Fashions – Gown of the Year 1962 by Rona Gregory (McLaughlan)
This was 19 year old Rona Gregory’s first entry into Gown of the Year 1962 which launched her label Interlude Creations.
The gown was pure white and had long sleeves.
The fabric was sponsored by Crestknit, the new stretch fabrics which had just arrived on the scene.
A trip to the movies with Lily is a chance to document some fashion history. Here she’s wearing a 1960s mini dress by Rona Gregory under her label “Interlude by Rona”.
Gregory was part of the ‘explosion’ of young designers at the time and operated out of a bohemian style workroom in Fitzroy.
(From an article written in 1966)
“The ‘explosion’ of young designers in the fashion trade has brought with it a pride of position rare with older manufactures, and this pride is expressed in their really charming offices and showrooms…their avant garde attitude is that if employees enjoy fresh, clean surroundings, their output and pride in their work is directly affected, and the material rewards ensue from a greater effort put in by staff.
Recently (we) visited the new address of young manufacturer Rona Gregory, who is now in her third year in the industry. Under the name of Interlude Creations, she has established a distinctive place in after-five wear…She has created an inviting and charming salon with orange silk curtains hanging over the existing archways, an antique clock and table, gold striped, black wallpaper, suspended lantern, and gold toned carpet.
There has been a long outcry in the trade about the difficulty of finding and keeping staff. With today’s young people glamour-minded it would seem that the answer to this problem is to give them surroundings in which they will enjoy working”
Rona left the fashion industry to pursue a different kind of business in retail shoes with her husband, Ian McLaughlan at McLaughlan’s Comfort Shoes at The Mall in West Heidelberg.
