The Founder of 20th Century Fashion : Lady Duff-Gordon

Lucy Christiana Sutherland, widely known as Lady Duff-Gordon or by the professional name Lucile, was a leading British fashion designer in the late 19th and 20th centuries. Born on the 13th June 1863, Lady Duff-Gordon was raised in Canada after her father's death from typhoid fever. In 1871 her mother remarried to the bachelor David Kennedy and they moved as a family to the Isle of Jersey. As a child she acquired her love for fashion by dressing her collection of dolls, studying gowns worn by women in family paintings as well as making clothes for herself and her sister Elinor. However, Lucy only started working in the fashion industry after her divorce from her first marriage to James Stuart Wallace in 1893, as a dressmaker, so that she could support her daughter. As at the time, divorces were rarely seen in court and were rarely accepted to the homes of ladies of society.

Lucy was known for being a great businesswoman and designer and in 1894 she opened her first premises (Maison Lucile) at 24 Old Burlington Street at the West End, despite being largely self-taught. As her name became widely known, the demand for a larger store was present. Lucy opened a larger store at 17 Hanover Square in Westminster in 1897 before moving again to 14 George Street in Oxford. Although Lucy married again in 1900 to Duff Gordon, she kept her business which in 1903 was incorporated as Lucile LTD. As her business continued to expand, stores opened in New York City in 1910, Paris in 1911 and Chicago in 1915. Lucile became the first leading couture house to have branches in three different countries. Evidently Lucy was the first British based designer to achieve international acclaim and was widely acknowledged as an innovator in couture styles and public relations.

The brand Lucile was most famous for its lingerie pieces, tea gowns and evening wear although the couture house did offer simple tailored suits and day wear as well. Lady Duff-Gordon is credited as the founder of 20th century fashion as she created the epitome of sexy chic. Lucile gave women freedom when it came to restrictive underwear as the brand popularized less restrictive corsets and promoted alluring and pared down lingerie. As well as this, Lucile created new silhouettes for women. Being known for her romantic and feminine designs, Lady Duff Gordon designed skirts with slits as well as tops and dresses with low necklines to empower the female body.

However, you may be thinking what on earth does this designer have to do with the evolution of the catwalk? Well Lady Duff-Gordon founded the mannequin parade in 1900 when she launched her first fashion parade to open the new Maison Lucile at 23 Hanover Square. Her runways were theatrically inspired and were invitation only. They consisted of teatime presentations, using a large stage with curtains as well as mood lighting to present Lucile's latest collections. The parades were accompanied by string band music and at the end of the show gifts and programmes were given to the guests. Lady Duff-Gordon trained the first professional fashion models that were referred to as mannequins, acting as a precursor to the modern fashion show.

To create further awareness for Lucile, Lucy promoted her collections journalistically. She wrote monthly columns for Harper's Bazaar and had a weekly syndicating fashion page for Hearst Newspaper. Her designs regularly appeared in Vogue as the designer made it big at the time because of her belief to dress women "from the inside out". Lucile often dressed royalty as well as film personalities including Mary Pickford and she became the first designer to dress stars on and off stage.

After having survived the tragic event of the Titanic in 1912, sadly Lady Duff-Gordon passed away due to breast cancer on the 20th of April 1935. Lucile LTD unfortunately dissolved after Lucy stopped designing for the label in 1922 although her presence in the fashion industry remains.

Sources: Victoria and Albert Museum : Archive of Art and Design, Lucile Fashion Designer.

Image Credits : Cover Image - Getty. Lady Duff-Gordon's latest styles - St.Louis Post-Dispatch, April 6th 1918, women's page. Daily Magazine. Magazine Page - 1913 The Star Company, The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Page.