1960s Style Icons

The fashion industry of the early 1960s was predominantly a hold-over from the late 1950s. Cold War jitters and a stable British economy – the Pound was exchanging at 2.75 US dollars from 1950 to 1970 – encouraged the maintenance of the status quo. The icons with the most influence on fashion were high-profile personalities: Bridget Bardot, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Jackie Kennedy. Most were US film icons. The UK wasn't silent, they simply weren't heard on a world-wide scale.

Until 1963. That's the year Mary Quant brand was established in the US. Fueled by the massive explosion in the population of young people born at the leading edge of the Baby Boom just reaching their teens, they had “Daddy's money,” disposable income. TV became available in colour. Dr. Who premièred in the UK on the same day President Kennedy was assassinated. The world was ready for “something new,” and that something was Mary Quant's brain-child, the mini-skirt.

In the US, well-heeled boarding school girls went to London. Exchanging the ubiquitous pleated plaid kilts – the de facto uniform – for “the Chelsea Look” proved British fashion wasn't just a raging fad; it was a wild-fire.

When the lads from Liverpool made their presence known on the Ed Sullivan Show, they changed men's hair styles, their influence still apparent today. And the US woke up. England – it took a while, but they got used to calling it the UK after a while – was cool. It was hot, happening, and not merely tragically hip.

The US fashion landscape changed with “The British Invasion.” Unlike the last attempt in 1814, this one was a total and complete victory. Young UK pop music stars replaced screen stars as the primary influence in fashion for young people. The older generation had their own fashion icons, but they tended to lag the leading edge of the wave.

For the most part, the Vietnam War had no significant impact on the UK. However, the war did serve to drive the market and desirability of fashion, and the UK was quick on the uptake. Designers flourished, and through the 1970s, the more outrageous, the better. Not even the anti-establishment, anti-war counter-culture was immune from British fashion trends.

Bra-burning, the advancement of Civil Rights in the US, and protests – whether peaceful or violent – made fertile ground for UK fashion designers, pop star influences, and models the world over. But the best barometer of the era to measure the UK impact on fashion was the US.