monty coles

Yankee Swank

1970s, biba, Bombacha, Charles Batten, Crocodile, Diane Logan, Fenwick, Honey Magazine, Inspirational Images, liberty, liberty's, Monet, monty coles, quorum, radley, Spectrum, Sujon, Vintage Editorials, Wardrobe
Giant pink lily printed cotton dress with swirling flared skirt from Biba

City life heats up when the sidewalks are crowded and the cabs full. Give yourself a break and see the sights. Step out in cotton dresses for a cool look at a hot town.

Photographed by Monty Coles.

Scanned from Honey, August 1975.

Open necked short sleeved printed crepe de chine dress by Radley from Quorum. Fringe scarf from Wardrobe. Hat by Charles Batten.
Mint green cotton dress by Strawberry Studio from Che Guevara. Scarf from Fenwick.
Cream cotton dress with drawstring waist by Monet. Scarf from Liberty. Hat by Charles Batten.
Navy and mauve cotton poplin dress by Monet.
Beige and mulberry flower printed crepe de chine dress by Sujon. Scarf from Fenwick.
Slash neck cotton cheesecloth dress from Crocodile. Scarf from Liberty.
Rust cotton open necked baggy dress from Bombacha. Cloche by Diane Logan.
Pale pink and white leaf printed dress from Biba. Scarf from Liberty. Hat by Charles Batten.
Navy and rust checked and striped crepe de chine dress with matching scarf from Spectrum.

Inspirational Editorials: British Birds

1960s, british boutique movement, bus stop, Concept, Downtown, gordon king, Honey Magazine, Inspirational Images, Jill Harley, kari ann muller, lee bender, monty coles

Crepe zipper upper dress with patent belt by Gordon King. Jersey trousers by Concept. Patent high-tongue shoes by Ronald Keith. Hearts and flower power satin top by Downtown. Red cotton trousers by Slimma.

Crepe zipper upper dress with patent belt by Gordon King. Jersey trousers by Concept. Patent high-tongue shoes by Ronald Keith. Hearts and flower power satin top by Downtown. Red cotton trousers by Slimma.

British Birds hip it, add ribbon round foreheads squaw-style, and dress-over-pants. Slip into pull-on jersey dresses over matching tights and way out shoes. Hair a-fuzz, English looks are a-buzz with interest…

Photographed by Monty Coles.

Scanned by Miss Peelpants from Honey, April 1969.

Slinky little print wrapover by Bus Stop. Jersey pants by Concept.

Slinky little print wrapover by Bus Stop. Jersey pants by Concept.

Vest dress in jersey by Gordon King. Peasant shirt smock in jersey by Gordon King. Jersey trousers by Concept.

Vest dress in jersey by Gordon King. Peasant shirt smock in jersey by Gordon King. Jersey trousers by Concept.

Loungerie

biba, Honey Magazine, janet reger, monty coles, seventies fashion, underwear

Leaf design bra (£2.75) and pants (90p) by Triumph

Underwear need not just be functional, it can be beautiful too. So with fashion becoming ladylike on top, perhaps it’s time to show some style and imagination on what you wear underneath.

From Honey magazine, December 1974. Photos by Monty Coles.

I want it all.

Images scanned by Miss Peelpants 

Twenties-style slip by Proper Pride (£4.35)

Cami-knickers by Janet Reger (£19.50)

The Bump

cosmopolitan, dancing, disco, monty coles, seventies fashion

Any child of the Seventies or Eighties, growing up in the UK, will know who Floella is. To anyone else, I’m going to be lazy and link to the Floella Benjamin wiki page. Very exciting to see her doin’ the bump in Cosmopolitan magazine in March 1975. I dare you all to try out the bump tonight, down your local discotheque or just in the comfort of your own kitchen with your loved one(s).

Photos by Monty Coles.

Vintage Hair: Beautiful Concoctions

1960s, hair, monty coles, petticoat magazine

Photograph by Monty Coles

Scanned from Petticoat Magazine, December 1968.

Wet Stuff

alligator, che guevara, christopher mcdonnell, gordon king, Honey Magazine, monty coles, topshop, way in
No, no mild sauce prefix (arf arf!). It’s been rather damp in dear old Blighty lately, which has actually done the unthinkable/unbearable and forced me into actual shops where you buy actual new clothes (I needed some kind of trench-y raincoat thing and was starting to think I would have to wait forever to find the perfect vintage one I wanted) and obnoxious people push you away from the full-length mirrors and waft a disdainful hand at you (I kid ye not, my expression was pretty much the same as the photo immediately below…). Anyway, I’ve been meaning to scan this frankly awesome shoot from Honey magazine for simply ages. And given the current climate, it finally seemed very appropriate. 
Photos by Monty Coles. Honey magazine, February 1974

It’s a striking shoot. Rather modern-feeling (which just goes to prove that modern is rarely as modern as it seems…) and really affecting. Not emotionally, but physically. I can almost feel the models’ pain…

Inspirational Images: Biba, 1974

barbara hulanicki, biba, british boutique movement, Honey Magazine, monty coles, seventies fashion

I have this dress in dark blue. (It’s the notorious £50 dress which Barbara Hulanicki feared wouldn’t sell because of the high price. It sold out.) One of these days, I’m actually going to find the occasion to wear it…


Photo by Monty Coles from Honey December 1974