Ms. Peelpants and The Art of Lounge

1970s, biba, british boutique movement, cathy mcgowan, kate bush, mr freedom, ossie clark, zandra rhodes

Lazy
I want to be lazy
I want to be out in the sun
With no work to be done
Under that awning
They call the sky
Stretching and yawning
And let the world go drifting by

I want to peep
Through the deep
Tangled wildwood
Counting sheep
til I sleep
Like a child would
With a great big valise full
Of books to read
where its peaceful
While I’m
Killing time
Being lazy

Well, truth be told Mr Berlin, I get lazy in autumn rather than summer. Don’t get me wrong, I long to go out and kick up some crispy fallen leaves with my newly-pulled-out-of-storage favourite patent knee highs and snuggled up in my cinnamon coloured chenille coat. Who doesn’t? But mmmm…….bed is a very inviting place in the Autumn. When the temperature is just the right side of downright nippy…..but you still let out a little moan and snuggle back under the duvet.

Suddenly autumn is the time you start looking at new cushions and bedspreads and get all excited about those delicious cinnamon, claret and chocolate shades. Actually…excuse me while I go stock up on all those delicious things. And while I’m at it, I may have to buy a whole load of cushions, fabric and set to work creating my own little Biba boudoir retreat.

Trouble is, we’ve lost the art of lounge. Back in the Seventies they catered brilliantly for this delicious indulgence. Like a nouveau Rococco period, where negligees and beautiful slippers were made just the right side of dressy so you never needed to emerge from that dreamy morning state….right through til your dinner party. Check out the Petticoat fashion spread I’ve scanned in, all about how to dress for lounging. Now that’s a clothing lifestyle I can really get on board with. And I’ve also included a picture of the untouchably awesome Kate Bush – just check out the colour of that divine original Thirties dress!

Laziness doesn’t necessarily mean slobbishness, so I say reclaim your weekend!!! Learn how to lounge!! Screw minimalism, create a luscious boudoir and lock the door on the world. You’ll need the clothes too, but really most vintage will do the trick for this. Put on that Ossie or Biba you’ve not had the guts to wear out yet. Same goes for the platforms, you’ve not had a chance to wear them outside yet so you can wear them in bed. Their time will come, but don’t keep them in a box until it does!!

Pour a glass of wine, break off a large piece of chocolate…..okay, maybe two large pieces…..oh what the hell, have the whole pack! And just indulge your senses……

In case you still need some clothes to lounge in, try these beauties…..

L-R: Cathy McGowan claret maxi dress, Biba red velveteen maxi dress, Zandra Rhodes print loungewear gown, Mr Freedom sateen maxi dress, Wallis moss crepe maxi skirt and coat set.

Must See Vintage Films: There’s a Girl in My Soup

1960s, alice pollock, british boutique movement, celia birtwell, goldie hawn, ossie clark, peter sellers, quorum, vintage fangirl squee

Or, There’s a Girl in My Ossie….

If you haven’t already seen the fabulous There’s a Girl in My Soup, please do so immediately! Quite apart from its general Swinging Sixties fabulousness (Goldie Hawn, Peter Sellers and a very groovy soundtrack), Ms. Hawn’s entire wardrobe was designed by Ossie Clark AND Alice Pollock. Quite how a poor American girl living in a basement with her sleazy boyfriend could afford Alice and Ossie to start with, I’ll never know – but I guess that’s why we watch films.

We first meet her in a very sassy little yellow ruffled crop top, navy blue calf-length crepe skirt and an astonishing blue and yellow high collared cloak.

On their jaunt to France, she gets sozzled in a see-through green chiffon mini dress with plunging ruffled neckline, buttoned back and matching green knickers (quite clearly visible even before she disgraces herself and gets carried around on his shoulder).

Next she dons a gorgeous cream chiffon blouse (the ruffles do the concealment work of a bra, apparently), flippy cream maxi skirt and a trailing chiffon trimmed straw hat.

We briefly see what looks like an incredible pink crepe maxi overdress and a floppy pink felt hat which is trimmed with a distinctive Celia print chiffon.

Then she happens to run across a Boutique in which she finds the most incredibly vibrant Celia-print halter neck maxi (if only t’were that easy these days) in which she dances the night away with a garland of flowers around her neck.

