Jean Muir (1928-1995) was known for the classic, muted elegance of her later designs, often using jersey, crepe and suede in dark, plain colours. She began her career at Liberty’s in the 1950s, on the shop floor and as a sketcher for the ready to wear department, before moving as a designer to Jaeger and then setting up her own company, Jane & Jane, with the backing of manufacturer David Barnes. She set up the Jean Muir label in 1966. Muir was a near contemporary of Mary Quant (b.1930), and her early work catered for a similar well-heeled, but young, stylish customer. However, Jean Muir's ready to wear ranges remained exclusive while Quant moved increasingly into mass production and licensing.

This dress has been donated together with a skirt and a dress (T.282-2019 and T.283-2019) bought from Mary Quant’s boutique Bazaar by Caroline Montagu-Pollock (neé Russell), who lived off the King’s Road and worked as a model for Bazaar in the 1950s and early 1960s. The Jane & Jane dress is especially interesting as a typical, pretty, but minimalist design from Jean Muir’s early career, and as a purchase from the Knightsbridge department store Woolland’s 21 shop. This was an in-house boutique which was directly inspired by the success of Mary Quant’s Bazaar two shops nearby, emulating her marketing strategies such as bold graphic design for labels, packaging and advertising, and informal, fast-paced fashion shows with live bands. The buyer for 21 Shop was Vanessa Denza, who promoted rising young designers often graduating from colleges in London, and later set up the fashion recruitment agency Denza International.