Lovely classic vintage 1970’s Prairie style maxi dress by vintage brand Richard Shops. This dress was made in England.
About Richard Shops:
Richard Shops was a former well-known British high street retailer of women's fashion.
Richard Shops was part of the clothes-selling empire United Drapery Stores, a group created in 1927 by Joseph Collier. Richards was managed by Rudy Weil until his retirement in the mid-1970s. From the 1960s to the 1990s it was a ubiquitous part of almost every British high street and shopping centre, selling fashion clothing designed to appeal to young women.
United Drapery acquired Richard Shops in 1958, following the acquisitions of the menswear businesses Prices Tailors and Alexandre. There followed a rapid expansion and promotion of the stores.
In 1983 UDS was sold to Hanson plc, but, in an attempt to recover the cost of the purchase, Hanson immediately split Richard Shops from UDS and sold it on as a separate company. It was bought by the newly formed retail group Habitat/Mothercare plc, and became part of Storehouse plc following the merger of Habitat/Mothercare with British Home Stores in 1986.
In 1992 Richard Shops was sold to the British retailing giant Sears plc. the then owner of the London department store Selfridges, and the women's clothing retailers Wallis, Miss Selfridge and Outfit. In 1999 Sir Philip Green, who had acquired Sears plc, transferred Richard Shops, along with Wallis, to the Arcadia Group which immediately announced the closure of all branches of Richard Shops,
The brand ceased in 1999.
About the dress:
This is a really lovely piece of vintage clothing from the 1970s. It is very feminine and pretty.
The lovely cotton fabric features lovely floral designs arranged in verical stripes in shades of red, green yellow, blue and white on a black background.
The neckline is square neck with a lace tie from the neckline down the front of the bodice. The front of the bodice has prairie style "bib" panel in plain black.
The dress has short puffed sleeves trimmed with black. The dress has a fitted bodice and quite a full style skirt.
The dress is maxi in length. The dress fastens with a zip to the back and ties to the back with its original attached tie / sash in the same fabric as the dress.
The dress is not lined but the cotton fabric is not sheer.
This dress is a real classic piece and is very flattering when worn and its classic retro vintage style is guaranteed to get you noticed..
A really fabulous cute dress.
Condition:
This is a vintage item. The item has been carefully washed and is in very good vintage condition with only very light signs of wear.
Size :
Pit to pit: 16 inches
Chest: 34 inches
Empire Waist: 29 inches
Hips: free to 44 inches
Length: 54 inches
Sleeve length: 11 inches
Vintage label size GB 12 which is about a UK modern 8
Best fit UK size 8.
For reference, my lovely assistant "Petula" in the photographs is a UK size 6 to 8. It's a good fit on her.
Materials:
This piece is made from a cotton or cotton blend fabric. Panel on bodice is a stretchy jersey.
Aftercare:
In order to preserve the condition of this lovely dress, this piece should be gently hand washed in cool water using mild detergent and drip dried. Do not tumble dry. Handle gently and take care with jewellery and rough surfaces. Keep away from fire and open flames.
SIZING GUIDE:
UK SIZES AND MEASUREMENTS:
Vintage clothing label sizes are completely different to modern sizes so size labels where present should be ignored. Sizes given on each listing is based on my own estimation. Some vintage items look great on a range of sizes based on the cut of the item, the fabric type and desired fit and whether worn with a belt on not etc.
Please ensure that you carefully check your measurements against the item measurements and the guide below (based on Debenhams standard sizing):
SIZE BUST WAIST HIPS
CM’S “’S CM’S ‘’S CM’S ‘’S
6 (XS) 79 31 60 23.5 83 32.5
8 (S) 83 32.5 64 25 87 34.5
10 (S) 87 34.5 68 27 91 36
12 (M) 92 36 73 28.5 96 38
14 (M) 97 38 78 30.5 101 40
16 (L) 104 41 85 33.5 108 42.5
18 (L) 111 43.5 92 36 115 45.5
20 (XL) 118 46.5 99 39 122 48
22 (XL) 125 49 106 41.5 129 51
24 (XXL) 132 52 113 44.5 136 53.5
26 (XXL) 139 54.5 120 47 146 57.5
Please note that all sizes are UK sizes unless otherwise stated. For Conversion to US and European sizes please see the table below:
UK 6 = US 2/ EU 34/AU 6
UK 8 = US 4/ EU 36/ AU 8
UK 10 = US 6/ EU38/ AU 10
UK 12 = US 8/ EU40/ AU 12
UK 14 = US 10/ EU 42/ AU 14
UK 16 = US 12/ EU 44/ AU 16
UK 18 = US 14/ EU 46/ AU 18
UK 20 = US 16/ EU 48/ AU 20
About:
“Mijkra” is a UK based artist/photographer and designer creating and sourcing unique original pieces in a converted stable/barn in the heart of Oxfordshire and in the back of a vintage campervan.
This store, hosted by Etsy, will showcase and sell a range of unique artisan bohemian hand created clothing, “art to wear”, accessories, jewellery and homeware, remodelled couture, up cycled vintage, unique vintage items and a selection of my original artworks. Please browse my other items.
All the items are unique, individual and one off pieces, and are a mix of new handmade, remodelled couture (new or vintage), up cycled vintage items or pure vintage original pieces.
Additional note on vintage items:
The beautiful vintage and remodelled vintage pieces are handmade and/or vintage items and there might be some slight irregularities. These add to the unique charm of the exquisite pieces and do not distract from the beauty of the items. All vintage items are carefully selected, dry-cleaned or hand washed in gentle eco-friendly detergent and repaired where necessary before these are added to the shop and are in good vintage condition.
