WAHHHH :'( ! - This is what is going through my head when I think about the Ossie Clark jacket, I'm slightly glad its gone; It was absolutely tiny and would require a lot of TLC to keep it going considering its over 50 years old. But still I feel empty handed even though I'm guaranteed £300-£500 from Kerry Taylor's own trusted words. In my eyes Ossie Clark is a genius, His use of print, cut and colour made him a major figure in the swinging sixties period in London.
Clark's pieces were usually layered, floaty, romantic in the most bold materials such as chiffon, snakeskin, silk and crepe. He used a special ruler shaped in a circle brought back from a wonderland holiday in India as a template for all his dress designs, It would flute out with a biased cut giving that fluid drapey cut he was praised for; Most of his garments fitted in key places so you couldn't wear a bra nor panties. He told Marianne Faithfull when she questioned him on one of his designs (most likely the one Emma Watson wore) "You're meant to be able to lift your dress up and pull down the top and have sex anywhere" Sophisticated yet practical????
In the early years he began designing at Quorum in 1965, His stuff wasn't affordable - His clientele included names such as Twiggy, Penelope Tree, Marianne Faithfull, Talitha Getty, Bianca Jagger, Jean Shrimpton, Elizabeth Taylor and Liza Minnelli not to mention the uber cool aristocrats of the King's Road. But after getting into serious debt he had to collaborate with Radley to produce a cheaper line. Sadly Ossie was stabbed to death by his ex-lover in 1996 (my birth year!) but his style still lives on and influences many designers of the present.
Today there is still a large demand for his hedonistic and darling style in luxurious vintage shops in London and LA. But there is a little thing on the internet, you may of heard of it. Its called Ebay and you can find pretty much anything! I bought the Ossie Clark jacket for under £150 (BARGAIN) but I can understand why I got it for such a low price. ITS FUCKING TINY! The only person who could wear that jacket was probably Twiggy. However though I couldn't fasten the pearl buttons at the waist, I felt like a million dollars - The smooth touch of satin, the eye-catching print; Totally understood why so many people describe his clothes as exquisite.
I should of took an outfit photo before it was packaged posted off to London for auction, But still thankful I have the shitty photos I took on my blackberry. I HAD to try it on when I came through my door so I could send glorious model pictures of myself (not including a duck face) to all my pals!!!! Its design is called a Lamborghini jacket famously after Twiggy was shot in the same style in a cream satin whilst getting out of a Lamborghini car. Ossie only created a handful of non-dress pieces and this piece was actually a part of a suit alas I only have the jacket :'( Mine is even rarer as its mainline Ossie Clark cut in a beautiful chinese print. Its form-fitting silhouette and diagonally placed pockets accent the waist and hips to give that skinny-yet-shapely figure.
I hope one day I will be reunited with a Lamborghini jacket (or even a suit) that I can fit into comfortably but at the meanwhile at least I've tried a piece of his work. For all of you guys who want to invest in his work I suggest Ebay but any high-end vintage shop will have some Ossie Clark pieces in.
Lawrence
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