The 1960s was a period of huge change in the fashion world. Whereas fashion had previously been aimed at a wealthy, mature elite, the tastes and preferences of young people now became important.
History of 1960s Fashion and Textiles
The 1960s was a decade of sweeping change throughout the fashion world generating ideas and images which still appear modern today. Whereas fashion had previously been aime…
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Fashion in 1960s London
This section explores the development of Sixties fashion from the mid-1950s to the early 1970s, linking it to London's different fashion districts.
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1960s Fashion Subcultures
Modified, homemade and secondhand clothing was an expression of individuality during the 1960s. Britain was known for the strength of its youth cults like the mods and the …
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1960s Textile Designers
Textile designers from the 1960s with a brief history, background and information on each.
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Pierre Cardin
Cardin was born in Venice to French parents and educated in France. After training as a tailor, he worked for two Paris design houses, Paquin and Schiaparelli.
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André Courrèges
Courrèges graduated in engineering before studying fashion and textile design. He worked for Balenciaga for ten years, which allowed him to develop great skill in cutting g…
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Mr Fish
Men's fashions during the 19th and 20th centuries were often conservative and dull in comparison to women's. The 1960s saw the 'peacock revolution', a high point of flamboy…
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Marion Foale & Sally Tuffin
Determined not to make 'elderly clothes' for an established manufacturer, Marion Foale and Sally Tuffin set up their own business in 1961.
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Barbara Hulanicki and Biba
Hulanicki worked as a fashion illustrator after studying at Brighton art college in the late 1950s. She opened a mail order clothing company with her husband, 'Biba's Posta…
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Gerald McCann
On graduating from the Royal College of Art Gerald McCann achieved great success on both sides of the Atlantic.
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Jean Muir
From 1950 Jean Muir worked as a seller and fashion sketcher for Liberty's in London and was then employed as a designer by Jaeger.
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Zandra Rhodes
Zandra Rhodes graduated from the Royal College of Art in 1964. The daughter of a fashion instructor, she is renowned for her unconventional clothes and pink hair. Intereste…
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Yves Saint Laurent
Yves Saint Laurent (1936 - 2008) spent his childhood in Algeria. He was precociously talented, winning first prize for a cocktail dress in the 1953 International Wool Secre…
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Emanuel Ungaro
Ungaro was born in Aix-en-Provence to Italian parents. He learnt tailoring by working for his father, then set off for Paris to start up on his own. Here he became friends …
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Interactive: Silk Taffeta Evening Dress, by Worth, 1960
By 1960 the famous Paris couture house of Worth had dressed the world's richest and most fashionable women for over a century. The London branch supplied the British aristo…
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Interactive: Skirt & Jumper by Mary Quant
This outfit, remade in 1973, with its belt adapted to become a halter-neck fastening, is a good example of Quant's practical ingenuity and surreal vision.
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Interactive: Linen Dress, by Foale & Tuffin, 1966
Foale & Tuffin's small headquarters in Marlborough Court became one of London's most fashionable destinations. This dress shows their characteristic attention to detail and…
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Interactive: Velvet Suit, by Mr Fish, about 1967
Michael Fish opened his Clifford Street tailor's shop in 1966, having built up his reputation as the designer who brought traditional hosier Turnbull & Asser up to date wit…
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1960s Fashion & Textiles Reading List
A booklist of fashion and textiles from the 1960s.
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A gift in your will
You may not have thought of including a gift to a museum in your will, but the V&A is a charity and legacies form an important source of funding for our work. It is not just the great collectors and the wealthy who leave legacies to the V&A. Legacies of all sizes, large and small, make a real difference to what we can do and your support can help ensure that future generations enjoy the V&A as much as you have.
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British Asian Style: Fashion and Textiles
South Asian textiles have shaped British fashion and dress for centuries, from the fashionable chintzes of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, t…
Buy nowEvent - Fashion and Textile Museum: Kaffe Fassett Exhibition
Wed 12 June 2013 10:00
Founded by British designer Zandra Rhodes, the museum explores cutting-edge contemporary fashion, textiles and jewellery.
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