Yellow vibrations, sun crepe printed with black and green, cut out at shoulders, frilled like a waterfall down tight sleeves; 15 gns. All clothes by Ossie Clark at Quorum, 113 King’s Rd.
Look at summer through new eyes. Ossie Clark sees you in shepherdess smocks of voile, in long crepe dresses, reed-thin red or printed by Celia Birtwell. Pattie Boyd looks at it her way. All at Quorum.
Photographed by David Bailey.
Scanned from Vogue, June 1969.
I think this editorial might be one of the first I ever scanned, back in even my pre-blog days. I may have posted it on MySpace (don’t judge me, I feel ancient enough as it is). I’ve been meaning to properly rescan for years, but finally the time seemed right. It is the perfect combination of designer, model, photographer and a stunning use of Pre-Raphaelite imagery.
Cloud white voile, left, with apple green and peach, a shepherdess shirt, about £8 14s. 6d, matching skirt, about £10 8s. 6d to order.
Gentle beige smock, below, with crepe yoke, half sleeves above long voile cuffed sleeves; body beige, too, with olive and orange; 142 gns.
Flame red crepe dress, below, wrapped round and tied behind, with dragon fin sleeves, long and slender, a potent mixture of enchantment; 12 gns. Scarf by Celia Birtwell. High collar, £3 5s, from selection at London Docks, Munro Terrace.
Some of the sexiest women in films are buying underwear like this. It is wildly expensive (the items cost from about £16 to £90), but Liliane Dreyfus, who designed it for Vog, Paris, says that her customers don’t seem to mind the price; with pay-cheques like the ones that Brigitte Bardot, Ursula Andress, Juliette Greco and Jackie Bissett pick up, why should they? On these pages her silk, satin and lace concoctions are worn by Aurore Clement, one of the new stars of Louis Malle‘s most recent — and some say finest — film, Lacombe Lucien. If you have the money and are still interested, they are available to order from Harrods.
Styling and words by Meriel McCooey.
Photographed by Sacha.
Scanned from The Sunday Times Magazine, March 31st 1974.
Despite the distractions, Chichi hangs on to her hat and her colouring book, wears a lucky tarot card print poncho top, £25, and mid-calf skirt, £20, by Alice Pollock at Quorum. Bangles chosen from a selection at Adrien Mann.
In clothes we dare you to wear!
Make a name for yourself in 1974. Be an inspiration, a focal point, an innovator. Paint a positive future and make January a beautiful time. Experiment with colours. Branch out and try some totally different styles. Don’t go along with the rest of the girls—start up your own school, you’ll soon have plenty of followers. Begin by studying your best points, then set about accentuating them. If your skin gleams, show it off; if your waist is small, cinch it; if your legs are great, make certain that they are seen. The clothes here are not cheap, but like every good artist it’s vital to invest in good materials for long-lasting results. They will be appreciated for a long time to come ...
Styling by Penny Graham.
Photographs by Bill King.
Scanned from Cosmopolitan, January 1974.
I do love some equal opportunities Mild Sauce. These clothes are amongst some of my most coveted pieces, especially that outrageously plunging back John Bates dress. If you thought that McQueen invented the ‘bumsters’, remember that someone else has always got there first!
Make a strong statement. Frame your back with this year’s most dramatic scoop. Chichi in a clinging dress with pointed mediaeval sleeves—by John Bates for Jean Varon, £62.95.
Between sittings is no time to collapse. Chichi slips into something small and adds a rope of pearls for that Ritz- y finish. Camiknickers by Janet Reger, £15; pearls from Ciro.
Chichi makes the perfect portrait in a spider’s web dress dangerous enough to trap any hot-blooded male. Dress by John Bates for Jean Varon, £39.
A switch of scenery, a new source of inspiration. Chichi wrapped romantically in a glamorous film star dressing gown by Janet Reger, £48.
The painted lady. Chichi switches roles and dances a wild tarantella. The sleeves are pulled off the shoulders for an abandoned gipsy look. Silk dress by Angela Salmon for The Prop Shop, £85.
