Posted by the Fashion Editor at Large
So did the Nineties shop at Selfridges live up to yesterday's stroll down memory lane? Well it gave me a lot of food for thought.
Today I met with the lovely Lucy Willis and Linda Hewson, the two curators of the shop for tea and we chatted about how the idea came about.
Today I met with the lovely Lucy Willis and Linda Hewson, the two curators of the shop for tea and we chatted about how the idea came about.
"We wanted to kick off the new decade with something provocative and nostalgic," says Linda Hewson. "A lot of people who lived through the decade as adults actually remember very little about the Nineties. Maybe they were having too good a time."
"There was a lot of laughter when we first got the product list through, " says Lucy Willis. "We had opened the criteria right up, so each buying department had their bit."
It's true that what you get in the store is a bit of everything. Classic books of the decade - for me the ultimate was Trainspotting - old magazines, CDs. Spice Girls AND Nirvana? I noted. "They were as important as each other in their own way" says Linda. For me it was Massive Attack and Nirvana all the way.
Also on sale are CD Walkmans, a bit of Damien Hirst YBA merch, limited edition T-Shirts from 90's club night WORK IT (which I hear is the best party in London right now), make up, perfume, sunglasses and clothes. Cue CK One, Thierry Mugler 'Angel' and Mac cosmetics.
My favourite aspect from a fashion point of view was seeing a cardigan from a 1994 collection by Marc Jacobs (Official Grunge if you please) supplied by Rellik on one side of the room, and then the kind of beige Acrylic Grandad cardian with "woven" leather buttons for £15 from Beyond Retro on the other side of the room. The very kind of piece that inspired Marc to do Grunge in the first place. There is also some great Alaia tailoring, some Pam Hogg, a precisely tailored black Comme jacket with a split through the ribcage, and a Perspex Chanel link belt - but be quick. Everything supplied by Rellik is one off. Sadly NO Helmut Lang there today.
I got magazine collection envy when I saw the below. I collect magazines but lost HALF of my 90's collection - precious copies of The Face and Blitz - when a flat-share I had in Stoke Newington went wrong and I was locked out by my Bi-Polar flat-mate. As a die-hard fan of the youthful beauty of Kate Moss I might be back for the below set of covers. But will I ever regain the June 1990 cover of The Face featuring Kate that I used to treasure?
I will sign off tonight by showing you the products I am most likely to buy from this shop; namely the limited edition T-Shirts from the girls behind WORK IT. And here they are!
Oh and a big thankyou to Linda and Lucy who gave this blogger a good time. What fun they had creating this shop!
Oh and a big thankyou to Linda and Lucy who gave this blogger a good time. What fun they had creating this shop!
That's Lil Kim on the left; a crop top that says Work IT in the middle (not for me) and Biggie Smalls on the right. May he RIP.
The 90's are Vintage shop at Selfridges is open until 31 January with new stock arriving every week until its over.
