At Biba Lives we have a passion for vintage clothes and travel to the four corners of the globe to bring you the finest examples of twentieth century fashion.

COCO CHANEL

Faces were dusted with powder, eyebrows drawn on, lashes and eyelids shaded and cheeks rouged less discreetly than the twenties.

Make-up and hair dyes were used to imitate the looks of the film stars. Cinema was in a golden age. Blonde was in. This was the beginning of the glamour years. Women wanted a movie star figure to fit into the new bias –cut evening gowns that were ideal for slim, toned, streamline figures, When it came to dressing women were spoilt for choice. The movie industry was at it’s most popular during the mid to late thirties.  Men and women were  influenced by their idols on the big screen, what they wore and how they behaved. Cinema offered a portrayal of the stylish and elegant lifestyle that  most people  could only dream of.

Following the Wall Street Crash of 1929, poverty soared from unemployment and resulted in “The Depression”. This was felt on both sides of the Atlantic. The abdication of Edward VIII, because of his love for Mrs Wallis Simpson. With the new Germany mobilising, little did the world know that the decade would end in a state of turmoil.

Designers

Coco Chanel, Lucien LeLong, Pierre Balmain, Jean Patou, Nina Ricci, Elsa Schiaparelli, Madeleine Vionnet ,Cristobel Balenciaga….

Fashion

bias-cut gowns, twinsets, chiffon tea dresses, wide legged trousers, peep-toe shoes, berets, gauntlet gloves, silk stockings, clutch bags, furs and tailored suits….

Celebrities

Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, Pavlova, Al Capone, Jean Harlow, Joan Crawford, Claudette Colbert, Gloria Vanderbilt, Shirley Temple….

Films

King Kong, Stagecoach, A Farewell to Arms, The Blue Angel, All Quiet on the Western Front….

Novels

The Maltese Falcon, The Good Earth, Death in the Afternoon, Down and Out in Paris and London, I Claudius, Brave New World…

Slim fit for the 40's

A time of war, men went to fight, families separated, children evacuated and the women became the bulk of the workforce taking on the jobs formerly done by men. Women worked in the munitions factories, hospitals and became land girls labouring on farms, some were taught to shoot anti-aircraft guns during air raids.  At the same time many of them raising families. The second world war probably liberated women more than any legislation had achieved.

The glamourous, lavish film star look of the thirties was now considered unpatriotic, flashy and vulgar. Rationing was introduced and supplies going towards the war effort, the fashion industry felt the pinch! “Make do and mend” as told by the government. Luxurious fabrics like nylon and silk were used for parachutes, gas masks were made out of golf balls and mattresses became life jackets.

Designers Hardy Amis, Victor Stiebel and Edward Molyneux were brought together by The British board of Trade to design a civilian “Utility” wardrobe. This was mass produced and purchased with clothing coupons. War ended and victory was ours. Men returned home from active service, the cost of war became clear rationing eventually eased and we saw the beginning of the welfare state and the National Health Service.

Designers

Norman Hartnell, Charles James, Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparrlli, Hardy Amis, Norman Norell, Mainbocher…

Fashion

pillbox hats, knitted twin sets, the trench coat, wide-shouldered padded jackets, fitted skirts, tailored suits, wide-legged trousers, floral-print dresses, platform shoes some with wooden or cork soles and nylon stockings…

Celebrities

Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, Pavlova, Al Capone, Jean Harlow, Joan Crawford, Claudette Colbert, Gloria Vanderbilt, Shirley Temple….

Films

Henry V, The Best  Years of our Lives, Hamlet, The Third Man, Citizen Kane, Easter Parade and National Velvet…..

Novels

For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Aerodrome, The Glass Bead Game, The Razors Edge and Animal Farm

Audrey Hepburn

The fifties woman is seen as self-confident, independent, a work of art , with cool unapproachable elegance, a stylised fashion conscious beauty as portrayed by the fashion photographers. A time of hope, peace and prosperity and a decade with new beginnings.

