I by no means have the most impressive Laura Ashley collection in the world or am I an expert but i do have a great love and passion for both Laura Ashley and my hometown of Merthyr Tydfil. Therefore, I feel compelled to do something to celebrate what would have been her 100th birthday.
I will be doing a small, free display of my Laura Ashley collection inside Velvet Sunflower from 2nd - 6th September 9am-5pm. There will also be a lovely selection of 70s, 80s & 90s Laura Ashley pieces for sale that i have been saving especially for the centenary!
Where it all began
Laura Ashley was born in Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil on 7th September 1925. Her mother was living in London at the time but rushed home to Dowlais before Laura was due to make sure she was born in Wales. The family returned to London in 1929 but holidayed in Wales regularly throughout Laura's childhood.
Laura met Bernard Ashley at an air cadets dance at a youth club in the 1940s. They were married in 1949. Though total opposites personality wise, they complimented each other and together in their small Pimlico flat in the 1950s, laid the foundations of the iconic Laura Ashley brand that we all know and love today.
Ashley made her first sale of scarves to John Lewis in 1953. The scarves were inspired by a trip to Italy Laura and Bernard had taken and printed in their Pimlico flat using a machine Bernard had designed himself.
A 1950s Laura Ashley scarf from my collection
The scarves proved incredibly popular and the couple soon began adding more products to their inventory and selling printed fabrics to other fashion retailers. They eventually moved to Machynlleth where their first shop was opened in 1961 at 35 Maengwyn Street
A lovely write up about Laura Ashley in the Liverpool Echo 9th August 1963. Photo of Ashley and daughter Jane inside the Machynlleth shop. The family lived above the shop
I particularly love this piece about Parisian Martine visiting the Machynlleth shop in 1967
The Ashley's eventually outgrew the Machynlleth shop and soon opened the first shop to bear the Laura Ashley name in 1968 on Pelham Street, London.
The Laura Ashley shop on Pelham Street, London (via Dave Walker)
A few 1970s Laura Ashley dresses from my collection
I have always been impressed by how Laura Ashley navigated the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s and how she managed to stay relevant and successful throughout these decades of immense change. From her scarves of the 50s, her gardening smocks and mini dresses of the 60s, the iconic prairie dresses steeped in historical inspiration of the 70s and the unmistakeable florals of the 1980s. So many iconic designers and businesses collapsed going into the 1980s but Ashley seemed to adapt and reinvent her brand with each decade, creating endless iconic styles which have stood the test of time.
Laura Ashley was so incredibly modest and I don't think she ever realised quite how impressive and talented she was. A truly inspiring businesswoman whose high standards and strong values imprinted onto her clothes.