Boutiques on film

biba, carnaby street, just looking, kensington high street, king's road, london aktuell, mary quant, ossie clark, sixties

I’m currently avoiding the cold (and the general public) by working on some gorgeous new listings, including Biba, Janice Wainwright, Marie France and many more, and immersing myself in my beloved clothes, films, tv and music – like some strange, velvet-clad hobbit.

Thankfully, gorgeous people like Laurakitty are on hand to point me back towards the amazing person on Youtube who has access to footage from the German programme ‘London Aktuell’ and a whole host of seriously groovy easy-listening music of the era. I posted about this a while back, but hadn’t realised some new editions had been posted. Utterly droolworthy the lot of them, and containing precious footage of Carnaby Street, the King’s Road and Kensington High Street. ‘Scuse me while I dribble…

Byrne, baby, Byrne….

kiki byrne, king's road, sixties, website listings

My poor puns know no bounds. I’ve just listed some new items over at Vintage-a-Peel, but wanted to concentrate a blog on just one dress today. It’s as rare as it is beautiful.

There’s not a great deal of information out there on Kiki Byrne, but only a fool would underestimate her importance. Her King’s Road boutique Glass and Black was contemporaneous to Mary Quant’s Bazaar, and the few references around are extremely fond and complimentary about her clothing. She was heavily involved in the Chelsea scene in the Sixties, and her partner was iconic graphic designer Robert Brownjohn. Virginia Ironside’s book ‘Chelsea Girl’ references Byrne’s boutique thus:

We stumbled up the Kings Road back home. We looked, as usual, in Sportique and Kiki Byrne and said how pretty the clothes were, and was Kiki Byrne better than Bazaar.

This dress is a rare example of Byrne’s work, and is utterly representative of her style. She was known for elegant, wearable dresses and often used lace (as you can see in the photo below). This piece is a beauty in horizontal strips of peach lace, on a beige linen base, which are used to cleverly slim where they are stitched down around the waist and then loosen up into the skirt section. Very wearable and in remarkable condition for its age.

A typical Kiki dress.

Kiki and Robert. Isn’t she gorgeous??

Kiki is sitting just in front of Foale and Tuffin

Distracted by men. Again.

brighton, menswear, seventies fashion, telegraph magazine

I went to scan a fabulous hotpant-themed fashion spread in the Daily Telegraph Magazine from 1971, and instead I found myself scanning in menswear adverts. Whoops….still, dreamy or what? I am particularly loving Mr Brighton, above. Hotpants tomorrow….

The Story of Cedric Safesuit

carnaby street, dandy, Illustrations, john stephen, king's road, lord john, menswear, petticoat magazine, sixties

Also contained within the aforementioned July 1967 Petticoat magazine, is this superb illustrated feature on some extremely groovy menswear. Illustrated by Gerry Richards. Utterly brilliant and too good not to share…

Cedric Safesuit was a civil servant with good prospects and only one problem – all the girls rebuffed his advances with haughty stares. Why? Because Cedric was an acute and unhappy case of B.O. (boring outerwear).

Fortunately for our story, Cedric’s best friend Teddy Trend decided to take him in hand. King’s Road, he whispered at ever more frequent intervals. Carnaby Street, he muttered whenever the conversation flagged. Finally Cedric was worn down and, let loose among the gear shops, an astonishing change came over him. With whoops of delight, he tore off his old brown suit and signed cheques for everything he could lay his hands on. “I’ll never have B.O. again,” he said happily, walking off with Teddy Trend’s latest acquisition, a Twiggy-hipped redhead. “A severe case of B.H. (big head),” diagnosed Teddy sourly.

Michael Man’s Boutique blue satin shirt, 69s. 6d., with matching striped trousers, 69s. 11d., by Lord John, and printed blue kipper tie by Sydney Smith 21s.

New summer image in John Stephen His Boutique yellow seersucker shirt, 55s., matching orange seersucker trousers also by John Stephen, 65s., boots worth a second look, black and tans by Topper, 89s. 11d., tartan chucka boots, 45s. 6d.

Brown herringbone coat by Dandy, 21gns., John Michael flat hat for flat heads, 89s. 6d., white jabot for that dapper look by Dandy, 20s.

From John Stephen His Boutique white satin vicar shirt, 89s. 6d., red velvet bow from the Chelsea Antique Market, 12s. 6d., matching black trousers with white inverted pleat by Lord John, 79s. 11d., and a business-like black bowler with red cherries, 15s. at the Chelsea Antique Market.

