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Original poster

To ask how Vivienne Westwood revolutionised everyday fashions.

171 replies

WatchoRulo · 30/12/2022 14:08

I will admit I know little about fashion. Hearing all the glowing tributes has made me wonder what effect she had (that I'm not aware of).
My recollection is of that talk show where the audience laughed at her creations and she had a strop - but there must be more to the story than that?

OP posts:
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5
maddy68 · 30/12/2022 17:28

She was an anarchist, she challenged the misogyny of the fashion empires , she stood up for gay rights and held politicians to account over he handling of aids and became a punk fashionista.

Most of my gay friends own several "Vivian's"

Read up on her. She was a force to be reckoned with

EmmaAgain22 · 30/12/2022 17:32

I'm really surprised by some of these comments and I'm not a fashionista

the word "revolutionised" is hyperbole. But from my teens, you could tell as Westwood dress or even T shirt neckline. Wedding dresses were made lovely by her, after lots of meringues - of course lots of people did that though.

her jewellery collections had a recognisable style too.

I like her work. I don't know anything about her personally nor the interviews being referred to, but I think she was behind the beautiful corset tops so many of my generation wore while out clubbing. Comfortable, flattering....in many cases, really gorgeous.

to say nothing of having made her art into a very successful business. Multi talented lady. I salute her.

I think it's sad some people only remember who she shagged but it says more about you than her.

dollymixtured · 30/12/2022 17:34

LaurieFairyCake · 30/12/2022 17:13

I own 7 dresses, 4 jackets, a tartan mini, a corset top and a t shirt by her

They are my favourite items

Her clothes are beautiful

I am very envious!

EmmaAgain22 · 30/12/2022 17:34

IClaudine · 30/12/2022 15:13

Phew. A woman who was hugely successful and influential dies and is torn down by (presumably) other women. How lovely.

Yes. WTH is going on here these days. And I recognise some names, it's not school holiday posters.

SupposeItDoesnt · 30/12/2022 17:41

I’m also coming here to say I almost bought a dress of hers in a shop in Liverpool when I was a student age 20. I took it to the till and then changed my mind. Instant regret to this day. It was back and corseted - similar to the one Nigella is wearing in the photo up thread.

Brefugee · 30/12/2022 17:42

glad someone upthread brought up that scene from The Devil Wears Prada about how Haute Couture filters down to the clothes we all wear a year or two later.

Westwood was one of a kind, her influence will live on.

EmmaAgain22 · 30/12/2022 17:47

Brefugee · 30/12/2022 17:42

glad someone upthread brought up that scene from The Devil Wears Prada about how Haute Couture filters down to the clothes we all wear a year or two later.

Westwood was one of a kind, her influence will live on.

Yes!

CharlotteStreetW1 · 30/12/2022 18:00

If I'd had the funds and the figure, I would have had a VW wedding dress. Her work was exquisite. So deliciously feminine.

She was the true meaning of "influencer".

mewkins · 30/12/2022 18:05

maddy68 · 30/12/2022 17:28

She was an anarchist, she challenged the misogyny of the fashion empires , she stood up for gay rights and held politicians to account over he handling of aids and became a punk fashionista.

Most of my gay friends own several "Vivian's"

Read up on her. She was a force to be reckoned with

This. You don't have to own her clothes to appreciate the influence she has had and how she pushed boundaries and was truly committed to art. There is a brilliant documentary on her from a few years ago.

Brefugee · 30/12/2022 18:10

it's a trendy word, but i honestly believe she was a true Disruptor

Sling · 30/12/2022 18:11

In my early 30s I bought a dress, corsetted, pin stripe wool. The cutting and tailoring is phenomenal. Sadly it no longer fits me but I've kept it, it's a thing of beauty. 15/20 years later and at one time or another each of my neices have coveted it, one wore it to her prom and looked sensational.

She was incredibly talented not just at designing but also commercially.

RIP Vivienne

Witchcraftandhokum · 30/12/2022 18:15

90% of the girls at my school wear her shoes.

TottersBlankly · 30/12/2022 18:17

The nonagenarian in my family, who may not remember what they had for breakfast today, watched the news with me and fondly recalled some of our shared trips to the nearest city’s VW store in the 90s / noughties.

I had a few VW things and wore them till they fell apart. Recall particularly a huge mohair shawl that could make any outfit glamorously eccentric. People always stopped me on the street to admire my ‘look’ when I wore it.

It did seem sad when the original ethos was dissipated and all that seemed to remain were some rather second-rate accessories. But for a brief moment her work was breathtaking. Anyone who can’t acknowledge her influence is a fool. (An ungrateful fool, too - her talent made England look like a proper place.)

PublicTransport · 30/12/2022 18:17

Unfortunately everyone thinks their opinion is equally valid - whether they know anything or not. It's good to hear from people who know what they are talking about.

CornishGem1975 · 30/12/2022 18:19

There is a scene in the devil wears Prada when Meryl Streeps character explains how a designers decision in choosing to feature a particular colour in a collection trickles down through couture via ready to wear and eventually a season later to the mass market.

@viques I was about to say the same thing. It's not about the couture, it's about how that filters down to our high street ranges.

EmmaAgain22 · 30/12/2022 18:22

Witchcraftandhokum · 30/12/2022 18:15

90% of the girls at my school wear her shoes.

I am pleased to hear that.

I feel old now but I remember the excitement as a schoolkid when you'd find a charity shop garment that had the neck or hemline. Not even the real thing, just excited to find a piece that had her influence.

There are so many ways to do art and she did it so beautifully.

SisterAgatha · 30/12/2022 18:26

Layers
Corsets
Tartan
Safety pins (this is not so in fashion anymore)
sharp edges

That’s just off the top of my head

CaptainMyCaptain · 30/12/2022 18:27

I went to an exhibition of her work and thought it very interesting but nobody would wear it. Then I went shopping and realised just how much high street fashion actually was influenced by her but not as extreme.

SisterAgatha · 30/12/2022 18:28

Rips
cut outs
skulls
Big influence on McQueen also I’d say

GordonShakespearedoesChristmas · 30/12/2022 18:39

There's some truly nasty people on here aren't there?
Have you read your own posts back?
Don't one of you every, date, post 'be kind'
Cos you're just nasty.

borntobequiet · 30/12/2022 18:45

She was very good at what she did and extremely successful. But she didn’t revolutionise anything - rather she took a clothing trend that was already in progress (and had been for some years) and mainstreamed and monetised it, at which point street fashion moved on, as it always does.

EmmaAgain22 · 30/12/2022 18:50

GordonShakespearedoesChristmas · 30/12/2022 18:39

There's some truly nasty people on here aren't there?
Have you read your own posts back?
Don't one of you every, date, post 'be kind'
Cos you're just nasty.

It's not even nasty is it...it's like...well, do they post because they don't know that she was a massive success?

or is it like I thought when I was 16 - I thought, women are their own worst enemy. Some of them actually want women to be baby machines and nothing else? Thirty years later and I'm looking at women reducing a business empire to who someone fucked!

SavouryFlavour · 30/12/2022 18:56

The two dresses I own which have made me feel most fabulous and powerful are from VW's Anglomania line; one is corseted yet so comfortable, the other is brilliantly cut jersey. Neither were £££, in the scheme of designer clothes, but they made me and my womanly curves feel a million dollars. I have wonderful memories from every time I wore them - thanks, Viv.

Floisme · 30/12/2022 18:56

That's not my recollection at all. As I remember, she wasn't financially successful or taken seriously in Britain for a long time.

Floisme · 30/12/2022 18:57

Sorry multiple cross post Blush I was responding to borntobequiet's post.

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