Vivienne Westwood Fully-Lined Black Mini Skirt
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 14/England (UK)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: AU1402282471841
Vivienne Westwood
For someone who regularly swatted away the industry that made her, audacious British fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood certainly knew her way around a garment. And she knew how to provoke. “I don’t follow fashion,” Westwood once told the New York Times. “I’ve never been interested in it.” Collectors are certainly interested in her work, and vintage Vivienne Westwood dresses, handbags, lingerie and jackets have become very desirable over the years.
Westwood was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in a village in Derbyshire, in central England, but moved to London as a teen. In the early 1960s, she began to make her own necklaces and other jewelry and met an artist, activist and entrepreneur named Malcolm McLaren. They became involved romantically and she made clothes for him in the style of the Teddy Boys — the city’s music-crazed, occasionally violent teenagers at the time who wore high-waisted trousers and tailored velvet blazers that drew on Edwardian-era fashions.
Westwood and McLaren opened a vintage shop on King’s Road in London in 1971. The flared denim and peasant blouses of the 1960s, then still popular with the “peace and love” set, didn’t hold any weight for Westwood. Instead, she was interested in provocative, edgy apparel. She repaired used clothing and endeavored to create bold new designs from scratch.
Together Westwood and McLaren sold older rock-and-roll records, customized T-shirts with antiestablishment slogans, biker jackets and snug trousers inspired by the Marlon Brando film The Wild One as well as bondage fetish wear. The shop, once called Let It Rock and then Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die before Sex became a more appropriate moniker, evolved into a youth mecca. The DIY garments — zippered tops, burnt tees emblazoned with anarchist messages — flew off the shelves. More notably, it brought punk to the masses.
Westwood was soon dressing the Sex Pistols, a band that McLaren managed, all the while bridging the gap between music and fashion in a manner that has reverberated throughout the industry for decades.
In 1981, the couple’s first fashion show marked the debut of their Pirate collection — a swashbuckler-themed line that sprang from Westwood’s research into Indigenous Americans and the “power garments” of the Louis XIV era. The collection’s ample proportions and cutting-edge tailoring countered punk’s geometry and tight latex fits as well as what rocker Adam Ant called the “Puritanism” that plagued England at the time. The Pirate collection’s enduring influence on the world of fashion as well as the theatrical work of designers such as John Galliano and Alexander McQueen is undeniable.
For the colorful corsets of her 1990 Portrait collection, Westwood drew on 18th-century oil paintings — her models donned the pearl necklaces that have become a social media star and a favorite of influencers and fashion lovers all over the world. For a jacket-and-shorts suit from her Fall/Winter 1996–97 Storm in a Teacup line, the designer used the extreme asymmetry of a tartan mash-up to confront, according to Westwood, “the horror of uniformity and minimalism.”
The self-taught Westwood enjoyed a rapid ascent in fashion, with British society embracing her looks and Vogue immortalizing them in its glossy pages. She garnered accolades for introducing corsets to the runway and dressed Kate Moss and Helena Bonham Carter. And an original Vivienne Westwood wedding dress is featured in 2008’s Sex and the City film.
The fires of political and environmental activism burned brightly for Westwood: She was a Greenpeace ambassador, having designed the organization’s official “Save the Arctic” logo; her clothing brand is committed to using recycled canvas and other eco-friendly materials in the production process; and in 2020, she protested the extradition of Julian Assange by suspending herself in a bird cage outside London’s Old Bailey court. But she will always be the grande dame of British design.
