Vivienne Westwood

Mini-Crini compressed the volume of the nineteenth-century crinoline into an abbreviated, collapsible hoop worn with fitted bodices and sharply shortened skirts. Presented in Paris in October 1985, the collection also introduced forms that became durable Westwood signatures, including the rocking-horse shoe and the Orb already visible on period labels.

Mini-Crini is variously dated to Spring/Summer 1985 and Spring/Summer 1986. Its October 1985 presentation places it at a pivotal point in Westwood’s independent development, when historical dress became a fully articulated contemporary design language.