Georgie thumbnail 1
Georgie thumbnail 2
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Georgie

Dress
1962 (designed)
Artist/Maker
Elizabeth (sold)
Mary Quant (designer)
Place of origin
United Kingdom (made)

This dress was designed by Mary Quant, one of the most iconic fashion desginers of the 1960s. This dress is an example of Quant’s early work. With modest sleeves and an over-the-knee skirt it showcases a more conservative style than she is usually associated with. Sarah Robinson bought it in Truro, probably in a shop called ‘Elizabeth’. It is an example of Quant designing for the wholesale market and matches a fashion design in the V&A’s collection, E.255-2013.

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make Sew your own: Mary Quant 'Georgie' dress Exclusive to the V&A, this free, downloadable sewing pattern shows you how to recreate an original Mary Quant design from 1962: the bold and beautiful 'Georgie' dress.

Object details

Categories
WeWantQuant
Womenswear
Womenswear
Fashion
Object type
Dress
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Dress
  • Belt
TitleGeorgie (trade title)
Materials and techniques
Sewing
Brief description
dress, 'Georgie', navy and grey striped, designed by Mary Quant, England, 1962
Physical description
Striped dress with trimmed crossover bodice and three-quarter length sleeves. The stripes are vertical on the bodice and horizontal on the skirt. The skirt is 'A-line' and the dress has a waist sash.
Gallery label
(30/02/2020)
[Mary Quant Exhibition, 2019]

‘GEORGIE’
1962
Worn by Sarah Robinson

Sarah Robinson was 19 and living in Truro, Cornwall (south-west England) when she bought this bold striped wrap-dress from Elizabeth, a local shop which specialised in the ‘latest from London’. She described it as a ‘happy, fun dress to wear, and beautifully made’. It retailed at 12 and a half guineas, (about £264 today), and the corresponding fashion drawing shows the style was also available as ‘Rosie’ in a more formal silk chiffon lined with taffeta.

Cotton
Labelled ‘Mary Quant London’
Made in London
Given by Sarah E. Robinson
V&A: T.74-2018
Credit line
Given by Mrs Sarah E. Robinson
Object history
Probably purchased in 1962 from a shop in Truro, Cornwall called Elizabeth.

This object was acquired as part of the V&A's #WeWantQuant campaign. This was a public call-out for objects designed by Mary Quant. This was run as part of the preparation for an exhibition on Mary Quant 2019/2020.


Association
Cornwall
Summary
This dress was designed by Mary Quant, one of the most iconic fashion desginers of the 1960s. This dress is an example of Quant’s early work. With modest sleeves and an over-the-knee skirt it showcases a more conservative style than she is usually associated with. Sarah Robinson bought it in Truro, probably in a shop called ‘Elizabeth’. It is an example of Quant designing for the wholesale market and matches a fashion design in the V&A’s collection, E.255-2013.
Associated object
E.255-2013
Bibliographic references
  • Sew your own: Mary Quant 'Georgie' dress, 2019, V&A Website https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/sew-your-own-mary-quant-georgie-dress
  • Sunday Times, Colour Section, London, England, 4 February 1962 *Featured in a double-page spread of Mary Quant designs for the first Sunday Times Colour Section published. A Mary Quant design also feautured on the cover.
Collection
Textiles and Fashion Collection
Accession number
T.74-2018

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Record createdSeptember 12, 2018
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1460484/georgie-dress-mary-quant/
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