MenMenMenMenMenmimenmenmen….

english boy, king's road, menswear, petticoat magazine, quorum, sixties, stripeyness

Ahhhhh. Men. So few know how to dress these days. I’m lucky that, more recently, I have been spending time with a gentleman who definitely knows how to dress. If you’d asked me a few years back, to describe how I would like my ideal man to dress…..well, it would be pretty much spot on. But a few years ago, it would also have felt like a very impossible dream.

For some reason, the odd odd-man would come along and would want me to ‘re-style’ them. And then, for some reason, they would fail to listen to a damn word I said. The rest lived in t-shirts and jeans. Sigh. Anyway, you should never try to ‘change’ someone. I just wish they taught this kind of stuff to boys in school. Or that I lived in the Sixties.

(Mmmm, yes, the latter please!)

Anyway, I bought this copy of Petticoat from July 1967 the other day and was having severe fits of menswear-lust. The cover boys are all ‘English Boy’ models, the agency famously linked with those Quorumites in the late Sixties King’s Road scene, but I doubt any of them would be considered model-standard these days. However, they are instantly raised to godlike status simply because of the way they are suited and booted.

I also noted with amusement that the far left chappy is wearing a coat/jacket remarkably similar to my favourite (and now, inevitably, very shabby) burgundy velvet autumn coat. Confirming the fact that, I think, I often aspire to look like a male dandy when autumn hits, rather than a lady.

Bite Me

art, botticelli, celia birtwell, florence, italy, outfit posts

Reflection perfection. Sunset over the Arno

I return from Florence with the tiresome evidence of my having provided a gourmet meal for the mosquitoes who reside therein. But I will save you the gory, bumpy details. I had a wonderful time with M in possibly the most beautiful city in the world (I say that as though I’ve seen all the others, but I’m just making a sweeping generalisation as ever…) and had a wonderful birthday.

We gorged ourselves on art and spiritual atmosphere more than pasta (although I managed to get a bowl of my beloved gnocchi on the last night, upon realising this mammoth error) at the Uffizi, Santa Croce and several other smaller places besides.

It’s a weird thing for me, as a hugely lapsed Catholic*, to actively want to spend time wandering around monuments to something I’ve obviously rejected as a way of life. But I always loved the bells and the smells and grew up in a family who actively sought out Latin Masses. (There’s a photo of my Grandmother meeting with the current Pope. Serious stuff people!) The atmosphere is intoxicating at times, inspirational and spiritual even if you have vastly differing ideas to those who created and decorated them.

*I sometimes think that lapsed Catholicism is a religion in itself…

Hello!

[Baptistery Doors]

The Uffizi gave me the chance to indulge my (yes, I know, hugely mainstream. So sue me.) passion for Botticelli. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, and even I can see that overexposure can render something like The Birth of Venus rather tedious, but there is something about that level of perfection which makes me catch my breath and my eyes well up. Not physical perfection, whatever on earth that may be, or literal perfection like, say, Ingres, but an attempt to capture the beauty of nature in the most perfect way he could. After rooms and rooms of devotional religious scenes, the more allegorical scenes of Botticelli’s best works are rendered even more extraordinary.

[I also enjoyed noting the clear inspiration Celia Birtwell took from those paintings. They look as though they’ve been dressed by Quorum.]

I maintain a healthy love for those who are brave enough to outline their subjects. I had regular confrontations with my art teacher in relation to this, he felt I should smudge every line to reflect reality. And then wanted me to write an enthusiastic essay on the merits of Picasso. Weird.

Someone else who liked to outline his subjects was De Chirico, who was the star attraction of an exhibition at the Strozzi. It was pretty incredible to see so many incredible surrealist masterpieces contained within a Florentine Palazzo, and it’s always nice to pick up a few new favourite artists along the way.

I know everyone takes the same photo, but I care not.

What with the views from the Piazzale Michelangelo, the Ponte Vecchio, the gelati, the endless beautiful streets of beautiful buildings and, finally, a sweltering train journey through the heavenly countryside of Tuscany, I have had an almost overwhelmingly lovely time.

Doctor Who viewers will know exactly why I find statues even more deliciously creepy than ever.
This one was so unbelievably beautiful; that sculpted fall of fabric down the stairs…

[Santa Croce]

I note, with some resignation, that the good people of Florence do not tend to dress for dinner. Tourists are pretty useless for this too, obviously. So I took it upon myself to fly the flag for vintage for my birthday dinner at Zàzà (thanks to the gorgeous Laurakitty for the recommendation). A Polly Peck moss crepe empire line early-mini which nobody wanted when I listed it on eBay last year, I subsequently tried it on and realised it was a perfect fit, and my beloved green silk DeLiso Debs. Good rule of thumb: If you’re feeling a bit gloomy about ageing another year, wear something which is 70-odd years old. My dress was also about 45 years old, so I was doing a good job of being the youngest thing about…..er…..me.

