Miss Mouse

There is a new exhibition opening this Friday at The Fashion and Textile Museum. POP! DESIGN CULTURE FASHION

I'm looking forward to it already, especially as I hear they are going to have some Miss Mouse clothes on display. Rae Spencer-Cullen was the designer of all things Miss Mouse. Not an awful lot has been written about her, or her amazing designs which is such a pity. Somebody really needs to put it all in a book.

I love this photograph of her. She looks beautiful and full of fun. Just like her clothes.

The Women's League of Health and Beauty

If 'active wear' was still as glamorous as this there's an outside chance I might be a little bit more enthusiastic about exercising.

I can't be sure about the date of this rayon satin top, the name tag sewn into it has thrown me, but the 1930's detailing is all there. A sweet peter pan collar and pin tucks from the shoulder. 

The top slips over your head and has a long tail coming from the back that threads through an opening at the front to keep it all together.

I spent quite a time wondering how you might leap about in this while still protecting your modesty. A bit of research and I soon discovered there were also big black satin knickers designed to wear over it. Very sensible. Maybe I'll come across a pair one day.

The badge has a makers mark stamped on the back. H.W. Miller Ltd Birmingham. 

The Women's League of Health and Beauty  was founded by Mary Bagot-Stack in 1930 and still exists today as The Fitness League.  

And there's a wonderful bit of vintage footage to look at  here.

Unknown Textile Number 1

Here is another slightly faded and unpicked post war curtain, re-made into cushion covers and unpicked again. I do love things that have lived a little...

Sadly there is no selvedge marking to help me out with the name of the designer. Something that is always nice to know.

Mary White's Cottage Garden

There were a few different colour ways of Mary White's Cottage Garden furnishing fabric at the Designing Women exhibition, including this one with pink trees. The length I have is a partly unpicked curtain, and looks like it's been laundered a few times. Still very lovely though.

A roller-printed cotton fabric, it was designed in 1955 and also sold in Heal's.

1950's Heal's Furnishing Fabric

phew!...just managed to get to see the pretty wonderful collection of post-war british textiles at the DESIGNING WOMEN exhibition before it finishes tomorrow.

There was lots to love, and some were very beautifully framed I thought. I've made a mental note...

This is one from my pretty miniscule textile collection, but one of my absolute favourites. From 1951. 

Rana Stryck is someone I know nothing about, but I did find this article which was quite interesting.

Schiaparelli Swim Fashions

A trip to New York to see the Schiaparelli exhibition at the The Metropolitan Museum of Art was a birthday present to myself this year. Schiaparelli was a big fan of the plastic zipper, and there were quite a few examples in the show, including one on a lovely metallized crepe day dress. I could hardly breathe whilst looking around, her clothes are so beautiful. Sadly I don't own any but I do have this 1950's sun dress. 

The name Schiaparelli Swim Fashions was registered in Pennsylvania in October 1954, two months before Schiaparelli closed her couture business in Paris. There were loads of licensed products around after that, including this one I guess.

And I heard there are plans to relaunch the Schiaparelli label next year...

Plastic Lightning Zip

Isn't it lovely how sometimes the most unexpected things bring you so much joy. Like this zipper. I'm not entirely sure why, but it has always fascinated me. And not so long ago I discovered that I shared my birthday with  Gideon Sundback whose work not only perfected the design of the zipper, and who created the machine that made the zipper, but he was also president of the Lightning Fastener Company which made this, my favourite of all zippers!

I'm guessing that this dress, which has been hand made, dates from the late 1940's. A kind of metallized crepe fabric with sequins, paillettes, and seed beads. The zipper is quite crudely fitted but that's part of the charm.