Two pretty girls on the steps of the Troccadero. The sweaters and flared, spotted skirts are by Dorothee Bis and are available to order in Britain from Escalade, 183-190 Brompton Road, London S.W.1
Jacques-Henri Lartigue, now aged 81, took his first photographs in 1902, the year that his father gave him a camera which he describes in his diary as “made of polished wood with a lens extension of green cloth with accordion folds”. He took these pictures of clothes’ from the Paris Ready-to-Wear collections last month when he revisited his old haunts — the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne and the Trocadero — where years ago he took his first evocative and tender pictures of the beautiful, fashion-able, eccentric and ridiculous women who caught his eye. Wrapped in his father’s splendid checked brown-and-beige overcoat he worked with surprising speed : totally sure, extremely agile once he flung himself to the ground to capture the angle he wanted. His wife Florette worked with him — pacing, standing in for the models and carrying his few items of gear which included one small leather box in which he once kept his first camera; it’s gone now, but his wife said he likes to carry the box “for good luck”. The results make the model girls look like part of the landscape instead of self-conscious cardboard figures.
Photographed by Jacques-Henri Lartigue.
Scanned from The Sunday Times Magazine, March 18th 1973.
Black crêpe dress, decorated with butterfly bows, by Dorothée Bis.
Beauty in the Bois : spring 1973. The model is wearing Yves St Laurent’s black crepe suit with harem pants and distinctive gold jewellery. These are available here from St Laurent, Rive Gauche, 113 New Bond Street, London W.1 : so are the sandals.
Strolling along the broad, tree-lined boulevards from the Etoile : the shirts, button-through woollen sweaters, long-pleated skirts, well-cut head-scarves and matching bracelets by Chloe are available from Fortnum & Mason, Piccadilly, London, W.1.
Two black crêpe dresses, decorated with butterfly bows, by Dorothée Bis.
Mobile changing room.
Heavy wool sweater, with a new rolled sleeve, and shorts by Sonia Rykiel, whose clothes are sold here at Vidal Sassoon, 44 Sloane Street, London S.W.1
Dress by Dorothee Bis
Smocked dresses in Liberty-printed fabrics with off-the-shoulder necklines and bodices of shirred elastic. From Yves Saint Laurent’s Rive Gauche collection. The same styled dresses, in silk or cotton, are also available with floor-length skirts.
Beige cotton swagger-back jacket with contrasting collar and turn-back cuffs £12 ; beige short-sleeved cotton button-through shirt £6-50; extra wide cotton Oxford bags £8, all by Ian Batten for Stirling Cooper, from 94 New Bond Street, W1 ; Stirling Cooper shops at branches of Peter Robinson. Bug brooch, Butler & Wilson £4-50; thin gilt snake neck chain, Miss Selfridge 75p; ivory bangles £5 each from Butler & Wilson.
Something like these easy-to-wear, soft crêpe or finely knitted swing-back duster jackets, teamed with wide lounging trousers or slit pencil skirts. They’re cool, casual and chic—easily the most comfortable outfits around.
Photographed by Gilles Ben Simon.
Scanned from Honey, May 1973.
Grey crêpe swagger-back jacket with faint white stripe and wide front revers £8.95, worn with matching trousers £7.95, both by Lee Bender for Bus Stop from all branches of Bus Stop, (mail order 25p from 3 Kensington Church Street W8). Acrylic and linen knitted sleeveless top with gathered bust detail, Outlander £4.60, from Dickins & Jones, Regent Street, W1 (mail order 15p) ; Beige, Oxford Street, W1 ; Sheila Worth, New Bond Street, W1 ; Stephen Tremayne, Walton-on-Thames ; Samuel Cooper, Wilmslow. Egg-shaped bead necklace, Adrien Mann 90p ; cream and black elasti-cised plastic bracelet, Gay Designs £3.50 ; thin white bangle, Paul Stephens 17p.
Acrylic and linen knitted jacket with wide turn-back sleeves £10.30, and matching vest with stripes on the bust £4.20, both by Outlander, from main branches of Wallis ; Fenwicks, Bond Street, W1 (mail order 20p) ; Sheila Worth, New Bond Street, W1 and branches. Crêpe lounging trousers, Alice Pollock for Quorum £8 approx, from Quorum, Radnor Walk, SW3, Heath Street, Hampstead, NW3, and their shops at branches of Peter Robinson. Gilt and silver necklace, Miss Selfridge £1.45 ; thin gilt snake neck chain, Miss Selfridge 75p; deco clip worn as earring, Universal Witness 25p; white plastic bangle, Paul Stephens 17p ; gilt and silver bracelet, Miss Selfridge 70p ; thin plastic bangles, Paul Stephens 10p.