Mmmmm. Prosecco. Hic!

Thank you all for your good wishes for my holiday and for my birthday. Back to work now, and I feel even luckier than ever that my work is something which I actually enjoy! I also note that this is my 400th post, which surely deserves another bottle of Prosecco? Si?

Miss Peelpants goes continental…

christian dior, david bailey, florence, Inspirational Images, italy, jean varon, john bates, polly peck, susan small, Vogue

John Bates for Jean Varon

I can’t quite believe it. My first proper holiday in three years! And it’s somewhere I’ve dreamt of going for a painfully long time. I studied A Room With a View for English A-Level, and this did nothing but exacerbate my already quite intense passion for Italy. I went to the Lakes a long five years back, but my soul still desires Florence.

I’m trying not to get TOO excited. But it’s not working. I have ironed my loveliest sundresses and prepared a few Sixties evening minis, and I’m just praying for ash clouds and strikes to stay WELL away from us and our well-earned break. It’s also timed for my birthday, and I can’t think of a better way to spend it.

A few weeks back, I spotted this amazing spread in Vogue from 1967. Bailey on location, which instantly makes Bailey a lot better than usual. And the clothes are gorgeous (particularly the Varon). But the most important aspect is the Florentine backdrop.

I. Can’t. Wait.

p.s Obviously this means I can’t post items and deal with sales until I return on Tuesday. But it’s still first come, first served for sales, so you can still buy if anything tickles your fancy over on the website.

Susan Small

Londonus

Susan Small

Christian Dior London

Susan Small

Polly Peck

Forecasting a busy few weeks….

brighton, trenchcoats, trevira

Apologies for the lack of updating the past few days. I’m currently doing some dressing work again and trying to keep up with general day-to-day website stuffs. I also snatched a mere 48 hours in Brighton (bliss!) in a break between shows which, in turn, reminded me that I scanned this brilliant image the other day and hadn’t shared yet.

I’m determined to keep up a snappy[ish] blogging pace but, with work and a birthday holiday, I can’t promise quite such frequent updates. Besides, it’s summer. Is anyone even still reading me every day?

Reasons to own a time machine: The Rum Runner

Duran Duran, Eighties Fashion, jane kahn, new romantic, reasons to own a time machine, the rum runner

Yes, yes, of course I’d like to go back to the Blitz Club. But, me being me, I would make sure my first stop was The Rum Runner in Birmingham. The mirrorplex walls, neon lights, zebra print upholstery….and those five gorgeous boys who became the house band. Amongst other things: Nick Rhodes was a DJ, John Taylor was on the door, Andy Taylor flipped burgers and Roger Taylor collected glasses. Do we detect a somewhat cushier job for Mr Rhodes there?

The Berrow brothers (later managers of Duran Duran) relaunched the club in the late Seventies, inspired by Studio 54 in New York, and it became the New Romantic heart of Birmingham (via the Roxy and Bowie nights, mirroring the genesis of Steve Strange’s Blitz club). Martin Degville, the Durans, John Mulligan, iconic designers Jane Kahn and Patti Bell….hell, even Pete Townshend and Boy George paid them a visit.

Rhodes and Taylor created an amazing compilation album, Only After Dark, from their favourite tracks of the time. I’m horrified to see it’s now selling, second hand, for £90-odd on Amazon. Keep an eye out on eBay, or just download what you don’t already have from this amazing playlist they created as well. That is the kind of music which makes me want to cry with its fabulousness. Both Ends Burning? Adolescent Sex? Just mop me up…

“The Rum Runner menagerie was typically English, small, innovative and eccentric, filled with drama and humour. It was warm and friendly with a big personality.” Nick Rhodes

Sounds like my kind of place. Sadly, it was torn down in 1987. Now where IS that time machine?

Duran Duran – Planet Earth – shots from their days at the club.

The Beat – Mirror in the Bathroom – filmed at the Rum Runner.

Get Wetter in Brighton

1960s, brighton, british boutique movement, Inspirational Images, mary quant, petticoat magazine, Vintage Editorials

Oh how I would love to have some of these outfits (and some ‘Kinky Kaps’) for running around on Brighton beach…especially given the appalling weather lately!

Scanned by Miss Peelpants from Petticoat, January, 1967.