Matching jacket and skirt, dark green wool tweed, Mary Quant, London, 1962, worn by Elizabeth Gibbons.

A suit of dark green wool tweed, loosely cut with a 'v' necked jacket fastenting with three grey buttons, and a shallow welted pocket each side. A matching skirt in dark green wool tweed, approximately knee-length, cut with a deep central sunray pleat at the centre-front.

Worn by Elizabeth Gibbons (1928-2018). Elizabeth Gibbons met her husband Peter at Birmingham Art School. Travelling to India, they married and lived there from 1953-55, while Peter worked as an architect, moving to Singapore (1955-58) and Kuala Lumpur (1958-62). Elizabeth became a textiles collector and internationally-known specialist. She wrote about her Mary Quant clothes in 2013 as follows:

Having seen articles about Mary Quant in magazines from England and U.S., especially one in “Life Magazine” (of which I sadly have no copy) I was struck by her vibrant and young style, very new and exciting and different. So when we returned to U.K. in 1960 as part of our round-the-world trip (with one suitcase, and three young children under six), I immediately rushed off to stay in a hotel in London for 3 days where I bought several outfits from Mary Quant’s shop “Bazaar” on King’s Road, Chelsea (one of which I wore to return to my husband who was ‘stunned and delighted’ by my new clothes).

After 6 months travelling, we returned to Kuala Lumpur during 1960, my son Philip died in 1961 and we finally came home to UK in 1962. 1962 we came to live in Swinging Chelsea, in Royal Avenue, just off King’s Road and almost opposite Mary Quant’s shop “Bazaar”. It was interesting to see her racks of clothes hanging out on the pavement, with loud speakers advertising her goods until quite late into the evening. Her husband’s restaurant, underground, was just next door.

King’s Road itself was a fashion parade, especially on Saturdays, with processions of veteran and exotic cars adding to the scene. The fashions changed every week, I noted. (I happened to appear in a film made by James Mason (“The London that Nobody Knows”) pushing my Victorian pram along King’s Road containing a baby and a toddler – no: 4 & 5 – facing each other).

It may also be interesting to note the following: While living in Chelsea in 1964 I went to have a haircut by Vidal Sassoon and he asked me, “because he liked the shape of my head and my fine red hair”, if I would permit him to try out his idea for a “new 5-point hair cut” which he hoped to launch at the Paris Fashion Show in a few day’s time. I agreed, and so was the very first person to have the famous 5-point cut.

Mary Quant is one of Britain’s most well-known and influential designers. Along with her husband, Alexander Plunket Greene and business partner Archie McNair, she opened her first boutique, Bazaar, on the King’s Road in 1955. She originally stocked clothes from wholesalers but soon became frustrated with the options available and began designing her own clothes. In 1963 she set up the Ginger Group label. Through the Ginger Group she sold pieces at a lower price point than at Bazaar, making her designs available to a wider market. In 1964 she went into business with the Nylon Hosiery Company to create a very successful line of socks, stockings and tights and in 1965 started a collaboration with Alligator Rainwear Ltd. She later expanded into cosmetics and homeware, creating one of the first international lifestyle brands. In many parts of Europe, North America, Australia, and by the 1970s, Japan, almost anyone, whatever their income, could spare the money to buy a pair of 'Mary Quant' tights or a lipstick. This enabled girls who could not otherwise afford her clothing to feel in touch with fashion, and made Mary Quant a household name.

Elizabeth Gibbons became an early fan of Mary Quant's designs, reading about them in 'Life' magazine while living in Singapore with her young family. She first visited the King's Road Bazaar on a brief trip home in 1960, later making purchases by mail order. She carefully kept most of her Mary Quant garments, together with ephemeral receipts, illustrations and letters, which are now in the V&A collections.

T.33:1&2-2013