Black and white knitted vest top with wide straps and big white button detail £1.95 approx, with matching wide-sleeved duster jacket £4.95, both by Glynn Manson, from Goodban Ltd, Chiswick, W4; Brown & Phillips, Deal; Townrows, Braintree; Avannes, Edinburgh. Tight white Trevira pencil skirt with large black buttons and front slit, C & A £2.75, from main branches of C & A. White crochet pull-on hat, Edward Mann £2.60; black 1920s bug brooch, Butler & Wilson £4.50; black and white cylindrical bead choker, Adrien Mann, £1; black and cream checkered elasticised bracelet, Butler & Wilson £3; thin bangles, Paul Stephens 10p each; tights, Mary Quant 40p.
Crepe-de-chine jacket with large front patch pockets, cuffed sleeves and own tie belt, Suzy Craker for Roger Nelson £12 approx, from Che Guevara, Kensington High Street, W8; Stock, High Holborn, WC1 ; Coundown, King’s Road, SW3. Acrylic and linen finely knitted long-sleeved sweater, Outlander £3.60 ; silver and cream brooch, Dando at Antiquarius £2.50.
Grey and white polka-dot crêpe swagger-back jacket £8.95, and matching wide trousers £7.95, both from all branches of Bus Stop. Finely striped long-sleeved beige and white sweater, Outlander £4.50, from main branches of Wallis; Dickins Et Jones, Regent Street, W1 (mail order 15p) ; Image, Bath. Thin brown patent belt and thin white patent belt, Gay Designs 69p each; cream plastic egg-shaped bead choker 90p, and small white glass bead necklace £1.60, both by Adrien Mann ; plastic bangles, Paul Stephens 10p each; thin metal bangles, Corocraft 69p; grey clip earrings, Paul Stephens 25p.
Rust, cream and brown Madras check cotton duster suit with white elasticated trim, Jakie Ross for Jon Elliot, trousers £7.90, jacket £9.90, both from Merle, Thurloe Street, SW7; Goodshop Lollipop, Gloucester Road, SW7; Sidney Smith, King’s Road, SW3 (mail order 25p) ; The Klink, Peckham. Black and white plastic leaf necklace, Adrien Mann, £1.50 ; black and cream chequered elasticated bracelet, Butler & Wilson £3 plain ivory bangles, Butler & Wilson £5.50 each.
Left: Sizeable spot suit. Crossed small spots flared into bigger spots, bodice attached briefly to big spot baggy trousers. By Sybil Zelker at Polly Peck, £12.85, at Harrods; Edward Bates, Chatham. Black plastic chains from range of jewellery, white patent wedge sandals, here and right, £16.50, at Saint Laurent Rive Gauche.Near right: Cotton pique sun bodice, straps becoming sailor collar. By Stirling Cooper, £3.50, at Peter Robinson, London, Leeds, Norwich, Oxford. High-waisted cotton Oxford bags, £5.95, at Bus Stop. Plastic choker by Adrien Mann, £1.50, at Marshall & Snelgrove. Hats, this page, spotted muslin by Malyard, £16, at Marrian McDonnell. Opposite left: Spotty cotton halter, glazed striped cotton sailor trousers, by Christopher McDonnell, £4.25, £7.50 at Marrian McDonnell. Opposite centre: Batwing striped matelot, thin polybis knit, buttoned on one shoulder, by Hans Metzen, £4, at Harvey Nichols 21 Shop; June Daybell, Cheltenham; Ginger, Epping. Madly spotted belt with Perspex spot buckle, by Nigel Lofthouse, about £7, at Browns; James Drew. Voluminous stripe trousers, from a suit, by Sujon, £9, at Lord John, King’s Road; Butterfly, Hampstead; Pussycat, York. Scallop snake heels by Terry de Havilland, £14.99, at Leicester Shoes, Up West. Both straws, black with white crown, vice versa, £11, at Herbert Johnson. Opposite right: Cotton and Vincel knit halter all in a final bow. Checked cotton pedal pushers on shirred waist. By Lizzie Carr at Plain Clothes, about £3.95, £4.95, at Conspiracy from mid-May. Patent peeptoes, £19.50, at Saint Laurent Rive Gauche. Cotton drill halo, Titfers, £8, Liberty. All short white gloves, about 75p, by Kir. Hair by John at Leonard.
