Textiles, fashion & fibre: useful websites

The Internet is increasingly a good source of reference for both academic and visual information. Listed below are links to some of the key websites for your subject area, including designers, organisations and subject gateways.  Advice on how to evaluate websites can be found on the Internet Detective site.

If you have any ideas for other websites for inclusion, please contact your subject librarian.

Clicking on any of the categories below will link you to a list of relevant websites:

Selected sites

Title URL & Description
Beverley Birks Couture Collection Website of the Beverley Birks couture and accessories collection which also includes examples of early 19th century fashion prints taken from Journal des Dames et des Modes
Constance Howard Resource and Research Centre in Textiles The Centre is dedicated to the research and study of textiles within a broader context of visual and material culture and has a collection of over 4,000 pieces of textile, some very special commissioned teaching samples, Japanese techno-fabrics, and tiny fragments of lace and embroidery. Includes searchable database of images
Cordwainers College Historic Shoe Collection Description and images of this collection of around 650 items (consisting largely of women's shoes) which spans the period 1780-1990
Cornell Costume and Textile Collection Photo gallery and searchable database which provides information on over 9,000 items of apparel dating from the 18th century to the present day
Couturiere Parisienne La Couturiere Parisienne historical costume and fashion site, including rococo fashion and patterns from the mid-nineteenth century
Fashion Capital Aims to provide a one-stop online support resource for all areas of the Clothing and Fashion industry. Includes business directory and details of forthcoming events
Fashion-era Contains over 100 pages of illustrated page of fashion history, costume history, clothing, textiles and fashion history
Fashion Window  Website on fashion, mannequins and visual merchandising
London College of Fashion: the Woolmark Company Collection of digitized promotional photographs of garments produced by the Woolmark Company from the 1940s through to the 1980s.  Includes designs by Pierre Cardin, Yves St Laurent, Chrisitian Dior, Chloe, Guy Laroche, Nina Ricci and Mary Quant.
London Fashion Week London Fashion Week's official website, produced by the British Fashion Council
National Electronic and Video Archive of the Crafts NEVAC gathers materials which will act as a resource for those researching the nature of the Crafts. These materials are characteristically in the form of digital video and sound recordings of people who have been intimately associated with the development of the Crafts in Britain
Rankin Official website of the photographer which includes an extensive gallery of images
SHOWstudio A fashion broadcasting initiative that invites leading practitioners from the fields of art, fashion and design to create and exhibit new work that engages with the themes of motion image and interactivity
Style.com W and Vogue magazines team up to provide fashion show coverage and trend reports
The Textile Collection  Digital resource providing images of the 3,000+ artefacts held in the University of the Creative Art's Textile Collection.   Each image has been carefully created to describe the particular qualities of its subject - expressing the fold and drape of a textile; communicating the fibre, structure and finish of woven cloths; and illustrating pattern, repeat and scale in printed fabrics.
Visionaire Visionaire is a limited edition album of fashion and art which, since its inception in the Spring of 1991, has offered a forum for works for both famous and emerging artists from around the world as well as fashion designers, art directors and image-makers. Issues of Visionaire produced since 1994 are held by Winchester School of Art Library
Yesterknits Large collection of vintage knitting and crochet patterns to buy, site includes picture library and  free patterns