Elizabeth is crowned and the coronation is a national event. Teenagers are free spirited  and hold their own ideas of fashion wearing circular skirts with  wide elastic belts and collars turned up. Daywear for women was formal. Attractive feminine pretty prints were available. Eveningwear was important and ball gowns were popular and constructed to a high standard. Accessories was an important part of the fifties fashion, gloves, cat’s-eye sunglasses, matching handbags and shoes.

By the end of the 1950’s television was becoming more popular. Well known hits such as, Double your money, Take your pick, Emergency ward ten and Sunday night at the London palladium. The landscape was slowly changing with the introduction of new housing. New towns offered a dream of a better tomorrow, with your own kitchen sink and an inside loo!  Many people bought their first car and more families took seaside holidays. Things were looking up for the working class. Juke box jury was a success and showed a growing interest in the pop charts.

Then in 1956 Elvis hit the shores of Great Britain with his rolling hips, curling lip and giving hope to every teenager. Then followed the birth of British rock’n’roll, Billy Fury, Cliff Richard, Tommy Steele and Adam Faith.

Designers

Hardy Amis, Christian Dior, Adele Simpson, Hubert de Givenchy, Pauline Trigere, Coco Chanel and Jacques Fat

Fashion

circular skirts, beaded cardigans, Capri pants, stilettos heels and pointed toes, opera coat, long gloves, costume jewellery and outsized buttons on coats and suits

Celebrities

Elizabeth Taylor, Bridgette Bardot, Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly, Errol Flynn, James Dean, Charlie Parker and Albert Einstein

Films

Reach for the Sky, Violent Playground, The Dam Busters, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Look Back in Anger and Singing in the Rain

Jean Shrimpton

The 'midi'

The sixties was the decade of change and revolution. Fashions reflected the new found freedom. This freedom reflected a new found affluence. Everybody had more means of spending on records, cosmetics and clothing were the order of the day. Phsychedelia came to the fore and was reflected in wild and ground breaking designs - not just in the clothing industry but in home decoration and general life style.

Although this was a decade of love and peace there were still world wide negativity with the war in Vietnam, the Cuban missile crises and the untimely assassination of John F Kennedy. In England Carnaby Street gained world wide reputation for it’s innovative boutiques and atmosphere. 1966 heralded the victory of England football team beating Germany at Wembley. We saw the mini, midi and maxi all in one decade and fashion was fun.

Shopping for fashion became more of a recreation and the famous boutiques were the places to be seen in. The kings. road in Chelsea became synonomous with hip boutiques and celebrities. During this period fashion became disposable and clothing became cheaper. The beginning of the sixties we start with the mini and by the end of it the maxi was fashionable with the midi length somewhere in between. Music in the sixties was and still is loved to this day with such greats as the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Who. The roads saw the arrival of the Mini car - this iconic car continues to be produced even today. Mods and Rockers fought on the beaches whilst the hippies chose to walk up and down the Kings road with bells round their necks. World peace seemed threatened by nuclear weapons, this was with the CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament).

Designers

Hardy Amis, Mary Quant, Ossie Clark, Emilio Pucci, Paco Rabanne, Yves Saint Laurent, Jean Bouquin, Biba

Fashion

mini skirts, psychedelia, Flower power, maxi skits, crochet dresses and hats, trouser suits, vinyl dresses, bell shaped sleeves, pillbox hats, nylon tights, pointed shoes with low heels in the early sixties and shoes with round or squared toes with thick heels in the later sixties.

Celebrities

Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithful, lulu, Twiggy, John F Kennedy, Rudolf Nureyev, Natalie Wood, Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren and Martin Luther King.

Films

Psycho, La Dolca Vita, A hard Day's Night, Cleopatra, The trial, Oliver, West Side Story, Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Strangelove, Dr. Zhivago, Bonnie and Clyde and Midnight Cowboy.

