Vivienne Westwood: From Punk to Premiere
Author: Neil Thompson


Vivienne Westwood has certainly established quite a strong
foundation in her own right. But this has not been easy for
her at all. For decades and decades, Westwood has done so
much to garner this strong reputation for herself. For
starters, she co-founded the punk style in the
international arena of fashion. She has also managed to
work with a lot of big names in the industry over the
years, too. What's more, she has also bagged a number of
awards for Best Designer of the Year.

A short glance at her credentials would clearly show you
the reason why she remains at the top of the list of
fashion designers, in spite of her age, having hit the
prime of 66 already.

Vivienne Westwood was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in
Glossopdale, Derbyshire, way back in April 8, 1941. Her
father hailed from generations and generations of
shoemakers, while her mother had a weaving job in the
cotton mills that was located locally. Growing up exposed
to the basics of fashion can certainly be credited as
attributes to Westwood's firm grasp of fashion sense.

It was in the 1950s when Westwood starting making her own
design, as a teenager. She actually customized her uniform
for school to come up with her very own design of a pencil
skirt. Since then, Westwood started conceptualizing her own
designs for her clothes. But 1965 saw a pivotal point in
Westwood's life. It was during this time that Westwood met
Malcolm McLaren, and both immediately formed a partnership
that was going to be dubbed as one of the most creative
collaborations in the industry of fashion ever. That
partnership lasted for roughly 13 years, from 1970 all the
way through 1983, and this saw the launching of Punk. This
particular style was epitomized by The Sex Pistols, one of
the prominent punk rock bands to have formed in the music
industry ever. At the time, punk clothes did not come as
cheap clothes at all. But the collaboration of Westwood and
McLaren brought forth more punk clothes that could be
bought at relatively lower prices.

At present, Vivienne Westwood has turned her attention to a
more toned-down look, which includes cufflinks and premiere
silk ties. Nonetheless, Westwood's charm and wit are still
very much visible in her silk ties. How many times have you
stained the blade of your tie with coffee and such over
dinner? And how many times have you said, "Oops!" when this
happened? This is actually one of the many trademark
designs of Vivienne Westwood's ties, with what appears to
be beverage stains at the tips of her ties.


About the Author:

Neil Thompson is a retailer of men's fashion accessories
from designer brands including Vivienne Westwood, Fred
Perry, Lacoste and Timberland. Click here for more
information about Vivienne Westwood:
http://www.kjbeckett.com/acatalog/vivienne-westwood.html