2004
Working class hero Vivienne Westwood enjoyed a major retrospective at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. A comprehensive look at her career: from Sex to Seditionaries, Pirates to Pagans, from the Mini-Crini to tartan, an OBE and those shoes.
2005
You couldn’t open a magazine in 2005 without stumbling across another celebrity in a different colour of the same dress… Roland Mouret’s Galaxy Dress wound up on just about every red carpet and was seen flattering the frames of Naomi Watts, Dita Von Teese, Scarlett Johansson and even Carol Vorderman.
2006
Biba, Barbara Hulanicki’s institutional fashion (and ultimately lifestyle) brand that heralded affordable ready-to-wear style in the sixties, made its comeback. ‘The new Biba embraces a deeply modern aesthetic with the boldness and innovative design that characterised the label in its heyday.’ It’s just a shame this time round prices render it a touch less accessible to those not on a six-figure salary.
2007
She discovered Hussein Chalayan and Stella Tennant, bought Alexander McQueen’s entire degree show and was milliner Philip Treacy’s muse. In 2007, the fashion world paid tribute to Isabella Blow, an inspirational industry figure whose life ricocheted between extremes of tragedy and triumph.
2008
Creative director for YSL, Stefano Pilati, breaks the mould by opting to show a film of his Autumn/Winter 2008 collection instead of sending models down a catwalk. In the same year the great artisan Yves Saint Laurent himself died, leaving behind a potent legacy. He once said that fashion was ‘not only supposed to make women beautiful, but to reassure them, to give them confidence, to allow them to come to terms with themselves.’
2009
With only two months into 2009, who knows what seminal fashion moments will take place before the year’s out. So far we’ve had Michelle Obama’s rise to fashion icon status, Courtney Love being crowned Woman of the Year at the Elle Style Awards and the launch of Condé Nast’s brand new Love magazine. Expect a few more this fashion week too, that’s for sure.
So, viewers, over to you: tell us your favourite fashion moments of the past 25 years; what would you add, what have we missed? Do you have any personal fashion moments that still make you cringe? Let us know…
