Tomorrow's Heirlooms : Women's Fashions of the '60s & '70s

Polyester's popularity in the 1960s and 1970s ushered in distinctive new styles in colorful print designs.

Enthusiastic descriptions are given for hundreds of cheerful dresses, jumpsuits, bellbottoms, hotpants, and disco clothes.

The social issues of the times are described to help interpret the moods that helped to popularize these new styles.

You will delight in the variety displayed, from the pretty and conservative designs of the early 1960s to the granny dresses, patchwork designs, paisley patterns, and flag fashions of the 1970s. "Vintage" clothing is differentiated from "retro," and original designs by Emilio Pucci, Oscar de la Renta, Geoffrey Beene, Diane Von Furstenberg, Lilly Pulitzer, and others are showcased.

A foreword by Richard Martin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute gives a nostalgic first-hand summary of this colorful era.