
1970s · 1970s · British
Designer
Lee Bender for Bus Stop
Production
ready-to-wear
Material
woven cotton
Culture
British
Movement
Hippie / Counterculture
Influences
1940s playsuit silhouette · mod color blocking
A vibrant striped beach playsuit featuring a deep V-neck bodice with four dark buttons down the center front. The garment displays bold vertical stripes in alternating bands of grey, hot pink, and orange cotton. The fitted bodice transitions to attached shorts with a flared, almost skirt-like silhouette. Wide shoulder straps frame the plunging neckline, while the shorts portion sits at mid-thigh length. The striped pattern runs continuously from bodice to shorts, creating visual unity. This piece exemplifies 1970s resort wear with its bold color palette, body-conscious fit, and playful proportions typical of the era's beach fashion.
Follow this garment wherever the graph leads
Lineage: “1970s high-cut leg opening”
These two pieces reveal how the 1970s democratized leisure dressing, turning the humble stripe into a badge of casual rebellion. The British playsuit's riot of orange, pink, and grey bands creates an almost psychedelic energy that the French swimsuit distills into disciplined burgundy pinstripes—same counterculture DNA, but one screams while the other whispers.
Lineage: “1940s playsuit silhouette”