Vivienne Westwood red checked tweed and black velvet skirt suit, fw 1991
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: FR 38 - UK 10 - US 6 (EU)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU140211784422
Vivienne Westwood
For someone who regularly swats away the industry that made her, audacious British fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood certainly knows her way around a garment. And she knows how to provoke. “I don’t follow fashion,” Westwood once told the New York Times. “I’ve never been interested in it.”
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 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.
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’s dressed Kate Moss and Helena Bonham Carter, and a wedding dress that she created is featured in 2008’s Sex and the City film.
Today, the fires of political and environmental activism burn brightly for Westwood: She is 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 handbags, shoes, evening dresses and other items today on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: London, United Kingdom
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Vivienne Westwood blue tweed skirt suit, fw 1994By Vivienne WestwoodLocated in London, GB▪ Vivienne Westwood blue tweed skirt suit ▪ 100% Wool ▪ Double breasted blazer jacket ▪ Velvet collar and pocket flaps ▪ Two front pockets ▪ Pleated wrap...Category
1990s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Gianni Versace black cotton lace pant suit, ss 1994By Gianni VersaceLocated in London, GB▪ Gianni Versace black cotton lace pant suit ▪ Sleeveless button up vest ▪ Two front flap patch pockets ▪ Slim pants with organza lining ▪ IT 38 - FR 3...Category
1990s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Junya Watanabe multicoloured wool tweed pant suit and hat, fw 2004By Junya Watanabe Comme des GarçonsLocated in London, GB▪ Junya Watanabe Comme des Garçons multicoloured tweed ensemble ▪ 100% Wool ▪ Bias-cut figure hugging panels ▪ Purple high-neck bodysuit with pin-tucked waist panel ▪ Orange low r...Category
Early 2000s Japanese Trouser Pant Suits
- Dolce & Gabbana silk chiffon blouse and skirt pants set, ss 1998By Dolce & GabbanaLocated in London, GB▪ Dolce & Gabbana chiffon set ▪ 90% Silk, 10% Lycra ▪ Loose-fit blouse with large scarf collar ▪ Fitted leggings with attached mini skirt ▪ IT 38 - FR ...Category
1990s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Dolce & Gabbana black embroidered leather pant suit with embellishments, fw 1999By Dolce & GabbanaLocated in London, GB▪ Dolce & Gabbana black leather pant suit ▪ 100% Leather ▪ Floral themed silver embellishment and embroidery ▪ Front velcro fastening on vest ▪ Leg sli...Category
1990s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Christian Dior by John Galliano floral cotton and leather pant suit, fw 2002By John Galliano for Christian Dior, Christian DiorLocated in London, GB▪ Christian Dior floral cotton and leather pant suit ▪ Designed by John Galliano ▪ 98% Cotton 2% Elastane / 100% Leather ▪ Round neck zip-up jacket ▪ Attached leather belt with metal buckle...Category
Early 2000s French Trouser Pant Suits
- 1990's Vintage Moschino Jean pants suitBy Moschino, Moschino JeansLocated in LAGNY-SUR-MARNE, FR1990's Moschino Jeans pants suit straight legs with black All Over inscriptions patern, fabric is rayon and acetate. sizes FR 38 I 42 US 8 UK 12 Measurements : JACKET : shoulde...Category
1990s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
- 1990s Vintage ensemble by Moschino JeansBy Moschino, Moschino JeansLocated in LAGNY-SUR-MARNE, FR2 piece 1990’s vintage ensemble by Moschino Jeans, it has been seen on the iconic Fran Fine on the Nanny sitcom, in perfect condition. Stretch fabric Sizes I 46 FR 42 US 12 UK ...Category
1990s Italian Skirt Suits
- S/S 1996 Thierry Mugler Sculptural Runway Museum Skirt Suit EnsembleBy Thierry MuglerLocated in Concord, NCOwn a piece of fashion history with this extraordinary documented Thierry Mugler Spring Summer 1996 skirt suit. Black and white jacket with a large folding ...Category
1990s French Skirt Suits
- Nina Ricci 'Boutique' Paris Black Silk SuitBy Nina RicciLocated in Sharon, CTOffering a Nina Ricci 'Boutique' Paris, Black silk suit retailed by Bergdorf Goodman. Puffy shoulders, skirted waist jacket, black on black polka dots,...Category
1980s French Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Issey Miyake Black Jacket & Bolero Pants early 80'sBy Issey MiyakeLocated in Sharon, CTFringed cocoon jacket, with fringed Bolero pants Japan size 10. 26" waist, 33" lengthCategory
1980s Japanese Trouser Pant Suits
- Celine Paris Black Dress and JacketBy CelineLocated in Sharon, CTEnsemble black spaghetti straps short black dress and a long black jacket. Both in the same stretchy horizontal geometric woven design fabric. Dress...Category
1990s French Dress and Coat Ensembles
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Vivienne Westwood’s Punk Spirit Lives On in This ’90s Tartan Ensemble
The shorts suit in a mash-up of patterns with an asymmetrical cut speaks to the designer’s rebellious spirit.
This Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen Ensemble Is Part Zsa Zsa Gabor, Part ‘Blade Runner’
As Burton steps away from the brand, it’s a fitting time to revisit one of her visionary designs.