Mary Quant OBE
Born	11 February 1934 (1934-02-11) (age 74) Kent, England
Nationality	English
Education	Goldsmith's College
Labels	Mary Quant
Awards	OBE, FCSD

Mary Quant OBE FCSD (born 11 February 1934 in Kent, England) was an English fashion designer, one of the many designers who took credit for inventing the miniskirt and hot pants. Born to Welsh parents, Quant studied illustration at Goldsmiths College before taking a job with a couture milliner. She is also famed for her work on pop art in fashion. If you hold the copyright to an image (e. ... is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Kent (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_England. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Goldsmiths College (founded 1891 by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths as Goldsmiths Technical and Recreative Institute) has been a part of the federal University of London since 1904, when it took its current name. ... Obe can mean: Obe, in Afghanistan Ebenezer Obe, a Nigerian musician. ... The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these are Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight Commander... Logo of the Chartered Society of Designers The Chartered Society of Designers (CSD), headquartered in London, England, is the professional body for designers. ... is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Kent (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Brief introduction on the history of fashion design and designers Fashion design is the art dedicated to the creation of wearing apparel and lifestyle. ... A woman modelling a miniskirt The miniskirt (often hyphenated as mini-skirt) is a skirt with a hemline well above the knees (generally 20 cm—about 8 inches—or more above knee level). ... Shorts are a garment worn by both men and women over their pelvic area and the upper part of the upper legs or more, but not the entire length of the leg. ... This article is about the country. ... Look up illustration in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Main Building The Ben Pimlott Building The Library Warmington Tower Goldsmiths, University of London (founded in 1891 as Goldsmiths Technical and Recreative Institute, rebranded from Goldsmiths College, University of London in 2006[2]) is a constituent college of the University of London specialising in teaching of and research into... Couture is the name or part of the name of several communes in France: Couture, in the Charente département Couture-dArgenson, in the Deux-Sèvres département Couture-sur-Loir, in the Loir-et-Cher département See also La Couture Haute couture CharlElie Couture, a French... A milliner is a person who designs, makes, or sells womens hats. ... Just What Is It That Makes Today’s Homes So Different, So Appealing? (1956) is one of the earliest works to be considered pop art. ...

Early career

In October 1955, she teamed up with her husband, Alexander Plunkett-Greene, and an accountant, Archie McNair, to open a clothes shop on the Kings Road in London called Bazaar. Bazaar was opened in 1955 and her best sellers were small white plastic collars to brighten up black dresses or a black sweat shirt. Black stretch sockings were popular too. Accountant, or Qualified Accountant, or Professional Accountant, is a certified accountancy and financial expert in the jurisdiction of many countries. ... Kings Road is a major east-west street in Londons Chelsea. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

Following the positive reaction to a pair of "mad house pyjamas" designed for the opening, and dissatisfied with the variety of clothes available to her, Quant decided to make her own range of clothing. Initially working solo, she was soon employing a handful of machinists, and by 1966 she was working with 18 different manufacturers concurrently. Categories: Stub | Clothing ... A machinist is a craftsman who uses machine tools to make parts or alter parts by cutting away excess material. ...

She has one son named Orlando.

The Miniskirt

Skirts had been getting shorter since about 1958 – a development Quant considered to be practical and liberating, allowing women the ability to run for a bus. The miniskirt, for which she is arguably most famous, became one of the defining fashions of the 1960s. The miniskirt was developed separately by André Courrèges, and there is disagreement as to who came up with the idea first. Mary Quant named the miniskirt after her favorite make of car, the Mini, she loved this car so much, she had one designed especially for her. A woman modelling a miniskirt The miniskirt (often hyphenated as mini-skirt) is a skirt with a hemline well above the knees (generally 20 cm—about 8 inches—or more above knee level). ... André Courrèges (born 1923) is a French fashion designer, known for his ultra-modern designs. ... For the new Mini, see Mini (BMW). ...

