Wednesday 31 August 2022

Maxi dress (style 444), Frank Usher, 1975

Having just watched a documentary about the 1970s sitcom ‘The Good Life’ last night, I was inspired to write this blog about MoDiP’s lovely Frank Usher maxi dress (refer image below). I am sure it would have been the kind of thing that Margo would have worn, perhaps accessorised with a sparkling turban and a pair of sunglasses?


Frank Usher maxi dress, AIBDC : 002765
 Image credit: MoDiP



Always popular amongst our students, this 1970s dress has a striped shirt style bodice with stand-up collar, kimono sleeves and a full, pleated skirt in a floral print. Finished with a wide belt, there is certainly a lot going on with this design!


Close up detail of the label.
Image credit: MoDiP


It is made of Courtaulds Tricelon, a mix of 65% triacetate and 35% nylon. Blending these materials accomplishes different functional requirements. For example, the nylon enables the dress to be washed at home (instead of needing to be dry cleaned), provides durability, crease and shrink resistance. The triacetate has a silk-like glossy sheen with a good drape that lends the dress a high-quality appearance. MoDiP’s Curator recently discovered an advert for the material that just happened to feature this very dress in Harper’s & Queen magazine (refer image below). Style 444, it was available in sizes 10-16 and sold for £39.50 in 1975, equivalent today to just over £300.


A Courtaulds Tricelon contemporary advert. AIBDC : 0_1921.
 Image credit: Katherine Pell.



The Frank Usher brand began business in post-war London, offering catwalk inspired design and detail at more moderate prices. Anne and Max Bruh were the names behind the label; both had fled from Germany during the war where Max had been working for the prestigious Berlin fashion house, Friedlander & Zaduk. They met in England, got married and then made the decision to start up their own company. Austerity regulations at that time meant that fashion manufacturers needed textile trading coupons to operate, and these were notoriously difficult for new businesses to acquire. To get round this problem, the Bruh’s purchased an existing firm and chose to keep its name, which Anne felt offered them ‘glorious anonymity’.

They sought out patterns to emulate that they considered to be both wearable and classic, creating designs for women that would last more than one season by recognising that their customers wanted Paris couture quality but value-for-money at the same time. Anne became the label’s Design Director and in an interview for ‘Woman and Beauty’ magazine in 1961 (refer image below), advised readers to:
“Have one set of good accessories in black patent or neutral leather - and wear them with everything.
Buy more expensive items (ball and cocktail dresses) in classic shapes and keep them for years.”
“The really canny shopper”, she said, “never buys gimmicky clothes. After two or three outings they are ready for the rag-bag, and that’s poor fashion sense whichever way you look at it.”


An article in ‘Woman and Beauty’, July 1961.
Image credit: https://advantageinvintage.co.uk/category/vintage/page/3/

Anne became renowned for her constant desire to acquire the latest, modern fabrics to set the brand apart from its rivals, and Max’s contacts, knowledge and experience ensured they acquired them at the best prices. Their partnership saw Frank Usher go on to achieve huge commercial success, being stocked in large department stores across the world, regularly featuring in fashion magazines such as Vogue, dressing the rich and famous (including Princess Anne), and even designing the wardrobe for the 1962 film ‘Go to Blazes’.
MoDiP’s Frank Usher dress can be viewed in the museum on request and features in A Curator’s Guide to Synthetic Garments.

Katherine Pell
 Collections Officer
 

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