Dress fabric samples of shot silk organza, retailed by Ascher Ltd., Great Britain, 1956

Dress fabric samples of shot silk organza. Two slightly different shades of yellow; one selvedge and three pinked edges. Where the edges are cut, pinking shears have created a zig-zag edge which will not fray. The weave is plain. When laid flat the sample look as if it was made of only one colour, the front a different colour from the back. However, in motion or draped, the two colours become apparent in a subtle way.

Given by Zika Ascher

Among the textiles selected by Zikka Ascher for the V&A in discussion with the curator after the V&A exhibition in 1987.

This fabric is called 'shot satin organza' in Mendes' text and in newspaper reports of the period. It may be that this was the name given by Ascher to promote the textile as 'different' or it may have been coined by the press. It is not a description that corresponds to the actual fabric which has a shot effect and is constructed using a plain, not a satin, weave. A shot effect is created using a plain weave with a different colour of warp and weft. The plain interlacing mixes the colours evenly, so that from a distance the overall effect is of a single colour. When the fabric is moved the colour seems to vary because of the different direction of the warp and weft. When lustrous coloured yarns are used, a shimmering variable effect is seen which constitutes a 'shot' appearance.

Organza is generally defined as a plain weave, for example, 'a light-weight, plain weave, sheer fabric made originally from fine silk yarns but now also made in man-made synthetic fibre yarns. It has a crisp handle and drapes well. Made in plain colours and in printed styles, for dress use.' (E. Miller. Textiles. Properties and Behaviour in clothing Use. London: Batsford, 1989 pp. 187-8.)

Attribution note: Ascher made yardage for a fairly exclusive market, couture and high class ready-to-wear.

Shot silk organza was a luxury fabric suitable for evening wear. When Zika Ascher launched this silk in his collection in 1956 it was instantly in demand for couture evening and cocktail wear. He made 34 colourways, each with a different colour of warp and weft, so that from a distance the fabric looked a single colour, but in motion it shimmered with a second colour.

Zika Ascher, an innovative textile manufacturer, based himself in London after the annexation of his home country Czechoslovakia in 1939. After the Second World War, Ascher Ltd designed different ranges of textiles for use at the top end of the fashion market, working with natural fibres such as wool and mohair, silk, cotton and linen, and also in man-made fibres such as rayon and nylon. Some of his greatest innovations lay in combining man-made and natural. He was also innovative in commissioning designs from artists as well as textile designers of the highest calibre.

T.194 to H-1988