Find an extraordinary range of vintage Vivienne Westwood shirts, shoes, gowns and other items today on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: New York, NY
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Nicol Caramel Wonderfully Rich Medium-Weight Black Spandex-Blend Pencil SkirtLocated in New York, NYNicol Caramel from Italy's wonderfully elegant and rich medium-weight black spandex-blend pencil skirt has a length of 27 inches. The waist measures 29 inches, and hips are 38 inc...Category
1990s Italian Pencil Skirts
- Gucci Jet-Black Lightweight English Wool Asymmetric Stitched Mini Lined SkirtBy GucciLocated in New York, NYGucci wonderfully detailed asymmetric jet-black English wool stitched form-fitting mini skirt features asymmetric stitched (on the front side) from right to left, and on the back, fr...Category
Early 2000s Italian Pencil Skirts
- Donna Karan Elegant Black Silk Jersey Evening Wrap Skirt with Bead AccentsBy Donna KaranLocated in New York, NYDonna Karan wonderfully elegant and timeless black silk jersey evening wrap skirt is delicately accented with micro seed bead embroidery scattered along the waist as well a...Category
1990s American Pencil Skirts
- Etro Multi-Green Palsey Maxi SkirtBy EtroLocated in New York, NYEtro Multi-greens of palsey and floral maxi skirt measures 39" in total length. The waist measures 32", hips are 41", with an invisible side zipper which measures 6 1/2". S...Category
1990s Italian Skirts
- Comme des Garcons Deconstructed Dark Navy Wool SkirtBy Comme des GarçonsLocated in New York, NYComme des Garcons deconstructed dark navy wool skirt is sized small. When the skirt is unzippered, the waist measures 45 1/2", length is...Category
1980s Japanese Skirts
- Yoshi Yamamoto Asymmetric Maxi SkirtBy Yohji YamamotoLocated in New York, NYThis wonderfully asymmetrical cut maxi skirt has a asymmetric invisible zipper measuring 10". The total length measures 44", waist is 31", hips are 50". 100% silk, sized 44/Italy...Category
1980s Italian A-Line Skirts
- Yves Saint Laurent by Tom Ford SS-02 Cotton Laced Safari Skirt with Leopard TrimBy Tom Ford for Yves Saint Laurent, Yves Saint Laurent Rive GaucheLocated in Brussels, BEThe sexy pencil skirt was a piece that Carine Roitfeld, Tom Ford’s longtime stylist and former Vogue Paris editor-in-chief, made quite popular in the early noughties. Roitfeld was obsessed with the rigor and discipline of uniforms, but she kept looking for ways to add eroticism to strictly tailored clothes. This military-inspired skirt -with its sensual trim of leopard print chiffon- was an obvious choice for her and hasn’t lost any of its relevance. This is a version of skirt Look 2 as seen on the runway spring/summer 2002, ready-to-wear, model Rie Rasmussen 100% cotton in brown Leopard trim...Category
Early 2000s Italian Pencil Skirts
- Chanel Spring Summer 2001 Black Wool Skirt With CC Logo Monogram Size 42By Chanel, Karl LagerfeldLocated in Portland, ORThis is a vintage Chanel Spring / Summer 2001 black a-line wool skirt with subtle seams and oval CC logo plate sewn into the waistband. This skirt fits right into the modern aestheti...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Skirts
- 1980s Escada Margaretha Ley Silk Animal Print Blouse & Brown Wrap Skirt w/ BeltBy Margaretha Ley Escada, EscadaLocated in Portland, ORThis is an incredible 2 piece Escada ensemble designed by Margaretha Ley in the 1980's. This outfit came from an estate of clothing we handled that included the best of the 1980's and many unique Escada pieces. This has a chocolate brown wool poly blend skirt that wraps to close with a button and an attached belt with a buckle. It is gently pleated and is labeled a size 34. The yellow and brown textured silk animal print blouse...Category
1980s German Blouses
- Galliano Vintage Black Velvet Skirt w/ Pink Spots - S - 1990'sBy John GallianoLocated in West Palm Beach, FLGalliano Vintage Black Velvet Skirt w/ Pink Spots - S - 1990's. This adorable skirt is in excellent condition. It features a lovely black velvet material with pink spots, silk lini...Category
1990s British Skirts
- Chanel Black Silk Skirt - 38 - NWTBy ChanelLocated in West Palm Beach, FLChanel Black Silk Skirt - 38 - NWT. This Chanel skirt is black and made of silk. It is fitted around the hips and then flares out with pleating...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Skirts
- Chanel Vintage Black Silk Pleated Skirt - 38By ChanelLocated in West Palm Beach, FLChanel Vintage Black Silk Pleated Skirt - 38. This vintage Chanel skirt is black silk and has a gold button. It is flowing and pleated. This skirt is in excellent condition. Size 38....Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Skirts