Welcome to these boards Hellensc.

Ah yes Chevignon and Chipie, I think the former still exists in France. Chipie had a whole shop on the most expensive Amsterdam high street back in the '80s. I remember liking some of their retro varsity/baseball/letterman jackets but nothing they sold was actually vintage was it? It was all reproduction or 'inspired' stuff no?

That's probably why I never bought any - even back then I thought "I'd rather hunt for the real vintage deal, and get it for less".  It was very expensive as well, but it seemed well made.

Oh and then when Benetton brought in their Sisley stuff. Italo-Preppy?

Last edited by Russell_Street (2009-02-24 04:04:48)

I had some nice Libertos back then - striped denim. Didn't you wear some Liberto recently Uncle Russ? Are they from that era still?

chevignon, chipie.. hmm.. they seem to evoke some hazy and long gone memories from the baggy era, late 8ts, early nineties when i was heavily into madchester & 'rave'.  season '89-'90 chevignon polo shirts + baggy chipie jeans were must have items over here. right after the chipie craze came AVIREX USA, jeans & leather jackets, the jeans being less baggier sort of the chipie ones, albeit far from skinny though. if i still could fit in (back then i had 28" waist now 32") i'd probably wear those avirex jeans even now. quite fitted on the top, with straight legs and very slightly bootcut.

i never went into leather jackets though, it was all kagouls + wax jackets for me back then.

i even had a pair of bright red chipie jeans! wore 'em with with  baggy t's (plain levis or hanes + not so plain best company, d'oh) or polos (lacoste, chevignon) + either black Incontinence pants gazelles or black 8 hole air wairs. good memories, though hazy. got to be a loose fit and all that. oh, i'll soon burst into tears..

Last edited by heikki k (2009-02-24 05:46:54)

yes, and no. i cant be 100% sure, as i witnessed the era over here in finland and not in the uk (i visited manchester only in 1991 when the baggy era was in its end) so i largely believe ours was the approximation mostly. however, having read many (web)zines later on over the casual / baggy era i've seen those labels mentioned alongside with others that were nonavailable over where i lived. so i'd say they were both the approximation and part of the real look.

one would have to ask a manchester lad was there and did that and not a finn who was into the music + his local scene. i once had a lengthy discussion on the madchester era w/ a manchester expat living over here but it was 90% over music / drugs / messing about rather than over clothes.

jim, when were those london shops at their peak btw?

Yes I use to go to the Zanzibar down in Great Queen Street for a drink. It was the first gastrobar place to be in those days. Sadly missed compared to now.

I dont know whether any of you remember a shop in Kensington market called Johnson and Johnson. At Chevignon there was a guy designing Leather jackets called Lee Trevor. Well he fell out with Chevignon and setup his own Brand called Lee Trevor and Johnsons use to sell these leather jackets being black with a towell like sign (in black and cream) on the back that said "Cushman Scooters". The jackets use to have badges (Again in black ad white) on the arms.

When Johnson's pulled out of Kensington Market they opened a shop in the Kings Road, just on the corner near worlds end and one day I went in there and bought a Lee Trevor Poker Shirt, cost £140.00  (they only had a couple) and Mark Knopfler bought one and wore it on tour. It was a cowboy shirt in creme and black with playing cards on the shoulders, pearl buttons on the cuffs. Really well made

I still own both my Cushman Jacket and the Shirt.

More to come

All the best,

Chris

"Nic-Nak" (sp?) on the Brewer Street / Wardour Street corner - ish? Some interesting things in their mix back in the day...

Nic-nac is still there selling Liberto. As for Fiorucci, I bought my fist pair of jeans in their store in Knightsbridge. In the same area was "Smile" where you got a great haircut. Now let's go back to 72-73. I was 17 at the time and I went to probably the first decent unique clothes shop to open in Covent Garden, it was located at the top of a warehouse (long walk up them stairs) in Shorts Gardens called City Lights. It was run by aguy called Tommy Roberts who everyone use to call Tommy Freedom. He ran Mr Freedom prior to that in Kensington and closed it down and reopened in Covent Garden. I went in their one day and both Brian Ferry and Jerry Hall were in there. One of his well known items was the suit he made for David Bowie which cam in two colours a pale Green and Brown. Bowie wears the Brown one on the back cover of the pinups album. I bought a suit which was dark blue and had a white fleck in it. A couple of weeks later they had a Gatsby contest at the Lyceum (always a competition between north and south Londoners) and wore the suit and won 50 quid. I eventually bought the Bowie Suit Jacket in Pale Green. All the best, Chris