodes dress, click here to view it on Etsy.)
Photographed by Clive Arrowsmith.
Scanned from Vogue, September 15th 1972.
Zandra Rhodes’s waterfall of unfinished jersey. Dolman sleeved, with lettuce edges and ruching stitched in turquoise, blue and scarlet. To order from Piero de Monzi. Cream leafy leather shoes by Manolo Blahnik for Zapata.
Zandra Rhodes’s firebird chiffon decorated with satin lilies, frilled seams, the skirt many yards of lightest jersey gathered up here and there. At Piero de Monzi. Jersey by Racine. Bill Gibb’s curves of ivory jersey, gathered and split skirt and dolman blouse pinned with flowers, ribbons and ostrich feathers. £76 at Liberty. Sandals, £14.50, Manolo Blahnik for Zapata
Chester Jones is design director of Colefax & Fowler. He makes furniture of extraordinary craftsmanship, all dependent on handmade techniques, reminiscent of thirties’ decorative skill. Here, with his wife, Sandy, his chest-professionally sprayed silver, bolted together, stencilled in patterns of pinks and blues. Neon cloud scuplture. Gentle pattern carpet made by V’soske. Walls stippled beige on white by hand, stencilled simply, oil paint through heavy paper. Ceiling in silver gilt rubbed by hand. Sandy’s dress is by Zandra Rhodes.
Quite apart from Elliott Gould being a very worthy successor to Humphrey Bogart as Philip Marlowe, and the faded-but-magnificent Art Deco buildings which feature throughout, Robert Altman’s The Long Goodbye (1973) is also well worth watching for Nina van Pallandt’s wardrobe.
First appearing in what looks like Laura Ashley:
Then a less identifiable dress of a similar ‘peasant’ style but rather less traditionally English in the use of pattern and colour (possibly by Mexicana, Georgia Charuhas or a similar brand):
You can see more clearly in this publicity shot that the bands of lace are transparent:
Then Laura Ashley again:
Slightly clearer albeit black and white in this publicity shot:
By this point, I started wondering if this wardrobe was perhaps that of the actress rather than of the character. Nina van Pallandt was a successful Danish singer (with husband Frederik van Pallandt, they were known as ‘Nina and Frederik’) and would have spent a great deal of time in London. It otherwise seemed a bit odd that she was wearing clearly British-made clothes, albeit in a style which wouldn’t seem too dramatically out of place in early 1970s California. It certainly sets her apart from the few other women in the film, including Marlowe’s doped up neighbours (who are rarely clothed at all), and gives her a dreamy, other-worldly quality.
Then, as if by magic, she then appears in the most spectacular Zandra Rhodes gown. A gown which will, I’m afraid to say, eventually end up soaked through with sea water and very likely ruined.
Again, a proper publicity shot provides a clearer view of the classic Zandra squiggle print:
Afterwards, still pondering this, I hunted around for film stills and eventually came across this photo of Nina wearing the exact same dress in an earlier television performance. Bingo! I don’t know if it was just a small budget or a fussy leading lady, but I can only presume the entire wardrobe of her character was her own. One of those little things which seems to satisfy a curiosity in me, and I feel the need to share with the world.
Photograph by David Redfern.
I think this might be a piece from Zandra’s earliest collection as the hood and sleeve style is very reminiscent of this piece worn by Natalie Wood in 1970. I hope it was able to be rescued from its salty fate and is still out there somewhere.
Zandra Rhodes has started doing sweaters, startling sweaters. Designed a black kimono cardigan. Holes for arms to go through, rose pink edge and inset. Nell Campbell, small Australian dancer and actress, wears it, above, with Gamba’s pink wool leg warmers and a pair of black tights. Then, below, hugs Martin Sharp, Australian painter, wears another sweater that’s pink and green on top, huge green sleeved and blue ribbed into ducks’ tails. With this Zandra Rhodes black silk jersey skirt of lampshade frills; at Piero de Monzi. The sweaters, along with others dotty, frilly, fiercely striped, are in her collection at Browns.
Liz Eggleston 