THE NEW SPOT CHECK ‘N STRIPE SHOW
Cottons crisp, cotton knit, hats as large as saucers, trousers wide, heels high, black and white giving positive power on a summer’s day.
Rose-printed satin 30s tea gown, £12 from a selection at Joanna’s Fleamarket, Carnaby Street, W1.
Get ready for a gorgeous full-blown rosy. summer. Everything is covered in roses: long floaty `tea dresses’, short and sweet frocks, soft gathered blouses, crisp cotton shirts—roses are even screen-printed onto angora sweaters. In fact, there’s sure to be a rosy outlook ahead for everyone!
Photographed by Roy A. Giles.
Scanned from Honey, April 1973.
White and pink angora sweater, Radley £5.50, from Quorum, Radnor Walk, SW3; all branches of Peter Robinson. Pendant, Adrien Mann 80p; embossed bangle, City Lights £3.50.
Soft faded red and yellow rose printed chiffon 1940s midi dress with gently pleated skirt £12, from a selection at Joanna’s Fleamarket, Carnaby Street, W1; natural straw floppy hat, Bermona, .11.50; speckled glass bead necklace, 75p; plastic rose carved bangle, 30p; wide plastic bangle, 45p; all by Paul Stephens.
Old fashioned sweet pea and rose Liberty-printed cotton shirt, Universal Witness £8.95, from Universal Witness, Fulham Road, SW3; Lord John, King’s Road, London SW3 (mail order 20p extra). Straw and organza panama hat with rose trimming, Barnetat £3.30. Plastic bangle. Paul Stephens 30p.
Scatterd with roses, cotton puff-sleeved overblouse with tie waist and gathered yoke, Jap at Joseph £12 approx, from Joseph, 33b King’s Road, SW3 (mail order 25p extra). Straw bowler, Diane Logan, £6, decorated with flowers from a selection at John Lewis; carved rose plastic bangle, Paul Stephens 30p.
Exotic sugar pink, cream and green rose-printed puff-sleeve cotton-lawn blouse and gathered Oxford bags, Electric Fittings £16 approx, from Conspiracy, Kensington High Street, W8 (mail order 25p). Natural straw hat, Bermona £1.50; perspex and rose embossed bangle, City Lights £2.75; fan, Habitat 15p.
Deep purple Polyester button-through romper suit, Dorothy Perkins, £3.95 (79s.); rust and blue rose patterned cotton mixture vest, Toto, £6.25 (£6 5s.); purple panne velvet plumed cloche, Titfers, £8. / Pillar-box red cotton jersey and Vincel dungarees, trimmed with yellow, £7, and bright sun-shine high-necked shirt, £5, both by Alistair Cowin. / Brick and rust moon-in-orbit sweater, Toto, £4.50 (£4 10s.); calico midi skirt with coloured nursery print border, Alistair Cowin, £8; beige suede ankle strap shoes, Ravel, £3.99 (£,3 19s. 9d.); dolls’ house patterned cloche, Titfers, £1.75 (35s.). / Scarlet jersey pinafore dress with yellow appliqued apples, Rodger Bass, £9.50 (£9 10s.); tangerine, blue and purple striped sweater, Miss Impact, £4.20 (4 gns.). / Dusty pink Acrylic jacquard jacket, £5.25 (5 gns.), and matching gauchos, £3.50 (£3 10s.), both by Gillian Richard; red panne velvet Wee Willie Winkle hat, trimmed with an apple, Titfers, £4.20 (4 gns.).
At last we’ve reached the bottom – the latest erogenous zone to be limelighted by shiny shorts, skin-tight jumpsuits and all kinds of sexy bum-huggers.
Interesting to note the dual pricing as the UK adjusted to decimalisation, and also that the Radley outfit in the photo below is actually an Ossie Clark design (I’ve seen it pop up with the Ossie for Radley label) but wasn’t properly credited as such.
