Mystic Nylons
Researching fashion history is an interesting process. One of my favourite ways to do it is to spend time in the library sifting through old Irish newspapers, magazines and reference books. Because so much of my research is focused on the streets and fashion businesses of Dublin I usually start with the name of a business and look for printed historical sources to find out more. Printed ephemera along with the actual space and architectural heritage left on a building can really open knowledge on the subject but it does take time. And sometimes it works the other way around, an interesting illustration or name of a store or designer catches my eye, I record it with my camera or my iPhone and continue about my business, that is until the research comes back looking for me.
I snapped the above advert for Mystic Nylons in the 1950s Irish magazine Creation and added it to Instagram back in September. I loved the illustration and slogan so much I had to share it. But low and behold a short time later in October while working on an another amazing project the ‘real life’ untouched packet of mystic nylons were handed to me as a gift. So what would you call this? Coincidence, serendipity, calling on the fashion history gods? Whatever you call it it certainly gave me the shivers – one thing is for sure these nylons really are mystic!
And so now I’m thinking as the fashion history gods have answered what do I want to call to me next?
“Nothing can flatter your legs like the magic of mystic nylons.”
