Catalogue Woman

Welcome to the 70s, an era when women dressed as if life was one long Benny Hill sketch. The choice of looks ran from the mini: baby-doll smocks and pinafores, to the maxi: ground-hugging dresses for glamorous party swingers. No item was free from ric-rac, ruching or wet-look trim. Crease-shedding crimplene flares were so wide they made footwear redundant and the only troubling question for a girl was the denier of her new nylon negligee. Meanwhile, peasant dresses, bolero suits and ponchos were all brought back from the continent and murdered with man-made fabrics and lurid colours. But, as these wonderfully cheesy catalogue snapshots reveal, despite it's excesses, the 70s was a time when everyone was deliriously happy in their gay, gorgeous and washable new looks.