Vivienne Westwood Velvet Corset
View Similar Items
Vivienne Westwood Velvet Corset
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Length: 19 in (48.26 cm)Bust: 30 in (76.2 cm)Waist: 22 in (55.88 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Please remember all items are vintage and we strive for the utmost in perfection some of you are too particular though so everything is now sold as-is, wear and flaws are to be expected. Please note our return policy.
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:Seller: 815785 DSBB5ON03551stDibs: LU16122662963
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.
- 1930S Black Rayon Slip Dress Lining For Lace Or Sheer Gown XLLocated in New York, NY1930S Black Rayon Slip Dress Lining For Lace Or Sheer Gown XLCategory
1930s Slips
- 1900S Hand Embroidered Silk Antique Edwardian Peacock KimonoRobeLocated in New York, NY1900S Hand Embroidered Silk Antique Edwardian Peacock Kimono RobeCategory
Early 1900s American Jackets
- 1940S Black Paisley Cotton & Rayon Satin Faced Fleece RobeLocated in New York, NY1940S Black Paisley Cotton & Rayon Satin Faced Fleece RobeCategory
1940s Robes
- 1970S Black Nylon Tricot Jersey Lace Trimmed Double Slit NegligeeLocated in New York, NY1970S Black Nylon Tricot Jersey Lace Trimmed Double Slit NegligeeCategory
1970s Negligees
- 1990S Black & Red Floral Rayon Silk Lace Slip DressLocated in New York, NY1990S Black & Red Floral Rayon Silk Lace Slip DressCategory
1990s Slips
- 1970S Black Sheer Mesh Bodice Nylon Negligee Slip DressLocated in New York, NY1970S Black Sheer Mesh Bodice Nylon Negligee Slip DressCategory
1970s Negligees
- 1980s Azzedine Alaia Black Stretch Velvet Bodycon Vintage 80s One Piece BodysuitBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in San Diego, CAIconic 1980s AZZEDINE ALAIA black stretch velvet one piece bodysuit! No one ever made bodysuits as well as Alaia, and this is definitely proof. Features a super soft black velvet tha...Category
1990s Italian Bodysuits
- Torso Creations "Juliette" Style Corset Bodice w Metallic Applique & Puff SleeveBy Torso CreationsLocated in Gresham, ORTorso Creations "Juliette" Style Corset Bodice w Metallic Applique & Puff Sleeve: Silver eyelets at back with satin lacing. Boned for a smooth contour fit. Size 2-4Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Corsets
- Vintage Christian Dior Black Camisole Blouse w/ Lace Trim Size MediumBy Christian DiorLocated in Palm Springs, CAThey don't make them like this anymore. A Christian Dior Camisole (a modern blouse) has the most beautiful imported black lace. Body is silk look made in a nylon/rayon/poly blend that is even machine washable. Beautiful small hand made rosette on center lace trim. Embroidered Dior...Category
1970s American Blouses
- Balmain by Christophe Decarnin black leather safety-pin corset, ss 2011By BalmainLocated in London, GB▪ Balmain black leather safety-pin corset ▪ Designed by Christophe Decarnin ▪ Adorned with silver metal barbell piercings and safety-pins ▪ Patch...Category
2010s French Corsets
- Gucci by Tom Ford black leather 2-piece bra top, ss 2001By Gucci, Tom Ford for GucciLocated in London, GB▪ Gucci black leather bra top ▪ Designed by Tom Ford ▪ Sold by One of a Kind Archive ▪ Constructed from black lambskin leather ▪ Consists of two...Category
Early 2000s Italian Corsets
- 1980s Saint Laurent Hot Pink Silk Ruffled and Ribbon Tie CamisoleBy Yves Saint LaurentLocated in Gresham, OR1980s Yves Saint Laurent for ruffled and ribbon tie front camisole in hot pink silk with black pin dots. Bias ruffles at neck and shoulders. French size 38.Category
1980s French Blouses
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.
After Centuries, the Kimono’s Influence on Fashion Is Still Strong
We talked to museum curators and fashion experts to find out how and why the kimono has remained endlessly fascinating for more than 1,000 years.