Sale-ing back to the nineties

The 1990s were all about dressing up. The beginning of the decade was still dominated by power shoulder pads and corseted cocktail dresses. It was the age of the ‘ladies that lunch’, whose ever more extravagant wardrobe needs were catered for by glamorous designers like Isabell Kristensen, shown here on the way to Royal Ascot in the mid ‘90s.











Being amongst the first to realize there'd be a '90s revival, we’ve a simply stunning collection of clothes and matching accessories from the era on sale at ShopCurious. What’s more, now ‘the nineties are vintage’, we’ve decided to slash our Winter sale prices for 1990s fashions from the likes of Isabell, plus many other stars of the decade, like Bruce Oldfield, Julien Macdonald, Celine, Genny, Marni and Voyage.




This lime green satin three piece by Kristensen, for instance, is down from £550 to £350 and there’s a sparkling Swarovski crystal studded Julien Macdonald knitted number (below left) that’s reduced by a whopping £550.


Genny was a very popular label in the ‘90s, and we’ve some curiously classic pieces - including this fabulously sweeping black and white striped, strappy silk petticoat-style dress. There are also some extraordinary shoes by Tom Ford for Gucci, Prada and Vivienne Westwood.















Later in the decade, styles became much less formal and structured - the trend towards more organic clothing being led by the Mazzillis, of Voyage fame - along with other newcomers, such as Christa Davis, who also specialized in bias-cut designs, hand-dyed and recycled fabrics.




I had my own little excursion back to the ‘90s, when I discovered some rather curious photos – including this one of me looking like a startled ostrich in a hat made by Nicholas Oakwell, pictured above with Isabell (and now a talented designer in his own right). I have a feeling this curious creation is still lurking somewhere at the back of my wardrobe, waiting to be retrieved for current day use. On second thoughts, I think some aspects of ‘90s style are just a tad too scary to even contemplate reviving.

Do you?

Green's the new gold at Royal Ascot

Shortly after arriving at the race course for Tuesday’s Royal Ascot meeting, I found myself amidst an eclectic group of Lladro-meets-Vettriano-style statues that looked to be made of copper – or at least they were green … a colour that just happened to match my outfit. The new additions (click on pics to enlarge), created by much-lettered sculptors, are representations of ‘The Establishment and The Working Class’, so it was somewhat appropriate that I should be standing betwixt the Queen and Prince Philip. Curiously, it looks as if the Queen is without a hat.




I was on the lookout for gold clothing and accessories and spotted a wonderful old-school style gold horse brooch from Royal Ascot days of yore, worn by throroughly professional member of staff, Sheila (right), who certainly gets my gold star for helpfulness. I also spied these gladiatorial gold sandals under a table (left) … mmm, not so sure about those. And there were plenty of traditional gold waistcoated men (see below).



I noticed a lot of gold jewellery, but nothing quite as unique and original as the vintage Swoboda pendant from ShopCurious. I’m really surprised that this amazing bargain of a gold and semi-precious stone pendant (right) hasn’t been snapped up yet. Vintage jewellery can be a great investment as it's usually timeless and you can wear it year after year – and real gold pieces might appreciate significantly in value too.





‘Green’ hats are also sensible style – create your own, or invest in handmade works of millinery art by designer Sandra Bamminger, or Laura Wellington. Clever ladies tipped their hats to a hint of green. Isabell Kristensen, for instance, with her delicious looking strawberries and cream creation: New season’s fruit that looks just as fresh as the ever-youthful designer herself, pictured left with her beautiful daughter.


The most stylish ladies were distinctly natural and understated – but they said it all with their hats … and with one simple word: recycled. Those with style and brains know that recycling is ‘old hat’ – ie get out an old hat and spruce it up with some embellishment like a corsage, some foliage, unusual bits and pieces that will set you apart from the crowd. Vintage and homemade hats were the order of the day.

Alice (right) discovered she had left her hat in the car, which was driven away by a chauffeur. She quickly cobbled one together from a newspaper (inadvertently picking up on the fashion for gold coins) and some other bits of stuff - more of which were added as the day went on - making for a quirky, individual look. Good job it wasn’t windy.


The lovely doctor pictured left (married to dishy actor, Marcus Gilbert, who was sadly absent) told me she was a dab hand at sewing sutures, so she decided to handcraft her own Ascot hat. How curiously cool is that?

By the way, I’ve designed and decorated my own hat for later this week – details to follow shortly, plus the chance to win a rather natty summer hat.

Will you?

Golden memories

The latest Ken Loach film, Looking for Eric, starring Eric Cantona, is full of golden memories – rather like a cinematic psychotherapy session – and Steve Evets’ acting is simply brilliant. I love a good tragi-comedy … and this film is to drug and gun culture what The Full Monty is to the dole queue.

It’s true, we need to ‘have danger to go beyond danger’ (and there are bound to be a few bad memories in life's lot) – but legends like Cantona have the ability to influence us - and, with the 'elp of great coaching credentials and a philosophical turn of phrase, can inspire us to better ourselves and seek out happier, more fulfilled lives.



A bit of laughter also goes a long way – and there was plenty when I unearthed this old photograph of me (left) wearing the couture designed gold sequined GoldenEye dress that’s now on sale at ShopCurious.

The legend that is 007 was Pierce Brosnan at the time - and when I wore this dress to the premiere of his first Bond film, he and his wife, Keely, stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of me walking towards the cinema. No, they didn’t break down in fits of giggles, but were simply awestruck at the gorgeous glittering glow of my glamorous designer gown.



The dress was specially created by celebrity fashion designer, Isabell Kristensen, back in the day when structured eveningwear was big on the red carpet, as it is to this day, though apologies for the curiously un-cool colour combo of the floor covering in this shot – it has nothing to do with me, I can assure you!

Now something of a collectors’ item, this dress would be great if you have an awards ceremony, or a special party to attend. The dress also has one of Isabell’s trademark built-in corsets to ensure the perfect hourglass figure.



Funny how fashions have changed: In the early-mid 1990s, it was stylish to dress in a grown-up, sophisticated manner that meant you could end up looking a rather like Krystle Carrington from Dynasty. Around the time of this photo, new trends were evolving and, by day, true fashionistas opted for the cutting-edge and creatively unstructured designs of Prada and Marni, as well as Voyage’s Bohemian hippy chic style. Designs later became even less formal, morphing into grunge fashion, but the trend for recycling and the vintage look that started all those years ago is only just beginning to be taken seriously.






Ooh aah, golden memories and precious pieces of history recycled for future generations to appreciate, learn from and enjoy.

Will you?