Letty Lynton dress - looking for info

M

mcbrain

Registered Guest
Hello,

I have a Letty Lynton of Melbourne dress from the 1950s which belonged to my grandmother who gave it to my wife. It looks like a 'rayon?' material with flowers that were apparently hand painted - although I'm not sure about that.

I'd just like to find out a bit about these dresses and their history and connection with Melbourne.

If anyone can direct me to more info I would be most grateful.

Here are a couple of pics:

Regards
Nick
 
Nick, I have a vintage clothing shop in Melbourne and I can confirm that Letty Lynton was a popular local label from the '40s and '50s (and agree that your ensemble is from this decade).

I found a deadlink on Google that suggests it was based at 27 City Road, Princes Bridge (Southbank). The label may have been named for the 1932 film Letty Lynton. Australian labels pre-60s would often adopt "sophisticated" sounding names from the US or Europe, to make their label seem more international, due to the cultural cringe.

The dresses that I've had have been good quality. You're probably right about it being rayon, or perhaps a mix of rayon with a natural fibre (it's a bit hard to tell from your pics).

There is also a Letty Lynton dress in the collection of Sydney museum The Powerhouse.


Nicole
 
Thanks Nicole, I actually found your website earlier today and was going to email you if I had no luck on the forum.

I saw that the Powerhouse Museum had some Letty Lynton dresses but I haven't contacted them as I thought I wouldn't get an answer (based on what they say on their contact page).

Have you heard of fabrics being used that had hand-painted flowers? I was told this is the case but looking closely I'm not sure.

Also, we were thinking of getting the dress altered (taken in) to fit my wife. Is this generally done and if so, how will I know the best place to take it, do some places specialise in vintage dresses?

Thanks very much for the info.

Regards
Nick
 
Hi Nick,

I can't tell by your photos if the dress has been hand-painted: some '50s fabrics were but there were many more that were simply printed to look as if they were hand-painted. One way to tell is look for parts of the pattern repeat that look similar - and then look for slight differences in the technique. Or you could look for a raised texture from uneven paint. Some prints can duplicate the second one, but a real print will be regular and not uneven like a hand-paint can be.

I could easily tell by looking at it - if you wanted to bring it into the shop for me to look at, I'll be there on Saturday from about 11am to 1.30pm, and I'll be there a bit tomorrow but not at any particular time.

We have the details on file of a few dressmakers who could help you - please call the shop on 9419 8899 and Fiona or Victoria will pass on their details.

Nicole
 
Thanks Nicole,

I may pop in on the weekend to get you to have a look and to get details of dressmakers.

Regards
Nick


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