Mod-tastic!

Over on Instagram recently a friend was talking about a load of vintage clothing they'd been given and were sorting through with their mum, including lots of 1960s pieces, so I asked them to give me a heads-up if they were selling. And look what they sent me! An absolutely perfect original mod-style dress. (I'm not naming the friend in case they get beseiged by loads of similarly cheeky people; I never expected a gift and once I get paid I'm going to make a donation to a charity to say thank-you.)

The photo looks a bit dark; the dress is – BUT OF COURSE – mostly navy. I gave it a wash when it arrived and the white sections came up beautifully. Aaaah, the endurance of pure polyester! The more of these 1960s polyester knits I acquire, the more I believe the story about shops asking manufacturers to stop using the fabric because it never wore out. A quick whizz in the machine with some Persil and it looks as fresh as anything you'd get off the high street today, and I'm pretty sure in about five years time will be looking just as good, unlike those high street equivalents.


Going by the label and style of the dress, I'm guessing this is mid to late 60s. I've seen adverts for St Michael (Marks and Spencer sub-brand) with exactly identical typography on the logo, right down to the placement of the (R) symbol, from that period.

Given the sizes on the label, I was pretty sure the dress wouldn't fit my bust, but tried it on anyway... so imagine my delight when I could do it up! It is very tight across the norks, but I'm still eating salad for lunch, going to the gym on Sunday mornings and laying off the sweeties, so my weight is continuing to creep down, even if it is at a snail's pace. I'm sure I'll be wearing the dress out and about in a matter of months. It's certainly a good incentive to stick to my mid-day veggies.