Presidential Savoir Faire!

Considering that Australia was considered somewhat of a backwater in the late 1960’s early 1970’s the country certainly had its fair share of controversy in the fashion world at the time. First we had Jean Shrimpton at the Melbourne Cup wearing a dress deemed insulting to the establishment, and then we had Sonia McMahon wife of then Prime Minister William McMahon wearing “that dress” at a White House dinner hosted by Richard Nixon.

Sonia McMahon was the stylish much younger wife of William McMahon, prime Minister of Australia from 1971 -1972 and also mother of the actor Julian McMahon. Being much younger than her husband she was sure to raise a few eyebrows wherever she went. However eyebrows nearly flew off people’s faces when she attended a dinner at the White House hosted by then President Richard Nixon in honour of her husband in 1971.

The daring dress created by Melbourne designer Victoria Cascajo, was made from synthetic crepe, and had thigh high slits down both sides and with see through slits down the sides of the bodice and sleeves, held precariously together by bands of rhinestones about 2 cms apart. The dress created headlines around the world.

Mrs. McMahon never expected the dress to be so controversial and selected it to wear purely because it was “different”.

She said: “You had to wear so many long frocks to dinners all the time in those days, just one after the other, in all sorts of countries. And I was just sick of the normal frilly, frothy things”.

The Washington Post said the dress was one of the most talked about costumes to be worn to the White House. The fashion editor of paper at the time described it as "absolutely smashing. I think the dress is a breakthrough for fashion and a blow for women's liberation."

*Above Powerhouse Museum Sydney

Again like Jean Shrimpton the dress seems incredibly conservative by today’s standards however it pushed the boundaries on what was considered “decent” at the time! Both women dressed for comfort and ease. Unfortunately dressing for comfort and ease these days, entails all sorts of fashion travesties, which I am afraid just don’t cut it. Jean and Sonia appear elegant and polished, compared to today’s unkempt looks and the profusion of black tights which get teemed with everything. You can still show some skin and have lots of savoir faire!

Fortuny Faire

“Fashions fade style is forever” even though this quote has been attributed to several famous couturiers over the ages, from Chanel to St Laurent, it is the perfect moniker for the work of Mariano Fortuny. Fortuny’s Delphos gown is one of the most iconic designs of the millennia, and would be equally at home in ancient Greece to the far off future.

Son of a Spanish painter, Mariano Fortuny created beautiful, exotic fabrics and designs for his couture house in Venice, which transcend all barriers of fashion and are in a class of their own.

Perhaps his most famous design the Delphos gown was based on the finely pleated chitons worn by women in ancient Greece. Fortuny’s Delphos gowns are not direct copies of the Greek’s but an evolution of the design. Fortuny used very fine silk satin pleated by hand which was unlike anything seen in fashion previously, which to this day has not been reproduced successfully by others. The seams in the gowns are so tightly pleated and fine that they are difficult to detect, giving the impression that the gown is a continuous piece of fabric. This also created an incredibly subtle garment which seems almost liquid moulding the wearer’s body in sheer drop dead elegance.

Worn and coveted by some of the most famous women of last century and sure to be coveted by many more!

Kosta Faire

I love the pleasure that decorative objects bring into life whether they are functional or not. Anything from the old, the new, the conservative or the avant garde , all have a place in my life.

Glassware in particular I love and Kosta Boda from Sweden is one of my favourite manufacturers. Their pieces are superbly crafted, interesting and classic. Mini artworks within themselves.

Here are a few of my favourites!

Friday Savoir Faire

Some Friday Savoir Faire from Baccarat where the crystal seems to be almost like liquid silver!

Scandalous Savoir Faire

They still talk about it to this day back in Australia when the Melbourne Cup is run each year, how the most beautiful girl in the world shocked a nation and set a fashion trend that would be one of the most significant of the century.