Designers

Title  Description
Agnes B High Street store - recent collection of clothes/accessories - location of shops - news/press
Alexander McQueen  current and past runway collections - biography - stockists
Ally Capellino Current and past runway collections - biography - stockists
Anna Sui Recent runway collections - information about other products - perfume - links - stockists
Anya Hindmarch Bags - how to get involved with her "Be a Bag" project where you have your own image put onto a bag - biography - stockists
Giorgio Armani Lists all aspects of Armarni - current and past runway shows
Burberry Images of recent collections - history consisting of a timeline
Chanel Current and past runway shows - comprehensive history - stockists
Christian Dior Current and past shows - history of fashion house - biography of designers - other products inc. beauty and perfume
Christian Lacroix Images of current and past collections - stockists - recruitment information
Diesel Contemporary website - shows all ranges of clothes - women/men/children
DKNY Website fashioned as though it is a film - online shopping
Dolce and Gabbana Details of collections - stockists - all ranges inc. children
Donna Karan Images of current and recent runway collections - stockists
Elspeth Gibson Images of current and past collections - history - stockists
Emma Cook Images of current and past runway collections - stockists
Gina Designer shoes - details of current collection - history - bridal shoes
Gucci Details of current and recent collections - accessories - online purchasing - good history of fashion house with good images
Jimmy Choo Designer shoes - full details of current collection - prices - bridal shoes - stockists
John Galliano Images of current and recent runway collections - stores - other influences - animation
Lulu Guinness Selection of recent collection - contact information - press
Marc Jacobs Images from current catwalk collection - biography of designer - accessories - stores
Paul Smith  Images of current runway collections - history - details of other products - collection archive dating from 1996
Philip Treacy Designer hats - images of recent collections - handbags - haute couture hats - biography - stockists
Stella McCartney Images of current and recent runway collections - biography - designers inspirational "scrapbook"
Vivienne Westwood  Images of current and recent collections
Zac Posen Archive of collections - list of retailers - press bibliography

Shops

Title Description
Accessorize High street accessories store - new products - news - history of store - store locations
Agent Provocateur Underwear store - Well produced website - underwear - corsets - history of company
APC French clothing store - men/women/children - store guide - online catalogue
Benetton Clothing store - men/women/children - store locations
Boden Mail order company - men/women/children - online shopping
Cath Kidston Home furnishings and accessories - wallpaper and fabric gallery - online catalogue - store finder - company news
Clarks Current footwear and accessories collections - company history - store locator
Debenhams High street department store - online shopping - information about products - history of store
Dune High street shoe store - current collection - press reports
Faith High street shoe store - online shopping - full collection - prices - history
Fleur t Mail order underwear - outline of company
Gap High street store - men/women/children - online shopping
Harrods London department store - online shopping
Harvey Nichols Department store - details of products/brands - history of store - no online shopping
Hobbs Clothing store - womenswear and footwear - images of collections - store locator
Jaeger Clothing store - women and menswear - good company history - expert advice on caring for different fabrics
Jigsaw
Clothing store - women and childrenswear - latest collections - online shop - store finder
John Lewis Department store - online shopping - fashion/home/children/electrical products etc - department store locations - information on company
Karen Millen Clothing store - information on company - different products - no images of clothes
Marks and Spencer High street store - online shopping - information about different products - specific section on information for students - history of the company
Monsoon  Women and men's collections - online shopping - store guide
Office High street shoe store - online shopping - store guide
People Tree Fair Trade and ecology retailer selling goods from the developing world - menswear/womenswear - online shopping
Polo Ralph Lauren's company - online shopping - all ranges of fashions inc. children
Reiss High street clothing store - menswear/womenswear - images of current collections - no online shopping - store guide
Rigby and Peller Underwear store - corsets - history of company
Russell and Bromley High street shoe store - images of current collections - good history with images of shoes from 1920-1950
Selfridges Department store - details of different products - location of stores
Toast Mail order catalogue - men/women/accessories
Topshop High street store - details of new products - collection of clothes - catwalk shows
Zara High street store - online catalogue - store locator


Ethical design

Title Description
Centre for Sustainable Fashion  Based at the London College of Fashion, The Centre for Sustainable Fashion seeks to connect research, education and business to support, inspire and create innovative approaches to fashion that balance ecology, society and culture
Ethical Fashion Forum  A not-for-profit network focusing upon social and environmental sustainability in the fashion industry.
Fair Wear Foundation  Set up by various interested parties and stakeholders from the fashion industry, FWF supports and promotes good labour conditions in garment production
Fashioning an Ethical Industry  A Labour Behind the Label project that works with students and tutors on fashion related courses to give a global overview of the garment industry, raise awareness of current company practices and of initiatives to improve conditions
No Sweat  Activist, campaigning organisation whose aim is to fight against the exploitation of sweatshop workers

