Jacket

This jacket was bought by Kim Philpotts in the early 1990s. Philpotts has donated a number of items of clothing to the museum, and her collection provides an interesting insight into one woman's wardrobe during the 1980s and 1990s. This jacket was normally worn by Philpotts with Katharine Hamnett trousers (also within the museum's collection), and a white or black body by Betty Jackson or Wolford, which would have been bought at Hooper's department store.

Philpotts grew up in Stratford Upon Avon in the 1960s, and studied Set and Costume Design in Birmingham before moving to London in 1982. Her clothing represents fashionable designer and high street clothing in London during this period, and while the receipts for these items have since been lost, Philpotts can still remember where many of them were bought.

Katharine Hamnett, a British designer, studied fashion at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design in London, and launched her own label in 1979. Her first store was opened in 1986 at Brompton Cross, followed by a store in Sloane Street, Knightsbridge, in 1988. Hamnett is now best known for her ethical business philosophy, her oversized t-shirts bearing political statements, and her experimentation with denim.