Jean Shrimpton the ‘it’ girl of the 1960’s turned up at the most prestigious horse race in the country in…….. wait for it….. a dress five inches above the knee, NO hat, NO gloves and NO stockings!

The fashion company Orlon had hired her in 1965 to present prizes at the event, didn’t really brief her on her assignment and shock horror (compared to today) did not even provide her with a wardrobe, instead opting to send her some fabric which she could use for outfits.

She was left to design what she wanted and had them made up. She hired a dressmaker, Colin Rolf, who discovered there was not sufficient fabric for her designs. He then said, “Oh, it doesn’t matter. Make them a bit shorter – no one’s going to notice.” However, notice they did!

"The day of the races was a hot one, so I didn't bother to wear any stockings. My legs were still brown from the summer, and as the dress was short it was hardly formal. I had no hat or gloves with me, for the very good reason that I owned neither. I went downstairs cheerfully from my hotel room, all regardless of what was to come."

The classic photo (below) taken of her that day showed a dramatic contrast -- in the foreground, the young, carefree, independent Jean her in her famous minidress, and behind her, a crowd of scowling middle-aged Melbourne matrons dressed in regulation twin-set, pearls and hats. It justifiably became one of the iconic images of Sixties Australia.

Suddenly the mini, which had had a half-hearted start in Paris, became fashionable. “Mary Quant rode in on the back of it, immediately making shorter skirts. Many people gave her credit for the new craze, but the truth was that the mini took off because Orlon had been stingy with the fabric.”

To quote a newspaper of the time…

The shockwaves were still rumbling around fashionable Melbourne last night when Jean Shrimpton -- The Shrimp -- swore she hadn't realised she was setting off such an outraged upheaval at Flemington on Saturday.

"I don't see what was wrong with the way I looked," she said. "I wouldn't have dressed differently for a race meeting anywhere in the world.'

For my money, she looked tremendous -- but Flemington was not amused. Fashion-conscious Derby Day race goers were horrified. 'Insulting' ... 'a disgrace' ... 'how dare she?' ... ! If the skies had rained acid not a well-dressed woman there would have given The Shrimp an umbrella.

Society was vitriolic with the below also being said…

"If Miss Shrimpton wants to wear skirts four inches above the knee in London, that's her business, but it's not done here. I feel we do know so much better than Miss Shrimpton ... we all dress correctly here."

The British press also had their go reacting angrily to the Australian criticism of Jean, as shown by the London Evening News, which said that "... surrounded by sober draped silks and floral nylons, ghastly tulle hats and fur stoles, she was like a petunia in an onion patch."

The actual day of the cup being run Ms. Shrimpton bent towards conservatism and public opinion wore a three-piece grey suit with an ice-blue straw Breton hat, beige gloves and stockings, and a chocolate-brown handbag.

My how things have changed! Ms. Shrimpton with a bit of natural savoir faire caused a revolution with an outfit that would hardly cause a ripple in today’s fashion world!

Shopping Savoir Faire!

Nothing says savoir faire more than arriving at Schiaparelli on the Place Vendome, than the two photos below. If only shopping were such an experience these days!

Sure some stores have doorman ready to open the doors for you and whisk you inside, however I think the little chap below, would just make our day!

Ancient Savoir faire

I remember as a youngster my grandmother giving my sister the most wonderful gold bracelet. What struck me most about it was the amazing simplicity of the piece. A continuous band of gold with the Greek key design cut out. Unfortunately I haven’t got a photo, but you will get the general idea from the bracelet below.


The Greek Key design/motif is one of those timeless almost iconic representations of a classic design which has become an integral part of architecture through to fashion. Originally used by the Greeks as a border on many architectural friezes, it has been used through the ages without overkill and still remains elegant.

The design itself is stark and intensely graphic. (Maybe that is why I like it so much).

Perhaps we can see the complete evolution of the design in the Givenchy logo, where the signature G, has been used 4 times in different rotations to form the logo.