Photographed by Guy Cross.
Scanned from Honey, March 1971.
Navy and scarlet polka dot cotton boiler suit, Alistair Cowin, about £4; plain pink suede boots, Biba, £8.97½ (£8 19s. 6d.). / Shiny pink cotton satin dungaree shorts, £6.50 (£6 10s.), and multi-coloured cotton nightsky printed shirt with drawstring neck, £9, both by Gladrags; sheer pink tights, Twiggy, £1; wine wedge-heeled shoes, Russell & Bromley; purple silk headscarf, Jacqmar, £2.37½ (47s. 6d.). / Slippery royal blue satin acetate shorts with bib top and scarlet satin patch pockets, Shelana, `£5.25 (5 gns.); red and blue running vest, Syndica, £3.15 (3 gns.); shiny pink tights, Twiggy, £1; wine suede wedge-heeled shoes, Russell & Bromley; burgundy silk scarf, Jacqmar, £2.37½ (47s. 6d.). / Ritzy yellow moss crêpe fitted jacket and black skirt with red, yellow and black inverted pleats, Radley, £14; black peep toe shoes, £4.99 (99s. 9d.). / Lilac and grape shady lady printed jersey pinafore with lilac shirt top, Big Scene, £8; maroon leather criss-cross sandals, Ravel, £5.97½ (£5 19s. 6d.).
The fabrics, the hand embroideries, the ornate but cheap jewels and the colourful clothes which seem so exotic in Western eyes are accepted as ordinary and everyday in Afghanistan; but it takes sophisticated know-how to appreciate and capitalise on the exquisite workmanship involved. Their shaggy coats, sold over here by the thousand, are bargains, especially when you consider how much warm cloth coats cost nowadays, and even though the Afghans have still to perfect a way of treating the skins to stop them smelling. They undersell their goods, having little idea of what they are fetching overseas, and they have no set sizing system. In other words, to make their fashion industry commercially viable it needs organisation and expertise. Margaret Kimber, an English girl who recently spent 18 months in Kabul, proved in a small way that this can be done. She turned her home into a workshop, bought bales of fabric, employed local labour to make up her designs and returned with the clothes shown on these pages. We photographed them in Paris on Shakira Caine, a flawless Indian beauty from Guyana, a former Miss World contestant now married to actor Michael Caine. A model before her marriage, she was the sexy girl in the television coffee-bean ad. A selection of these dresses, all different, ranging in price from £28 to £40, as well as jewellery (examples of these are shown on the cover), are available from Stock, 236 Fulham Road, London SW10, and at 131 High Holborn, WC1. Some of them are shown on these pages. The cushions and wall-hangings are from Mohanjeet, 21 Rue Saint-Sulpice, Paris 6.
By Meriel McCooey.
Photographed by Eva Sereny.
Scanned from The Sunday Times Magazine, 17th March 1974.
Long beige slip in lace and crepe, £19.50; soft-lined crepe bra, £5.40.
It is not often that they auction old knickers at Christies, but earlier this year the celebrated wardrobe of Heather Firbank went under the hammer, and an integral part of the collection was her exquisite underwear. Heather Firbank, sister of the novelist Ronald Firbank, was famous for her unique, occasionally eccentric clothes, and though most of them now belong to the Victoria and Albert Museum, the highest bid for the underclothes came from the lingerie manufacturer Janet Reger and her husband Peter. They made copies of the pieces they bought, and tomorrow they will be on sale from Bottom Drawer, 33 Southwick Street, London W.2, and by mail order. They are expensive, certainly, but unfortunately the luxury of Twenties underwear no longer comes at Twenties prices.All accessories are from Maria Cavallo‘s shop Dignetts, at Antiquarius, King’s Road, London S.W.3.
Model is Linda Dagenais.
Words and styling by Meriel McCooey.
Photographed by Sarah Moon.
Scanned from Sunday Times Magazine, November 17th 1974.
Oyster satin cami-slip, £25.00.
Black lace slip, £19-50; black lace camisole top, £28.50
Original cami-knickers from Heather Firbank collection (also shown on cover). The seam-for-seam copy costs £19-50.
Liz Eggleston 