Almost Famous

As a teenager, I just didn't get the Seventies. The epitome of retro style, as far as I was concerned, could be found concentrated between 1930 and 1959 (I also had a problem accepting that Sixties fashion was ever cool - blame Austin Powers.)

The flares, the tassels, the hippy-trippy headscarves and crazy platform boots. To me, the Seventies represented the absolute dregs of a naff fancy dress shop. My Mum, although a child of the Seventies, is also a compulsive de-clutterer, and nothing remains in her wardrobe for more than about a year. So the only evidence of her stylish teenagedom was a Laura Ashley skirt and a fur coat; not exactly the foundations of a fashion archive.

A classic Laura Ashley smock dress - any 17 year old's idea of hell.

My initial indifference towards this era turned to repulsion after a trend for Afghan coats in about 2003 produced a slew of high street copies, which ended up on the bedroom floors of my contemporaries. Afghan (or mock Afghan, more to the point) is incredibly hard to keep clean, as it's shaggy tendrils catch every mite of grime in the vicinity. Combine that with the heady behaviour of non-too-hygienic teenage girls and all their joyous experimentation with smelly substances of all kinds, and you get a very stinky coat. Hence, my aversion to everything Seventies continued.

And then, one day, everything changed. It's hard to believe I haven't written about Almost Famous before - it might just be a movie, but it actually changed my life.

The music, the story, the free spirited attitude of characters determined to live their lives right now, all hooked me in. Truth be told, it was the hero's story that made me change universities to study journalism; so that one day I could tell the world the truth about what really happened. Penny Lane - what an icon. No wonder Kate Hudson hasn't done anything good since, how do you top the perfect portrayal of a Seventies Band Aid?

Since that fateful day, my adoration of true Seventies rock-groupie style has simply grown stronger. Aided and abetted by the fact that Studio 54 is currently the reference point for every designer going, it has been easy to fuel my addiction. A friend of mine at House of Fraser even sent me this picture of the ever delectable Daisy Lowe, looking hawt as the ultimate Biba chick. Nice bit of eye candy for the desktop...ahem.

I have been trawling my favourite vintage emporiums for suitably Stevie Nicks-esque attire (all in the name of research) but in the end, the noble steed that is eBay came to my rescue. You know everyone has their incredible 'wow what a magical bargain' item from the Bay? Well, this is mine, and after years of failed bidding wars, I am damn proud, goshdarnit!

Now all I need are some flowers in my hair, a Stillwater t-shirt and a boy in a band...(1 and 3, check, the t-shirt; a little more tricky) Find me this summer in a festival field near you, rocking out like a bonafide Band Aid. Peace out, man.

GL

Images: Laura Ashley archive, Almost Famous, BIBA, George Langford