The story of my vintage Georgina von Etzdorf tie

“What do ties matter, Jeeves, at a time like this?
There is no time, sir, at which ties do not matter”
― P.G. Wodehouse

When we moved to London in the autumn of 1989, I decided that I needed a couple of new ties. Soon I found two nice ones in a shop - the newly opened Georgina von Etzdorf shop - on Sloane Street in Chelsea, close to where we lived.

At the time I was not aware of the fact that Georgina already was a big name in the London fashion world. The Georgina von Etzdorf web page tells us why:

"When the Donald Campbell dress made from GvE´s ´Poppy´ for the Princess of Wales attracted world wide attention, the partners never needed to advertise."

"Journalists delight in naming celebrities who wear GvE designs"

Among the celebrities were e.g. The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Robin Williams, The Pet Shop Boys and Kylie Minogue ...

Read more here.

Here are a couple of details of my first von Etzdorf tie, which still is my favourite one:

For those interested in more information:

"Etzdorf was born in 1955 in Lima, Peru, to a Prussian father and an English mother. She lived in Peru till the age of five, when her family returned to Britain. She has often claimed that her early years in Peru strongly influenced her dynamic sense of colour and texture.
Etzdorf studied textile design at Camberwell School of Art in London, graduating in 1977. At Camberwell she met Martin Simcock, who later joined her as one of the co-founders and partners of the Georgina von Etzdorf label. The third co-founder and partner was Jonathan Docherty, who studied industrial design at the Central School of Art and Design in London and who had been a school friend of Simcock's
Etzdorf spent several years as a freelance designer before she, Simcock, and Docherty founded the Georgina von Etzdorf Partnership in 1981, basing themselves originally in a garage and stable at Etzdorf’s parents’ house, where they set up a silk screen printing workshop. Their plan was originally to produce fabric for third-party fashion houses, but they took the decision to produce in-house because of their failure to find commercial printers willing to adapt their processes to the challenge of printing Etzdorf’s designs.
In 1984 the Georgina von Etzdorf fashion label made its first appearance at the autumn London Designer shows previewing accessories, scarves and ties. In 1985 the partnership produced its first full clothing collection.
In 1986 Georgina von Etzdorf opened a first London shop in Burlington Arcade. That was followed in 1988 by a second shop, off Sloane Street in Chelsea. By the mid-1990s the company was selling in 400 shops in 25 countries around the world, and had a concession in both Barney’s in New York and Selfridges in London. In addition to its signature scarves and ties, the company diversified into a wide range of men’s and women’s wear, such as dinner jackets, dressing gowns, sleepwear, shoes, gloves, belts, hats, and also household items such as kelims and cushions."  (Wikipedia)