Betsey Johnson for Alley Cat patterns for Butterick, 1970s.
I was very sorry to hear about Betsey Johnson filing for bankruptcy yesterday. While I haven't bought anything new from her in a decade, when I was 16 her dresses were pretty much the ultimate for me. Since then my interest in her has shifted to her earlier work, especially her brightly coloured sweater dresses from the 80s (I live in a red one patterned with huge neon shells come winter) and her 70s work with Alley Cat. Above are two of my favourite patterns she did for Butterick- some day I will get around to making them...
Hopefully the company can regroup and use this as a way to refocus the company around its core clientele and original message- it seemed to me that in recent years the fabrics have become increasingly poorer quality and there has been a sameness to the collections- a lack of the creativity that marked her earlier work.
She was quoted a bit ago that her interest in punk had always been a commercial plot. I was quite disappointed in her for that.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Johnson's early work is much more interesting. I think many 20-somethings only know about her most recent iterations, which is kind of sad.
Sweet patterns! I love my vintage Betsey, but it's true - way less inspiring in recent years. I totally have a 70s Alley Cat bathing suit with a hook and eye front that I love wearing as a top!
ReplyDeleteI was so sad to hear about this too - even if her interest in punk was a commercial plot - her creativity and flair for design is undeniable.
ReplyDeleteI will never forget seeing a documentary on her apartment in New York, and it pretty much changed my life. Such an inspiration.
Then I remember visiting one of her stores when I was in NY recently and being really confused - it seemed so cheap, and not at all like the Betsey I found.
Anyway, I hope she can reincarnate into something true to herself.