In addition to the miniskirt, Mary Quant is often credited with inventing the colored and patterned tights that tended to accompany the garment, although these are also attributed to Cristobal Balenciaga. Three women wearing different styles of tights. ... Cristóbal Balenciaga (January 21, 1895 - March 23, 1972) was a fashion designer from Spain. ...

The Swinging Sixties

Regardless of whether she invented these items, Quant was one of their major popularisers, largely thanks to the fact that Bazaar was a popular haunt for the fashionable "Chelsea Set" of "Swinging London". By 1961, Quant had opened a second Bazaar in Knightsbridge and by 1965 she was exporting to the U.S.. To keep up with demand, Quant went into mass-production, setting up the Ginger Group. Swinging London is a catchall term applied to a variety of dynamic cultural trends in the United Kingdom (centred in London) in the second half of the 1960s. ... Knightsbridge is a street and district spanning the City of Westminster and theRoyal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London notable for its eclectic mix of rich, famous, and international residents including several billionaires Roman Abramovich, oligarchs from Russia, China and India, international businessman Lord Marshall of Knightsbridge, trend setters Charles... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American... Mass production (also called flow production, repetitive flow production or series production) is the production of large amounts of standardized products on production lines. ...

Quant's popularity was at its peak in the mid 1960s, during which time she produced the dangerously short micro-mini skirt, "paint box" make-up, and plastic raincoats. She was described as being the leading fashion force outside Paris. In 1970 Bernard Levin called her the "High Priestess of Sixties fashion".^[1] At the height of her fame in the 60s, she anticipated that pubic hair would be a "fashion emphasis" in the coming decade, a suggestion that was scorned by many, though, as Levin observed, "none was so sure of the basis of his ridicule as to deny the possibility".^[2] Cosmetics or makeup are substances to enhance the beauty of the human body, apart from simple cleaning. ... This article is about the capital of France. ... (Henry) Bernard Levin CBE (August 19, 1928 - August 7, 2004) was an English journalist, author and broadcaster. ... Pubic hair is hair in the frontal genital area, the crotch, and sometimes at the top of the inside of the legs; these areas form the pubic region. ...

In 1966, Quant was appointed an OBE for services to the fashion industry. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these are Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight Commander...

Later career

In the late 1960s, Quant launched hot pants, which was her last big fashion development. Through the 1970s and 1980s she concentrated on household goods and make-up. Rather than just her clothing lines. Shorts are a garment worn by both men and women over their pelvic area and the upper part of the upper legs or more, but not the entire length of the leg. ...

In 1988, Quant designed the interior of the Mini (1000) Designer (Originally dubbed the Mini Quant, this name was switched when popularity charts were set against having Quant's name on the car). It featured black and white striped seats with red trimming. The seatbelts were red, and the driving and passenger seats had Quant's signature on the upper left quadrant. The steering wheel had Quant's signature daisy and the bonnet badge had "Mary Quant" written over the signature name. The headlight housings, wheel arches, door handles and bumpers were all nimbus grey, rather than the more common chrome or black finishes. 2000 were released in the UK on 15 June 1988, a number were also released onto foreign markets, however the numbers for these are hard to come by. The special edition mini came in two body colours, jet black and diamond white. For the new Mini, see Mini (BMW). ... is the 166th day of the year (167th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ...

She is also a Fellow of the Chartered Society of Designers, and winner of the Minerva Medal, the Society's highest award. It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles accessible from a disambiguation page. ... Logo of the Chartered Society of Designers The Chartered Society of Designers (CSD), headquartered in London, England, is the professional body for designers. ...

In 2000, she resigned as director of Mary Quant Ltd., her cosmetics company, after a Japanese buy-out. There are over 200 Mary Quant Colour shops in Japan, where Quant fashions continue to enjoy more popularity.

Notes

1. ^ Bernard Levin (1970) The Pendulum Years
2. ^ The Pendulum Years

External links

• film and television credits
• Database containing Mary Quant clothing in the fashion and textiles collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
• Mary Quant, A New Approach Chelsea 1955–1967. Fashion, Jewellery & Accessories. Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
• Mary Quant Vintage Clothing
• Sewing patterns by Mary Quant