Vintage S/S 1991 Pinstripe grey Suit
About the Item
- Designer:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 10 (UK)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU3757222810312
Vivienne Westwood
For someone who regularly swatted away the industry that made her, audacious British fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood certainly knew her way around a garment. And she knew how to provoke. “I don’t follow fashion,” Westwood once told the New York Times. “I’ve never been interested in it.” Collectors are certainly interested in her work, and vintage Vivienne Westwood dresses, handbags, lingerie and jackets have become very desirable over the years.
Westwood was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in a village in Derbyshire, in central England, but moved to London as a teen. In the early 1960s, she began to make her own necklaces and other jewelry and met an artist, activist and entrepreneur named Malcolm McLaren. They became involved romantically and she made clothes for him in the style of the Teddy Boys — the city’s music-crazed, occasionally violent teenagers at the time who wore high-waisted trousers and tailored velvet blazers that drew on Edwardian-era fashions.
Westwood and McLaren opened a vintage shop on King’s Road in London in 1971. The flared denim and peasant blouses of the 1960s, then still popular with the “peace and love” set, didn’t hold any weight for Westwood. Instead, she was interested in provocative, edgy apparel. She repaired used clothing and endeavored to create bold new designs from scratch.
Together Westwood and McLaren sold older rock-and-roll records, customized T-shirts with antiestablishment slogans, biker jackets and snug trousers inspired by the Marlon Brando film The Wild One as well as bondage fetish wear. The shop, once called Let It Rock and then Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die before Sex became a more appropriate moniker, evolved into a youth mecca. The DIY garments — zippered tops, burnt tees emblazoned with anarchist messages — flew off the shelves. More notably, it brought punk to the masses.
Westwood was soon dressing the Sex Pistols, a band that McLaren managed, all the while bridging the gap between music and fashion in a manner that has reverberated throughout the industry for decades.
In 1981, the couple’s first fashion show marked the debut of their Pirate collection — a swashbuckler-themed line that sprang from Westwood’s research into Indigenous Americans and the “power garments” of the Louis XIV era. The collection’s ample proportions and cutting-edge tailoring countered punk’s geometry and tight latex fits as well as what rocker Adam Ant called the “Puritanism” that plagued England at the time. The Pirate collection’s enduring influence on the world of fashion as well as the theatrical work of designers such as John Galliano and Alexander McQueen is undeniable.
For the colorful corsets of her 1990 Portrait collection, Westwood drew on 18th-century oil paintings — her models donned the pearl necklaces that have become a social media star and a favorite of influencers and fashion lovers all over the world. For a jacket-and-shorts suit from her Fall/Winter 1996–97 Storm in a Teacup line, the designer used the extreme asymmetry of a tartan mash-up to confront, according to Westwood, “the horror of uniformity and minimalism.”
The self-taught Westwood enjoyed a rapid ascent in fashion, with British society embracing her looks and Vogue immortalizing them in its glossy pages. She garnered accolades for introducing corsets to the runway and dressed Kate Moss and Helena Bonham Carter. And an original Vivienne Westwood wedding dress is featured in 2008’s Sex and the City film.
The fires of political and environmental activism burned brightly for Westwood: She was a Greenpeace ambassador, having designed the organization’s official “Save the Arctic” logo; her clothing brand is committed to using recycled canvas and other eco-friendly materials in the production process; and in 2020, she protested the extradition of Julian Assange by suspending herself in a bird cage outside London’s Old Bailey court. But she will always be the grande dame of British design.
Find an extraordinary range of vintage Vivienne Westwood shirts, shoes, gowns and other items today on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: London, United Kingdom
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
- Vintage F/W 1991 Cardigan & Skirt Suit SetBy Gianni VersaceLocated in London, GBWe are excited to present this Vintage Gianni Versace Fall Winter Fall Winter 1991 set. Cardigan features boat neckline, gold colour Versace logo hardware buttons and yellow trim. S...Category
1990s Italian Twin Sets
- Vintage Cream Co-ordBy Comme des GarçonsLocated in London, GBComme Des Garcons vintage cream set. Features a vest with long single breasted style, cut out ruched shoulders sleeves. High waisted skort fastens with an invisible side zip and butt...Category
1990s Japanese Twin Sets
- Vintage Reworked Strapless Co-ord SetBy Istante by VersaceLocated in London, GBWe are excited to present this Versace Istante Reworked Strapless Co-ord Set. Features strapless top with hooks down back and matching high waisted mini skirt with concealed zipper. ...Category
1990s Italian Twin Sets
- Kansai Yamamoto Vintage 1980's Pinstripe SuitBy Kansai YamamotoLocated in London, GBWe are excited to present this Kansai Yamamoto Vintage Late 1980's Pinstripe Suit. Features patch on front, shoulder pads, single breast and high waisted trousers with buckles on sid...Category
1980s Japanese Trouser Pant Suits
- Vintage 2000 Mesh Co-ordBy Jean Paul GaultierLocated in London, GBVintage Jean Paul Gaultier 2000 mesh two piece set. Features an abstract woven knit with mesh underlayer and mesh trimming in a bodycon fit. In...Category
Early 2000s French Twin Sets
- Vintage Corset & Skirt SetBy Dolce & GabbanaLocated in London, GBWe are excited to present this Vintage D&G long sleeve corset and tartan skirt set. Corset features brushed grey fabric, corset cups, lace front detailing with silver hardware and bo...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Oscar de la Renta Ivory & Navy Silk Chiffon Beaded Blouse & Tank Set - MBy Oscar De La RentaLocated in West Palm Beach, FLOscar de la Renta Ivory & Navy Silk Chiffon Beaded Blouse & Tank Set - M. This set is in excellent vintage condition with the only issue being some discoloration by the arm pit area ...Category
1990s French Twin Sets
- Emanuel Ungaro Parallele 1990’s Navy Boucle Jacket with skirt - Size 12By Emanuel UngaroLocated in West Palm Beach, FLThis vintage 1990’s Navy Boucle Jacket has white stitching throughout making a large checkered pattern. The jacket also has 3 yellow grosgrain ribbon making horizontal rows along the...Category
1970s Italian Skirt Suits
- 1970s Light Denim Butterflies and Flower Embroidered Shirt and Pants SetLocated in Greenport, NY1970s Light Denim Butterflies and Flower Embroidered Shirt and Pants Set A classic 1970s look. Light denim with embroidered flowers on the snap button, collared, long sleeve top. H...Category
1970s Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Off-white skirt suit Karl Lagerfeld for Neiman MarcusBy Karl LagerfeldLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FROff-white skirt suit with double-breasted jacket. Main fabric composition: wool. Silk lining. SIZE 40 (Fr) 10 (Us)Category
1980s French Skirt Suits
- Vintage 2 Pc Yves Saint Laurent Black Sequin Evening Dress Alternative EnsembleBy Yves Saint LaurentLocated in Portland, ORThis is a really versatile 1980's Yves Saint Laurent vintage knit skirt suit with shimmering black sequins. This evening dress alternative set inclu...Category
1980s European Evening Dresses
- Black evening skirt-suit with rhinestone buttons Lillie RubinBy Lillie RubinLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FRBlack evening skirt-suit with rhinestone button. Pleated on the bust and bubbling sleeves. Decorative rhinestone buttons with " reals" buttons underneath. Hook&eye in the middle fron...Category
1980s Korean Skirt Suits