Novels

Couples, The Naked Ape, The Magus, Herzog and Catch 22.

Typical 70's

The 1970`s heralded the arrival of an androgynous decade that brought glam rock -with the Sweet, Slade, T Rex, Gary Glitter, David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust and disco - with the bee gees and Donna Summer and punk- with the Sex Pistols, The Clash, 999, The Buzzcocks... to the music buying public… what a decade!

These musical genres influenced the fashion industry - platform shoes, shimmering designs. flares, kaftans, cheesecloth.. .then by the end of the decade bondage trousers and ripped t-shirts with wild slogans and pictures. everyday life changed with music influencing nearly everything!

In the early seventies strikes led to the famous three-day-weeks with the power industry and the lack of refuse collecting affecting everybody. In 1972 an unwelcome form of international terrorism reared it’s head with members of Israel’s Olympic team being slaughtered. Mods and rockers and punks regularly clashed on the kings road.

Designers

Malcolm McLaren, Emilio Pucci, Sonia Rykiel, Vivienne Westwood, Calvin Klein, Ossie Clark, Kenzo, Fiorucci, Chloe, Bill Blass, Guy Laroche and Bill Gibb.

Fashion

Bell bottoms, sequins, satin and glitter, platform shoes, trouser suits, maxi length skirts and dresses, kaftans, tube tops, disco dresses, bondage trousers, tiered skirts, knee length boots and hot pants.

Celebrities

Farrah Fawcett, John Travolta, The Bee Gees, Bianca Jagger, Steve McQueen, Michael Caine, Sidney Poitier, The Beatles, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, mother Teresa, President Nixon, Harold Wilson, Margaret Thatcher

Films

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid, A clockwork orange, Death in Venice, The Godfather, Jaws, Taxi driver, Star Wars, Saturday night fever, Close Encounters and Apocalypse Now.

Novels

Sophie’s choice, The World according to Garp, Roots, Shogun and Papillon.

80's power suits

Image was everything and money talked, money was power. You were judged by the size of your house and the car you drove. The eighties was a turning point in relations between the states but also the relationship between the natural world and man. Concern for the environment was at the top of political agenda. The "Greenhouse effect" and "Ozone layer" were being researched. Mikhail Golbachev the leader of the Soviet Union launched his crusade for freedom and economic revitalisation. We saw the "Falklands conflict", "Privatisation" of nationalised industries, the recession, the restraint of trade union power and "Thatcherism".

The wreck of the Titanic is found, 22nd Olympic games open in Moscow, Algeria hit by earthquake, Ronald regan wins US Presidency, Charles and Di marry.

The "Power suit" of the eighties is fashionable if you want to succeed in the workplace. The career woman of this decade wore short, tight skirts with exaggerated shoulder pads in the jackets exuding strength and big hair. Fashion was about the labels you wore. Bridal wear was more lavish and extravagant then any other time.

Women now have it all, a home, a career and family.

We will always remember the miners and fireman’s strike. The army was putting out fires with "Green Goddesses". The end of the decade opinion polls showed the Labour opposition gaining in popularity.

Giorgio Armani, Betty Jackson, Katherine Hamnett, Bruce Oldfield, Rifat Ozbek, Zandra Rhodes. Gloria Vanderbilt, Escada, Betsy Johnson and Vivienne Westwood.

Fashion

Power dressing, padded shoulders, New Romantics, Labels are important.

Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, Benazir Bhutto, George Bush, Ben Johnson, Eddie "the eagle", Joan Collins Lenoard Rossiter, Bob Geldolf, Tina Turner and Dustin Hoffman.

Films

Out of Africa, Crocodile Dundee, Platoon, Cry freedom, The last Emperor, Rain man, The killing fields, A passage to India and Gandhi.

Novels

The Name of the Rose, Midnight's Children, The Anatomy Lesson, Galapagos and Lonesome Dove.