While going through my 60s mags for information to complete my write-up on Granny Takes A Trip I've found the bit I'd mentioned about Lulu being involved with a fashion range. It was the "Lulu Fashion Range" produced by "Lenbry Fashions" and was sold via Freemans catalogues. ...the article also mentioned the Sandie Shaw range of dresses... wonder if that had anything to do with her then-husband Jeff Banks? love, moons and starrs, Senti.*
Aha... tantalising and interesting - was there a logo with the Lulu advert at all? My label has the name in big blocky letters... What date was it? High 60s or end-of? Incidentally, I'm hoping a Jeff-Banks-for-Rembrandt shirt will arrive in the post for me soon. The plot thickens... L
bizarre google result... From Denistoun online - co.uk People reminiscing about their school days: "Hi George Esslemont I also knew Maria Lawrie(Lulu) while I was attending Onslow Drive Secondary, we became good friends and I visited the Lawrie Family many times in their Rosemount Street tenement hoose. It is remarkable that 20 years on, when I was working in the Fashion Trade in Queeen Street,when Lulu signed a contract with the company I represented Lenbry Fashions for Lulu to promote the "Lulu Fashion Range" in conjunction with Freemans Cataloges. Small world indeed Irvine Joseph - 1/02/05 9:06:52 (IP: Logged)" well there you go!
More! I'm sure you've seen this article? (on pdf, but if you search thru Google you can view it in html) <b>Queens of the Mods - Singing and Styling in Swinging Britain:</b> By Adrienne Lowy, I think. http://www.merseybeat.org.uk/rsmc.pdf "Lulu went on to put her name to a range for the Freemans mail order company and in doing so took these singer-endorsed a swinging fashions beyond the boutique and beyond London. Lulu covered "Shout" and was very much a shouter. She was energetic and both her voice and her movement filled that small screen... A regional herself Lulu could sell fashion in the regions. The red hair, the dancing, all gave new life to a mainstream mail order catalogue in a selling medium considered far from hip. This was instant fashion or as near instant as the postal system would allow - for the boutique boomers who did not or could not go to boutiques. When Lulu did Freemans she added a pop touch to a traditional catalogue. Catalogues were a local family-oriented form of shopping in many parts of Britain. Lulu wore, and sold, the clothes to her fans. And the catalogues helped to further the marketing of Lulu. Boutiques certainly opened all over the country, opening up a different way of shopping with atmospheric lighting and props and a constant pop soundtrack. Freemans tried to capture the boutique atmosphere but within their accepted format. To approximate the immediacy and accessibility of these young new looks. The Biba models emaciated edginess was not what Freemans wanted. Lulu's brightness and bounce were the selling points for their young fashion. This was showbiz boutiquerie for the regions-nothing instant here but at least somehow accessible in parts where boutiques had not reached. It was a traditional context for pop style. It spreading the fashion word in a safe way. You couldn't (maybe look like a Biba girl but Lulu was alright." So basically, what I really need to do is ask my boyfriend's friend's mum whether she bought that trippy art nouveau dress from Freemans.
There wasn't a logo as it was mentioned in a magazine article rather than as an advertisement. And I'm not even sure if the picture of Lulu in the article was her wearing one of those dresses, or just a random picture of Lulu. It was a bit vague really. The article was from the end of 1969 though. Your google finds are *fab*! I hadn't seen that article at all, it's really interesting. And from that other piece you found, Lenbry fashions must have been established quite a while before Lulu's range came along. It's amazing what you can find on the internet. The Rembrandt shirt sounds interesting... let us know how it is when it arrives! love, moons and starrs, Senti.*
<i>The article was from the end of 1969 though. </i> Well, when we discussed that dress yonks ago, we decided it was a 69-71 cusper. So now I just need to try and get either: a) Freeman's catalogues from 1969-70 <i>or</i> b) bf's-f's-mother on the phone. Not sure which will happen first... Thanks for starting the hunt! Let's hope we can find some link-ups. L ps. and Lizzie, I'll try and get a better label shot - the last one I did was miserable.
Mind you, who <i>else</i> would have been putting clothes out with a <b>Lulu</b> label c. 1970... We could probably provisionally sling it up on the resource already. I'll try and track down more...
I think there is more than enough evidence to go ahead with it. It will be really something if bf's f's mom remembers ordering it from that catalog!
You know, it really makes sense that this comes from Freeman's. Although the print is very cleverly used, the whole construction is not the best, <i>best</i> quality (but far better than the equivalent now - cotton backing on the neck seam for instance) But it's definitely got that quality of barmy brilliance that some pop-fashion "quick-think-of-something!" output can have. Just to note this down while I'm looking at it. The fabric care label is terribly faded, which is frustrating because it seems to have more info on it, including, possibly, place of manufacture. It does have discernable the following: "PP CAT 61 W61 625" Which looks suspiciously like a catalogue number I suppose. (and in case anyone's wondering - one more time... <img src="http://archive.noirboudoir.com/researchimages/luluside.jpg" height=400> ) I need to iron the label before trying a new shot. Unfortunately it's sewn a bit too closely into the seam.
Well, if this is what Lulu's fashions were like, I hope we come across more of them! I really do love the print on that dress. love, moons and starrs, Senti.*
OK here's the label, after a go with the iron: <img src="http://archive.noirboudoir.com/researchimages/lulu2.jpg"> I've written to Freeman's too, so let's see if they can come up with old catalogue pages. I'll post this on the label thread.
Revisiting this to wonder what on earth it means to have a late Radley London dress with a Lulu 'made in England' label in it too? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8188722910&ssPageName=ADME:B:EF:US:1 Did Radley have boutiques, or vice versa?? Just worried we might have the wrong label up now... ;-/ L
That's interesting. I never would have put any connect between the 2 firms. I'm hoping some one will know, but it is possible that there were Radley Boutiques. But I know of no connection between Radley and Freemans.
Well... the way this can be worked around, is the fact that the Lulu fashions were only produced *for* Freemans, but by the other manufacturer (lenbry? I've forgotten without looking), so conceivably, later on (and with this Radley label, it would be up to 6-7 years after the initial Lulu launch) that manufacturer could have supplied Lulu dresses to other distributers. This Lulu label is recognizably the same line (the block letters) but is slightly different, with 'Made in England' on the label. This perhaps indicates that Lulu is the manufacturer's label and Radley the boutique... But it's certainly unexpected! Hope we can get more opinions on this. I never heard back about my queries to Freemans, btw. L