 

Museums & galleries

Title Description
British Museum Provides highlights from the museum's ethnographic costume and textiles collections
Fashion Museum Provides information on the collections, exhibitions and events held at the museum
Fashion and Textile Museum Opened in London in 2003, the mission of the Fashion and Textile Museum is to exhibit the immense changes in contemporary fashion and textiles and educate a wide audience in all areas of fashion and textile design
Geffrye Museum Displays the changing style of English domestic interiors from 1600 to the present day
Hampshire County Museum Service Links to information on the historic dress and textile collections held in Hampshire's museums
Imperial War Museum Selected objects from the Museum's collection of wartime uniforms and flags are available to view online
Museum of Childhood Useful for information and images of knitted toys, dolls clothes and children's costume
Museum of Design and Domestic Architecture Introduction to the MoDA's collection of nineteenth and and twentieth century decorative arts for the home, includes online access to its collections catalogue
Pitt Rivers Museum The Pitt Rivers displays archaeological and ethnographic objects from all parts of the world and holds a large number of textiles within its collections
Shetland Museum Holds the definitive collection of shetland textiles including shetland lace knitting and Fair Isle garments
Victoria & Albert Museum Includes pages on the Dress Collection at the V & A and Fashion in Motion
Whitworth Museum Manchester-based Museum which holds one of the strongest collections of both historic and contemporary textiles outside of London

Organisations

Title URL & Description
62 Group Website of the 62 Group of Textile Artists, which was established in 1962 to provide opportunities for professional textile artists to exhibit and promote their work, to develop public awareness and to raise the profile of Textile Art, gaining an international reputation through the success of its exhibitions
British Council The British Council promotes arts, literature and design from Britain, around the world
British Textile Technology Group

Independent textile research organisation whose website provides industry news and information
Crafts Council Promoting the contemporary crafts in Britain, an independent organisation funded by government and providing services to craftspeople and the public
Design Council Promoting the effective use of design by the UK, in the world context, in business, in education and in government
Design Research Society Free international monthly email newsletter with information on design and design research published by the Design Research Society
European Textile Network The Network consists of three independent organisations working in close coordination - ETN Association, NET Cultural Foundation, and Textile Forum - all with textile specialisms
Premiere Vision Premiere Vision holds its salon twice a year at the Parc des Expositions, Paris-Nord Villepinte, showing the best and most creative of European fabrics and promoting worldwide the European clothing fabric industry
Textile Institute Website of the worldwide professional association for people working with fibres and fabrics, clothing and footwear, interior and technical textiles

Gateways

Title Description
24 Hour Museum Website which seeks to promote publicly funded UK museums, galleries and heritage attractions. Offers daily arts and museum news, exhibition reviews and has a searchable database covering over 3000 museum sites
Costume Page  Costume resources online, including reference works, museums and organisations
Fabric Link The educational resource for fabrics, apparel, home furnishings and care
Fashion Angel Gateway to fashion sites on the web
Fashion Forum The online guide to the fashion, textile and accessories industry
Fashion Net Leading fashion website featuring a fashion-specific search engine and direct access to fashion and beauty sites
First View Fashion designer collections online
Intute: Arts & Humanities Free online guide to high quality art & design sites on the Web
i Page Web resources for art and design produced by the libraries of the London Institute
Textile Source Information gateway to the textile industry
Textile Web Offers a free online newsletter on products, services and industry news
Wikipedia Free online encyclopaedia which provides information on a large number of subjects relating to fashion and textile design

Image websites

Title Description
Finding Images on the Web Our guide to some of the key websites providing access to images, including search engines, galleries and commercial sites