Topless Swimsuits and Dresses

Rudi Gernreich, like Mary Quant, was a free spirit in the fashion world. Although he was more of a high-end designer than the youthful Mod fashionistas, he was not stuffy like the French and Italian couture designers of the Sixties.

Gernreich embraced simple lines and youthful styles, and produced many innovative, and sometimes controversial designs. In 1964 he made headlines with his infamous topless bathing suit that exposed breasts for the first time in commercial fashion.

The topless swimsuit - as modelled by muse Peggy Moffitt - became an international controversy. It was THE symbol of women's liberation. As Gernreich once stated, "in fashion as well as every other facet of life."

The topless swimsuit soon led to the topless dress, and also gave birth to another revolution, the no-bra bra. This did much to change the fit of clothes.

Compared to the brassieres of the day, which Gernreich likened to 'party hats that you put on your head on New Year's Eve', the no-bra bra produced a 'natural look and feel that freed women from padding and boning'!