VIVIENNE WESTWOOD black draped top and skirt suit
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: UK 12 & UK 10 (UK)Bust: 35.5 in (90.17 cm)Waist: 28 in (71.12 cm)Hip: 37 in (93.98 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Material Notes:Fabric content: 84% wool and 16% mohair.
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Light signs of wear.
- Seller Location:San Fransisco, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU8120337162
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: Oakland, CA
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- 1984 AZZEDINE ALAIA jet black summer playsuit with draped skirtBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in San Fransisco, CAJet-black summer playsuit with matching skirt that cleverly hooks onto waistband to create a unique draped silhouette designed by Azzedine Alaia dating to the late 1980's. Looks grea...Category
1980s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- ALEXANDER MCQUEEN peplum dress with notebook paper printBy Alexander McQueen, McQ Alexander McQueenLocated in San Fransisco, CAUnusual, draped peplum dress with notebook paper print and black pencil skirt designed by Alexander Mcqueen for McQ dating to the mid to late 2000's. It...Category
Early 2000s Italian Skirt Suits
- 2011 JUNYA WATANABE COMME DES GARCONS runway sailor suitBy Junya Watanabe Comme des Garçons, Junya WatanabeLocated in San Fransisco, CAWhite cotton sailor suit with navy trim designed by Junya Watanabe for Comme Des Garcons as seen on the Spring 2011 runway. Size XS. Best fits a US size 2...Category
2010s Japanese Trouser Pant Suits
- 1950's LUCILE MANGUIN haute couture silk apron dress and jacketBy Lucile ManguinLocated in San Fransisco, CAVery rare haute couture dress and jacket made of floral silk designed by Lucile Manguin dating to the 1950's. Best fits a US 12. Jacket measures 42" at bust, 16" at shoulders, 42" at...Category
1950s French Dress and Coat Ensembles
- 1980's MISSONI abstract printed top and skirt setBy MissoniLocated in San Fransisco, CAAbstract printed camisole and bubble skirt from Missoni dating to the 1980's. Fits a size small or medium. Approximate measurements are as follows: bust 33", skirt waist 25" (elastic...Category
1980s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- 1998 COMME DES GARCONS 'FUSION' layered jacket and runway skirtBy Rei Kawakubo, Comme des GarçonsLocated in San Fransisco, CABlack, grey and off-white layered jacket and matching skirt designed by Rei Kawakubo for Comme Des Garcons dating to fall 1998 as seen at the 'Fusion' runway show. "This was a colle...Category
1990s Japanese Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Albert Nipon Silk Striped Vintage 2 pc. Dress With BowBy Albert NiponLocated in Portland, ORThis pretty vintage 2 piece striped dijon mustard green and cream dress was designed by Albert Nipon in the 1970's. The dress includes a pleated skirt and a button front blouse with ...Category
1970s American Day Dresses
- 1980s Escada Green Pink Blue & Orange Plaid 2 pc Dress w/ Skirt & Linen TopBy EscadaLocated in Portland, ORThis is a beautiful ensemble from the 1980's designed by Margaretha Ley for Escada. The outfit has a pleated midi length skirt that buttons down the front. It is made of linen in an ...Category
1980s German Day Dresses
- S/S 1994 Christian Dior by Gianfranco Ferré Three Piece Skirt Suit RunwayBy Gianfranco Ferré for Christian Dior, Christian DiorLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a three-piece demi-couture skirt suit designed by Gianfranco Ferré for Christian Dior's Spring/Summer 1994 collection. T...Category
1990s French Skirt Suits
- 1960s James Galanos Black Persian Lamb Fur Flare Dress Jacket SetBy James Galanos, GalanosLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting an incredible black Persian lamb James Galanos couture dress and jacket set. From the 1960s, this fabulous set consists of a dress and matching coat both constructed entir...Category
1960s Dress and Coat Ensembles
- S/S 2000 Gucci by Tom Ford Black White Snake Logo Print Viscose Skirt SetBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting an incredible grey snakeskin Gucci skirt set, designed by Tom Ford. From the Spring/Summer 2000 collection, this snakeskin print was heavily...Category
Early 2000s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
- S/S 2000 Gucci by Tom Ford Black White Snakeskin Logo Print Viscose Pant SetBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a fabulous grey snake print Gucci pant set, designed by Tom Ford. From the Spring/Summer 2000 collection, the season's runway was covered in the identical snakeskin print ...Category
Early 2000s Italian Trouser Pant Suits