Finally, her new found confidence and savvy is reflected in a super sharp black skirt suit with a cream silk sharp collared blouse (and some serious hair!).

Girl, I want your wardrobe!

Fashion Icon of the Moment: Françoise Hardy

1960s, british boutique movement, fashion icon of the moment, Foale and Tuffin, Françoise Hardy, Paco Rabanne

Françoise Hardy – Lank Haired Goddess
‘Another pouting French goddess??’, I hear you cry? Françoise Hardy is a cut above your average though. An extraordinarily talented singer and songwriter, Françoise charmed audiences throughout Europe in the Sixties. With her long, heavily fringed brown hair and youthful ‘ye ye’ music style, she was quite a radical figure on the French music scene along with Serge Gainsbourgh and her future husband, Jacques Dutronc.

Her style developed from slightly mousey, minimalist Parisian girl to a proper Swinging Sixties Chick who wore clothes by the likes of Foale and Tuffin and Paco Rabanne. She’s also managed to grow old gracefully, and remains a stunningly beautiful, elegant woman. Françoise Hardy, we salute you!

Fashion Icon of the Month: Brigitte Bardot

1960s, brigitte bardot, fashion icon of the moment

Brigitte Bardot – Parisian Pouting Pussycat

Over the last fifty years, countless women have spent hours in front of their mirror, trying to perfect that Bardot pout. Her style was that effortless chic so few people possess, but we all try to imitate. A simple black headband, an unassuming little sheath dress, a flash of liquid eyeliner and plenty of sultry attitude to top it off. Sometimes she only needed a towel or strategically placed flowers – the minx!

She also managed to get sexier and sexier the older she got. The fresh-faced Fifties ingenue soon became a sultry Sixties sex siren, her gaze projected confidence and sexuality – helped along by some more revealing clothes – but always looking sophisticated rather than cheap. Every actress, model and wannabe seems to have done a Bardot-a-like photoshoot at some point in their career…but no one has or ever will come close to her. That je ne sais quoi indeed!

Two Sixties legends for the price of one….

1960s, british boutique movement, diana rigg, emma peel, jean varon, john bates

With thanks to Senti for that title! I honestly had no idea that these photos existed, but I found them yesterday and they’ve swiftly become my favourites. Diana, of course, is a huge inspiration to me – not only as Emma Peel but that does have a lot to do with it. I always loved how natural she seemed, and of course the effortless cool. As Emma, that was helped considerably by Bates’ influence as designer. She wore his designs to perfection, and continued to wear Jean Varon garments into the Seventies. Through this, I ‘discovered’ Bates and simply fell in love with his extraordinary designs. Having now met him, I’m even more in awe than ever before – especially after he gave me a nugget of advice on how to wear his frocks. The man is a legend.

I’ve never heard her speak of him, and only contemporary comments from him about the design process. I suppose these things rarely seem so iconic and special at the time, when deadlines are tight and it’s just another job. But you can just see magic being created in these photos.

Fashion Icon of the Month: Nerys Hughes

1960s, fashion icon of the moment, nerys hughes

Nerys Hughes in The Liver Birds

One of the most darling dollybirds of the late 60s/early 70s, Nerys Hughes tottered her way into fashion icon status as Sandra Hutchinson in The Liver Birds. Week after week, the girls would fight it out over a sexy negligee; destroy each others’ feather boas and debate the merits of a maxi versus a mini.

Sandra was always the glamourpuss though. Feigning innocence with the lads, whilst wearing the shortest of minis. Batting those false eyelashes under a heavy fringe (it’s a wonder she could keep her eyes open!!) and backcombing her thick brown hair as though her life depended on it.

She was also curvy, posh and had a prickly veneer of respectability. Just my kind of girl!! The Liver Birds became a manual on 60s chic for me (before I discovered The Avengers) and I would still kill for her wardrobe. Nerys, we salute you!!

V&A’s Swinging Sixties Exhibition

1960s, annacat, british boutique movement, carnaby street, cathy mcgowan, gerald mccann, jean varon, john bates, john stephen, personal collection, pussy galore, victoria and albert museum

Since I’m distinctly unimpressed with the myspace blog facility, I thought I’d repost my images from the V&A Swinging Sixties Exhibition over here. The John Bates exhibition opens on the 13th July so I shall attempt to get photos of that too.