15 FAVORITE VINTAGE FASHION DESIGNERS
by TORI on FEBRUARY 5, 2013
Since everyone always asks me (not really) who my favorite vintage designers are, I decided it
was high time I wrote about them. Here are fifteenish designers who have shaped my vintage
taste over the years.
John Kloss
You can sort of tell that John Kloss was an architect before he was a fashion designer. His
passion for graphics is clear…I think there’s some math in those dresses. And despite that, I.
Am. Obsessed with his designs. They’re so beautiful and unique, with that color blocking and
space age awesomeness. Although he eventually wound up designing lingerie, his early dresses
are where the real party was.
Jean Bousquet/Cachrel
Jean Bousquet is a designer and began Cacharel, a clothing line. I adore Cacharel because
these clothes were super feminine, breezy, and usually photographed by the dreamy Sarah
Moon. These dresses tended to be floral and lightweight: some of the prettiest clothes to come
out of that time.
Rudi Gernreich
I’m pretty sure old Rudi was slightly insane. His clothes were very wild, and also very brave. I don’t
think he gave a snap what people thought. This guy also invented the monokini, which was
suddenly everywhere two summers ago. Peggy Moffitt (above) was his musey muse and
modeled almost everything he created.
Zandra Rhodes
Perhaps my favorite of these designers. Her work was stunning and ornate, and almost looked
like costumes. Big, bold, detailed, very present. Things of perfect beauty.
Emilio Pucci
He designed some of the most beautiful and colorful pieces from the 60s, and that is saying a lot
because everything was colorful then. Pucci is one of the rare 60s designers who transitioned
gracefully from the mod look to the hippie look.
Biba/Barbara Hulanicki
Barbara Hulanicki is a designer, and Biba was her famous shop. Her designs were mod, but also
very YSL-ish, incorporating lots of suits and big hats. Biba became a sensation because the
clothes were very stylish, but also very affordable for regular customers. She also bridged the
gap between womens’ clothing and little girls’ clothing by being the first to specifically create
something for teenage girls to wear. A lot of her designs mixed muddy colors with a burst of
something like pink or purple. Preecoo.
Ottavio and Rosita Missoni
Sweet Missoni. This line started with a husband and a wife who both had a passion for knitting. I
love that this brand was founded by a husband and wife, and I also love that their trademark
look (rainbow colors, zigzag and striped knits) has remained intact throughout the decades. You
can spot a Missoni piece anywhere.
Roberto Capucci
Party time! Capucci’s stuff is cray! Designing couture since he was just twenty years old, Capucci
refers to his sculptural creations as “a study in form.” To me, it’s completely artistic and
interesting. He’s been an influence to designers such as Issey Miyaki, Isabella de Borchgrave,
and Alexander McQueen, and he gets inspired by things like sidewalk cracks, peeling fruit, fire,
and angels rising into Heaven.
Ferdinando Sarmi
Follow your dreams, superstars! Ferdinando’s dad basically forced him to be a lawyer, despite
his son’s obvious passion for fashion design. Old Ferdinando went ahead and graduated law
school, then snuck off to create costumes for films, and eventually became head designer for
Elizabeth Arden before going on to begin his own label. His work is elegant and lovely. I hope his
dad was eventually proud of him.
Paco Rabanne
One of the most distinct looks of the 60s. Rabanne is responsible for those “tile” dresses that flood
our Tumblr. He designed dresses made of hard materials like the tile, chain mail, and plastic.
Dude was nuts. Amazingly nuts.
Pierre Cardin
This crazy dude. Pretty much the “space age” designer, he created lots of avant garde outfits
that were extremely popular in fashion in the mid 60s. He used lots of geometric shapes, head
gear, boots, and bright colors, and definitely left his mark on the decade. Mr. Cardin also
worked at Christian Dior for awhile.
Mary Quant
The mama who began the whole “Twiggy” look with big eyelashes, heavily-lined eyes, brightly-
colored tights, Vidal Sassoon haircuts, and angular posing. She also gave the miniskirt its name,
even though Courrèges supposedly invented it. She is the mod queen, especially because she
created Twiggy’s whole look. Mary Quant’s name is forever synonymous with mod and swinging
60s.
Ossie Clark/Celia Birtwell
Yummy Ossie Clark made some of the absolute best 60s clothes. One of my very favorites. His
work also went from mod to hippie smoothly, and he collaborated with his wife, Celia Birtwell. He
made the clothes, and she designed the prints. I think I’d spontaneously combust if I found a
piece by them today.
Halston
He’s the reason that brightly colored, frilly hippie clothes went out the window. Because of him,
evening wear changed dramatically. Normally, this would annoy me (I love the hippie stuff), but
his designs were so incredible that I don’t mind. His dresses were sleek and luxurious, but also and
comfy and breezy—exactly the type of thing that women want to wear for a long night out. His
drapey, Grecian-style creations were ravishing.
Elsa Schiaparelli
She never intended to be a designer. Good old Schiap made her first creations with the idea
that only she would wear them, until they were discovered by an investor who shared her work
with the world and made her famous. More of an artist than a clothing designer, she often
incorporated strange materials into her clothing such as cellophane, sackcloth, latex, and so on.
She worked with the likes of Jean Cocteau, Salvador Dalí, and Picasso. She was ahead of her
time when it came to design.
There you have them: fifteen rebellious, creative, important, groundbreaking designers. My
boyfriends and girlfriends.
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